Garcetti advisor made sexually provocative gesture in photo with mayor

A photograph showing one of Mayor Eric Garcetti’s closest advisors making a sexually provocative gesture, while the mayor stands nearby, raises new questions about Garcetti’s contention that he had no knowledge of inappropriate behavior by former Deputy Chief of Staff Rick Jacobs. The mayor in July called Jacobs “a committed public servant” and said he should be able to continue working for the nonprofit Mayor’s Fund while the sexual harassment allegations were investigated. “Not only did the mayor take no action to stop it, he refused to acknowledge it.” The statement went on to say that Garcetti “expressed no concern for the many ways” in which Jacobs’ alleged abuse affected the employees’ workplace interactions and “damaged our emotional well-being.” All three of the former employees acknowledged that they never brought their concerns about the alleged sexual misconduct directly to Garcetti. “He expressed no concern for the many ways in which Jacobs’ abuse affected our workplace interactions and damaged our emotional well-being.” Confronted with claims about Garcetti’s inaction, the mayor’s office emailed an additional response. “I have never witnessed any sexual harassment by Rick Jacobs and I was not told about any allegation until the Garza lawsuit,” Garcetti’s statement said.