L.A. CLOWN SHOW UPDATE: Why is Mayor Karen Bass deleting her text messages?

When flames erupted in Pacific Palisades on Jan. 7, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass was more than 7,000 miles away, on a diplomatic mission to Africa.

Bass headed home shortly thereafter and was in transit for nearly 24 hours as the fire ravaged the Palisades and surrounding communities.

She and her office have said she was in constant communication during that period. But it’s impossible to know exactly what she was communicating, because her messages were not saved, according to a city lawyer.

“Her phone is set not to save text messages,” said the lawyer, David Michaelson.

Michaelson said that there is “no requirement that a city official or employee save text messages,” despite the fact that the city’s own document retention policies dictate that most records should be kept for at least two years.

Under state law, “any writing” related to the conduct of government is deemed a public record. On Jan. 10, The Times filed a public records request for all text messages sent or received by the mayor while she was in transit on Jan. 7 or Jan. 8 that mention fire response or her travel plans.

Bass has come under heavy criticism for being out of the country when the fire erupted amid a historically dry winter and forecasts of hurricane-force winds.

Related: Mayor Karen Bass fired Kristin Crowley for being right.