During the Mexican–American War (1847), Coronel abandoned the rancho, and in 1852 sold Rancho La Cañada to the law partners Jonathan R. Scott and Benjamin Hayes. Scott had come to Southern California from Missouri in 1849, and became the first American justice of the peace in Los Angeles. He administered the oath of office to the first Los Angeles City Council on July 3, 1850.
In 1847, Coronel left the ranch during the Mexican–American War, and two years later, he sold Rancho La Cañada to Jonathan R. Scott and Benjamin Hayes in 1852. Scott, who had moved from Missouri in 1849, became the first American justice of the peace in Los Angeles and presided over the city's inaugural council on July 3, 1850.