Despite citizen efforts to get a temporary restraining order, a judge recently ruled that Palm Springs can go ahead and remove the statue of former Mayor Frank Bogert from in front of City Hall, News Channel 3 (KESQ) reports.
The planned removal was met with controversy, with several citizens protesting and a group called Friends of Frank Bogert filing a petition to save the statue of the former cowboy mayor. In a legal decision that settled the matter on June 3, a judge gave the city the green light it needed to move the statue, according to KESQ.
“The time has come to relocate the statue," Negie Bogert, the former mayor's widow, told KESQ. "Sadly, by continuing to drag residents through this fight, our leaders risk further tearing this city apart."
The removal initially was set to take place the morning of May 17, however local residents sat at the base of the statue all day. Among the protesters was local veteran Amado Salinas, who said he knew Frank Bogert and considered him "an honest man."
Taking the fight to court, the Friends of Frank Bogert filed a temporary restraining order to keep the statue in place, KESQ reports.
The June 3 court decision came after a 30-minute hearing that upheld an initial ruling on the matter and allowed the statue's removal. The attorney representing the Friends of Frank Bogert, Rod Pachecho, had hoped the court wouldn't make a decision until after a full hearing could be held. The hearing would have taken about 90 days, he told KESQ.
The city wants to remove the statue due to Bogert's controversial status. KESQ first reported on the story when a petition with hundreds of signatures called for the removal due to Bogert's alleged involvement in the infamous Section 14 incident. During Bogert's term as mayor, a "slum clearing" of section 14 took place, displacing a community of low-income people and people of color in order to make room for hotels.