Two Orange County lawsuits accusing charities of embezzling millions in COVID relief dollars have been moved to a San Diego County court. Supervisor Andrew Do’s daughter is a defendant in one of the civil lawsuits.
The lawsuits, one against Viet America Society and multiple defendants connected with the organization, including Rhiannon Do, and the other against Hand to Hand Relief Organization, were merged and sent to San Diego County Superior Court Judge Katherine A. Bacal, according to Orange County court records.
The records reviewed Wednesday by The Orange County Register do not specify a reason for the move, but Supervisor Do’s wife and Rhiannon Do’s mother, Cheri Pham, is the assistant presiding judge of the Orange County bench.
Pham, the heir apparent for the presiding judge post, notified her colleagues in July that she would not be seeking the top job during an internal election in October. She did not give a reason.
“After careful consideration, I have decided not to run for office in the upcoming election,” Pham wrote in a July 1 email to the bench. “This was not an easy decision. It has been an honor to serve our court in the APJ (assistant presiding judge) role. … I look forward to continuing to contribute to our court’s mission and to our community.”
The county alleged in the separate lawsuits filed this month that Viet America Society and some of its leaders “brazenly plundered” more than $10 million and Hand to Hand “audaciously pillaged” another $3 million – nearly all money that was supposed to be spent on feeding disabled and elderly residents at the height of the pandemic.
Most of the money was directed to the charities by Supervisor Do, through his First District discretionary fund. The supervisor is not named as a defendant in either of the lawsuits.
The lawsuits allege the defendants with Viet America Society and Hand to Hand misused the funds for their own benefit. Viet America Society is accused in the suit of funneling money toward the defendants for the purchase of real estate, including Rhiannon’s $1 million house in Tustin. The county lawsuit alleges Hand to Hand leaders invested part of the funds in their own businesses.
Neither organization has provided documentation or required audits showing the money was properly spent, despite multiple requests, county.
The county is seeking damages of at least $10.4 million from Viet America Society and an unspecified amount from Hand to Hand in the lawsuits. In previous demand letters it sought at least $4 million back from Viet America Society and $3 million from Hand to Hand.
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Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento said Wednesday he would have preferred the cases stay in Orange County court, since they involve Orange County taxpayers.
“However, I understand there may be other factors that require cases be moved to a different jurisdiction to ensure a fair and unbiased process,” Sarmiento said.
Supervisor Don Wagner said he is confident the San Diego court will handle the case “expeditiously.”
“I still hope the entities and their principals will prove that the county money went to feed hungry people as required by the contract,” Wagner said. “If not, that they do the right thing and promptly return the money.”
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