THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 1999

Zagustin begins jail sentence

By Sharon Christensen

On-Line Forty-Niner

SANTA ANA - Cal State Long Beach engineering professor Elena Zagustin began a five-day jail stay Wednesday night by showing up 35 minutes late.

Zagustin had been found in contempt of court Jan. 28 and was ordered to pay a $1,000 fine and serve five days in Orange County jail in Santa Ana starting at 6 p.m. Wednesday.

Superior Court Judge Ted Millard found Zagustin in contempt during a civil trial brought by her neighbors regarding the conditions of her Huntington Harbour residence.

David Flynn, Zagustin's neighbor and a plaintiff in the civil case, said, "Personally I don't care [if she goes to jail], we just want the house foreclosed."

Millard had ordered the foreclosure and sale of the property Jan. 28 to pay the $350,000 award won by Zagustin's neighbors.

Zagustin was found guilty last December in Westminster Municipal Court of 69 counts of city, health and safety code violations arising from the conditions in and around her home, including exposed wiring, trash and debris blocking doorways and lack of running water.

The criminal case against Zagustin, filed by the Huntington Beach City Attorney's Office, resulted in a $200 fine, court-ordered psychological evaluations, three years of probation and a 90-day jail sentence, all of which was reversed when Municipal Court Judge Robert Gallivan noted improvement in Zagustin's home.

Zagustin would not comment as she entered the jail.