By DUSTIN GARDINER and LARA KORTE, POLITICO
A newly resurfaced video has reignited a feud between two of Sacramento’s feistiest political actors.
Jamie Court, president of Consumer Watchdog, is lambasting longtime Democratic consultant Steve Maviglio over a three-year-old video that shows him jumping on and damaging a neighbor’s car. Footage of the 2021 incidentshows Maviglio mounting the hood of a car in an attempt to film the driver, who is continuously honking. As she starts to drive, Maviglio holds onto the windshield wiper, which he rips off as he falls away.
Parts of the video were posted last week by Sacramento political activist and journalist Dave Kempa — a frequent and vocal Maviglio critic.
That quickly became fodder for Court, who has long publicly traded barbs with Maviglio, including over insurance policy issues. Maviglio is now working as a consultant for American Property Casualty Insurance Association, and insurance and consumer groups are sworn enemies in California.
Court went so far as to send a letter to the insurance company alerting them to the video of Maviglio. “It’s ironic that APCIA, an association of insurance companies dedicated to protecting property, including vehicles, would employ a person who vandalized another’s car,” Court wrote.
Maviglio declined to comment on the video or respond to Court’s accusations.
Denni Ritter, APCIA Vice President for State Government Relations, said in a statement: “This is a personal issue between neighbors and not appropriate for us to comment.”
Records in Sacramento County’s small claims court show Maviglio was made to pay $987 for car damages following the incident. Court records indicate that the neighbor, who declined to comment, has had run-ins with the legal system and has been the subject of frequent complaints and calls from neighbors.
Court filings show that Maviglio, and, at one point, an unnamed Sacramento City Council member, had restraining orders against her — and police issued her a misdemeanor citation the day of the windshield wiper incident for allegedly violating a restraining order. According to the Sacramento Superior Court, she is also the defendant in three active criminal cases.