San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan rejected Del Mar's request to criminally investigate Attorney General Rob Bonta and 22nd DAA board member Mark Arabo.

In an Oct. 1 letter to the Del Mar city attorney, Stephan's office called the referral process very irregular, citing the media publicity surrounding its submission. The office also said it could not confirm the identity of the person whose complaint prompted the request and found no connection between Bonta's official duties and campaign contributions he received, The Coast News reported.

The DA's Public Integrity Unit said such referrals are historically communicated directly to the unit, not through public channels.

The rebuke caps a chain of events that began in July when the Del Mar City Council received a letter signed by a resident identified as Debrah Barnes. That letter noted that Brian Guiltinian, an adviser and broker for the proposed 259-unit Seaside Ridge housing project on Del Mar's North Bluff, served as Arabo's real estate agent in a 2024 home purchase. It also noted both Guiltinian and Arabo contributed to Bonta's campaign.

The Barnes letter itself stated it "does not allege wrongdoing by any individual." The Del Mar Times reported that it could not verify Barnes' identity or residency. The phone number listed went straight to voicemail and was linked to a Snapchat user with a different name. City Manager Ashley Jones said staff had communicated with Barnes only via email.

Despite those red flags, the council voted 3-0 on Aug. 3 to send referrals to both Stephan and U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon. The city attorney sent the letter Aug. 7. No response from the U.S. attorney's office has been publicly reported.

The dispute sits at the center of Del Mar's struggle to meet state-mandated affordable housing goals. Bonta formally warned the city in February that it was violating the Housing Accountability Act by keeping the Seaside Ridge application in administrative limbo. Arabo, as a 22nd DAA board member, was involved in discussions about a competing affordable housing proposal on Fairgrounds property.

On Aug. 19, the 22nd DAA board voted 5-3 to terminate its exclusive negotiating agreement with Del Mar for that Fairgrounds housing project, as Voice of San Diego reported. Arabo voluntarily recused himself from that vote.

"My voluntary recusal is not an admission nor a validation of the city's [investigative] referral," Arabo said at the Aug. 19 board meeting, according to Voice of San Diego.

In a statement included in the 22nd DAA's September board packet, Arabo wrote that the city targeted public officials it considered a threat shortly before the Fairgrounds housing vote. He called the decision to make the referrals, not the subject of those referrals, the action that raises serious concerns.

The DA's declination letter is on the agenda for the 22nd DAA board meeting Tuesday, Oct. 13, at 9:30 a.m. at the Del Mar Fairgrounds boardroom, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd. The board is also set to vote on a policy authorizing payment of legal fees for board members facing actions tied to decisions made in their official capacity.

CalAccess records show Arabo has made yearly maximum contributions to Bonta's campaign committee since August 2021, more than a year before the first Seaside Ridge application. Guiltinian has donated more than $18,000 to Bonta's campaign since 2022.

No public response from Del Mar's city council, the city attorney, or Bonta's office to the DA's declination has been reported.