Medical marijuana, problems with the homeless and issues affecting neighborhood quality of life were discussed on Monday during a community meeting held by Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer and neighborhood prosecutor Mehrnoosh “Nooshi” Zahiri met with community members on Monday. (photo by Edwin Folven)

Feuer organized the meeting to introduce the local community’s new neighborhood prosecutor, Mehrnoosh “Nooshi” Zahiri, who works at the Los Angeles Police Department’s Wilshire Division. She serves as a liaison between the community, the police department and the city attorney’s office.

“We have been conducting these meetings throughout the city of Los Angeles to introduce the neighborhood prosecutors and present an opportunity for a real conversation among us,” Feuer said. “When I ran for city attorney, I said I would focus on neighborhoods, and we are doing that in a number of ways.”

The neighborhood prosecutor program was established prior to Feuer taking office, but the number of prosecutors had dwindled because of budget cuts. Feuer said he has revamped the program and tripled the number of neighborhood prosecutors, assigning one to each LAPD division throughout the city.

Zahiri said she is proud to be assigned to the Wilshire Division, and has enjoyed working closely with law enforcement personnel and meeting with members of the community.

She attended UCLA and the Southwestern School of Law, and previously worked for the firm Dapeer, Rosenblit and Litvak LLP, which contracts with cities in Los Angeles County to provide prosecutorial services.

Zahiri said she previously handled legal matters related to building code enforcement, blight and graffiti, and is eager to address community members’ concerns. Zahiri can be reached at (213)978-2220, or by email mehrnoosh.zahiri@lacity.org.

The neighborhood prosecutor will directly address problems such as graffiti, illegal dumping, drug sales, prostitution and other quality of life issues. The program follows the “broken windows” theory, which calls for minor problems to be addressed before they become larger issues.

“When I saw the position was open, I knew this was exactly where I wanted to be,” Zahiri said. “I promise to give it my all so I can help and contribute in any way I can.”

Feuer discussed his efforts to curb medical marijuana dispensaries, and said authorities are aware of 32 dispensaries currently operating in the Wilshire area. Eleven are eligible for potential immunity from prosecution under Prop. D because they opened and registered with the city prior to a 2007 moratorium, and six are currently the subject of criminal cases filed by the city attorney’s office. As for the other 15 dispensaries, “we are in some state of working with them” to force their closure, Feuer said. He added that an additional 44 dispensaries have closed in the Wilshire area since he took office.

“From a year ago, when it was the Wild, Wild West, I can tell you with specificity that the number that have shut down is tremendous progress,” Feuer said. “There is no way for me to tell in advance when someone starts an illegal activity, but once they open, I need your help in identifying dispensaries. If you see a dispensary and doubt it’s there legitimately, call us.”

Feuer said he will continue to investigate and prosecute illegal dispensaries, and is taking a deliberate and steady approach. Approximately 130 dispensaries may be eligible for immunity from prosecution under Prop. D, so it will likely take time to address all of the illegal dispensaries throughout the city.

“We are tenacious about following through,” Feuer added. “We are on it until it is finished. We are not going to let up.”

Feuer also addressed homelessness at the meeting, and said he is in the process of identifying ways to address problems while respecting the rights of individuals as human beings.

“This is a very complicated issue for all of us,” Feuer said. “We need more places for people to live, we need more mental health treatment, we need more drug treatment and we need more alcohol treatment. It’s a challenge for all of us together.”

Feuer illustrated the challenge through a story about a homeless woman who has been living on Skid Row for years. He said representatives of his office first attempted to force her to move off the streets through criminal filings, and later contacted the woman’s family in an effort to get their support. Even after family members came to her aid and the city lined up an apartment in which she could live, the woman refused to move off the streets.

“We are not going to give up on her,” Feuer added. “People who are homeless deserve extraordinary effort from us to get them homes. That’s where I am coming from in this job. Our office is trying to come up with all kinds of creative ways to change [things].”

Feuer added that his office addresses criminal problems created by homeless individuals, and the neighborhood prosecutors are a first line of defense for community members. Zahiri will field complaints and pass the information along to law enforcement, or other city agencies that can address specific issues on a case-by-case basis.

“Nooshi is a good one-stop shop. We want to be as responsive as we can in providing clear instructions,” Feuer said. “If any of you have issues of any kind, I want you to bring it to Nooshi.”