Private Armenian school wins Glendale suit

Ron Billing, a city building inspector, testified that the exits were blocked by chairs stacked in a hallway. Additionally, he said, the fire alarm system needed replacement batteries. In an earlier declaration used to support the temporary restraining order that resulted in the school's closure, he said the problems were more severe, claiming, in part, that there was no fire system at all.

Billing, who has been in Glendale for 10 years, “did not display the level of knowledge, expertise, objectivity or veracity expected from a government official,” Milton wrote, noting Billing acknowledged that the 2010 declaration was partially false.

The judge added that some witnesses, including Fuentes, were “not candid during all court proceedings due to fear of retaliation” by the city.

The school moved to several other locations after being shut down. It is now operating in Los Angeles, although it has lost all but roughly 25 of its original 300 students.

“Our client was fully and completely vindicated,” said Richard Foster, the school's attorney. “As demonstrated by the decision, the city's misconduct was outrageous, dishonest and prevalent, reaching to the highest levels.”

Foster added that the school plans to ask a judge to require the city to pay its attorney's fees.

A financial analyst testified that over 10 years, the school could have made $2.75 million. Milton divided that to cover the first six months after the building was yellow-tagged.

Garcia disagreed with the monetary damages, adding that the city's decisions did not constitute a “taking” of property because they did not deprive the owners of economically viable use of their property.

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