District 1 candidate had restraining order filed against her

Elvira Meraz was part of a mutual non-clets restraining order filed in 2013 following an alleged altercation outside Gallatin Elementary School. She is currently seeking the interim District 1 seat. (Photo by Alex Dominguez)

DOWNEY - Downey City Council District 1 vacancy applicant Elvira Meraz was part of a mutual restraining order in 2013, after a previous petition against her was thrown out.

According to court documents filed in March 2012, the request was filed after Yvette Meraz (now Yvette Bonilla) claimed that Meraz (then Elvira Gonzalez) was harassing her concerning her daughter, threatening to hurt and mistreat her. At the time, Meraz was in a relationship with Bonilla’s ex-husband Manuel Meraz, whom Bonilla had been separated from since February 2011 and Meraz has since married.

The petition was denied by the court.

However, on May 17, 2013, a mutual non-clets restraining order was filed against both parties, ordering that both individuals refrain from contacting, harming, or harassing one another, keeping at least 25 yards away from each other when feasible. That order expired one year later.

This followed an alleged incident near Gallatin Elementary school, where the two engaged in a physical altercation. According to Bonilla’s recounting of the event in the court files, Meraz previously had texted her to “watch her back” before waiting for her and assaulting her outside the school the next day.

Meraz denies this sequence of events.

According to Meraz, she “lost her cool” in a cell phone exchange prior to the incident, saying that she had “had it” with Bonilla. However, she says it was Bonilla who initiated the fight, adding that she lived near Gallatin at the time and was out jogging when Bonilla pulled up and attacked her. She says that she “defended herself.”

Meraz also described the previous claims that she would be a threat to her now step-daughter were “all untrue and completely false,” providing the Downey Patriot with an official signed declaration that was submitted to the court by her husband, which said Bonilla was “very upset” about the couple being together and that Meraz “never posed a threat or danger” to the child.

The Downey Patriot was unable to speak with Bonilla before publication.

Meraz is one of four potential candidates seeking the interim District 1 City Council seat. She, along with the other applicants, are scheduled to be interviewed Tuesday before the regular council meeting.