Garden Grove City Councilman Joe DoVinh publicly raised concerns that the city’s police union has tried to improperly influence and intimidate him by demanding he apologise to the police chief amid controversial remarks he made in Vietnamese on a radio show.

“When a police officer from the police officer association tells me that the chief is demanding an apology from me, Joe DoVinh, that paints a target on my back, and I’ve said as much,” he said at Oct. 28 Garden Grove City Council meeting.

“What if I don’t apologize, Chief?  What if I don’t apologize, police officer association? What are you going to do to me? Huh? Come to my house, slash my tires like somebody did two weeks ago,” DoVinh said earlier in the meeting.

City officials are not saying much about the accusations, but DoVinh says there is an ongoing investigation into the matter.

Shelby Keuilian, the police department secretary, said in a Tuesday email that the office of the Police Chief Amir El-Farra does not have a comment on the issue.

The Garden Grove Police Association did not respond to a voicemail requesting comment last Monday.

The Garden Grove City Seal above the council dais. Credit: JULIE LEOPO, Voice of OC

DoVinh’s remarks come after the OC Register reported DoVinh received backlash for comments he made in Vietnamese on a radio show calling on police to cooperate with immigration enforcement officers and threatening to fire the police chief.

[Read: As Immigration Aid Expands in OC, A Westminster Official Wants Police Working With ICE]

DoVinh publicly said in October that his remarks were mistranslated.

“That doesn’t mean I retract anything, nor do I apologize,” he said.

At the same time, residents and local activists have repeatedly shown up to city council meetings demanding their elected officials take a stance against widespread deportation sweeps and stand up and support immigrant families.

Last week, Garden Grove officials narrowly voted to launch an online immigration resource hub on the city website.

[Read: Garden Grove to Launch Online Immigration Resource Hub]

DoVinh also said he doesn’t want ICE agents in Garden Grove.

“If I can’t even call out my own police department, how am I going to call out ICE? I don’t want ICE in my city,” DoVinh said at the Oct. 28 meeting. 

“I will not tolerate intimidation from anybody, including the police, including the police chief, including the Police Officers Association. Do not intimidate me. And for all those who think it’s okay to harass me, it is not.”

In an Oct. 30 email, DoVinh said he couldn’t speak further on the issue.

“There’s active and ongoing investigations and potential litigation pending,” he wrote.

The rest of the city council did not respond to a request for comment on the issue last Monday.

Earlier this month, Garden City Council members at a special meeting voted 5–0-1 on a resolution in support of El-Farra and the police department at the request of Mayor Stephanie Klopfenstein.

“Anytime there’s conversation in the community, especially about our chief of police. I think it’s important for me as mayor to make a distinction that I certainly support him,” she said at the Oct. 28 meeting requesting the resolution

“His service of distinction, the way that he supports this community and leads his department, is exemplary, and I certainly stand behind him and support him.”

Mayor Stephanie Klopfenstein of Garden Grove on Jul 8, 2025. Credit: JULIE LEOPO, Voice of OC

Councilman George Brietigam, a former police officer, supported bringing back the resolution, but was absent from the Nov. 5 meeting.

DoVinh abstained from the vote and said he had not called for the firing of El-Farra, adding that the council does have a say on which city staff members they hire or fire even if it’s not directly.

“Social media has put a wicked spin on it. Some of you have drank the Kool Aid. No, I’m actually calling for the promotions of our city manager and our staff,” he said at the Nov. 5 meeting.

“Having said that, I will recuse from this vote. I feel a bit conflicted, especially when policies are not clear and my opinions are not reflected accurately but that’s for a bigger discussion on future resolutions.”

City Attorney Omar Sandoval said in October the city council can only hire and fire the city manager and the attorney – a form of municipal government known as council-manager.

The rest of city council members also praised El-Farra and local police officers. 

“I place a lot of faith in Chief El-Farra,” said Councilwoman Ariana Arestegui at the Nov. 5 meeting.

“I’ve seen nothing short of wonderful behavior from him and compassion and care for all of our residents. I know he’s committed to making sure that all of our residents are safe and this is something that I see reverberate throughout the entire department.”

​​Hosam Elattar is a Voice of OC reporter. Contact him at helattar@voiceofoc.org or on Twitter @ElattarHosam.

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