The owner of a furniture store in Bell had to physically subdue a drunk driver who crashed into his shop last night after the driver tried to flee the scene, reports KTLA. The crash happened at about 10:30 p.m. at the intersection of Gage and Flora avenues. The driver was at the wheel of a white minivan, and before crashing through the store's wall he hit another car, hopped a curb and broke down a fence. more ›

34-year-old Miguel Sanchez, a special-ed teacher's aide, part-time parks and recreation employee, and candidate for Bell City Council, died Friday afternoon after complaining of flu-like symptoms, reports the LA Times. Sanchez was to run in the city's general and special recall election on March 8 to replace former Councilman Luis Artiga who, amid allegations of misappropriation of public funds, resigned last fall. more ›

The momentum was there, and now residents in the troubled city of Bell "have gathered enough signatures to put an initiative on the ballot aimed at ousting three City Council members accused of participating in a pay scandal," reports the Long Beach Press-Telegram. more ›

As promised in August, State Controller John Chiang has launched a website detailing the salaries and other compensation of city and county governments throughout California. The move followed the city of Bell scandal, in which employees and part-time city councilmembers of the Southeastern L.A. County municipality were found to be earning sky high salaries and now face charges. more ›

As initially rumored, eight former and current employees of the City of Bell were arrested yesterday, booked, and now face arraignment on a variety of corruption charges. more ›

You can predict the cheers from residents on this one. Citing an anonymous source, the LA Times says at least eight city of Bell officials and employees have been arrested. Who and what charges will be brought against them will be announced later today at a press conference, but it's likely that among the arrested include City Manager Robert Rizzo and at least four of the five city councilmembers. more ›

State Attorney General Jerry Brown today announced sweeping efforts to curtail highly paid local officials around California. In a series of announcements, the gubernatorial candidate said he was taking filing lawsuits against eight city of Bell officials while serving a subpoena to neighboring city of Vernon where one employee apparently made $1.64 million a year (another highly paid one was recently let go). Meanwhile, Brown, who apparently earns a considerable pension himself, is also looking into sky-high salaries and pensions across the state, from hospital to county administrators. Brown will formally announce his plans at 10 a.m., but the news was given early to the LA Times, which broke the Bell salary scandal story in July. more ›

The recent salary scandals in the city of Bell has prompted an outcry from its residents, including members of a group called the Bell Association to Stop the Abuse (BASTA), who have just announced they are gathering signatures to initiate a recall of City Council members, cbs2 reports. more ›

Oh Bell, your story never ends! The latest from the scandal-ridden city of Bell, where city officials were earning some of the highest municipal salaries in the country, are the loans they received. Yes, in addition to their sky-high salaries, they asked for loans, finds the LA Times. more ›

Talking about pensions isn't exactly sexy, but when you get angry about potholes not getting fixed, lack of public transit and other downsized city services, many would point to the unattractive word is one big part of the problem. more ›

Subpoenas for testimony and personal financial records were added to Attorney General Jerry Browns' investigation into the city of Bell's financial scandal. A number of past and present Bell officials and city councilmembers will be deposed under oath later this month after some officials produce records, including tax returns, gifts received, bank accounts and other information. more ›

A news conference held yesterday in the city of Bell signaled that the heat is not off the city officials who remain on the payroll, after more administrators "were found to have six-figure salaries in newly released salary documents," reports abc7. more ›

Just a day after L.A. City Controller Wendy Greuel announced that she will publish city salaries online, California State Controller John Chiang said he will be doing the same. “The absence of transparency is a breeding ground for waste, fraud, and abuse of taxpayer dollars,” said Chiang... more ›

In the wake of the sky high salaries scandal in the city of Bell, city of Los Angeles officials got a heads up yesterday: their salaries, along with all of their staffs, would be published online as soon as possible. more ›

It's not just Bell, which pays the second highest property taxes in Los Angeles County, many cities with median household incomes below $50,000 are found have some of the highest property taxes, finds the LA Times, which has published data from each of the county's 88 cities. more ›

The city of Bell is the story that keeps on giving. However, that's unfortunate news. Today's development is that residents have been paying the second highest property taxes in Los Angeles County as part-time elected officials and top city staff we're paid some of the highest salaries for the type of job in the country, finds the LA Times and Bloomberg News. more ›

District Attorney Steve Cooley yesterday said his office has been investigating the city of Bell since March, but until now, the focus was only towards the $100,000 part-time salaries given to City Councilmembers, according to the LA Times. His investigation included how councilmembers were able to make such a high salary when the meetings that earned them that amount -- council meetings earned them very little, per state law, the money was made by serving on commissions and other panels -- rarely took place, and if they did, reportedly lasted shortly. more ›

Bell City Councilmembers yesterday voted to decrease their part-times salaries by 90%. That means their $96,000 salaries will now be just over $8,000. The move comes after a LA Times investigation that revealed their and top officials' salaries -- for example, the city manager was being paid nearly $800,000 a year -- prompting community anger and a movement to remove elected officials from office. Two councilmembers, Mayor Oscar Hernandez and Vice Mayor Teresa Jacobo said they would finish their terms without pay. more ›

Following the Bell City Council pay scandal that broke recently, other cities are finding that their elected officials' paychecks are under scrutiny from their constituents. In Pasadena, City Council members, most of whom work other jobs as well, earn "a flat stipend of about $16,410 a year," and the Mayor gets around $24,600, according to the Star-News. more ›

Following a press conference about city of Bell salaries, Attorney General and gubernatorial candidate Jerry Brown took to TV cable news, speaking with Neil Cavuto on the FOX Business Network. more ›

If you're going to work part-time as a pubic official and make $100,000 a year in an unheard of city in southeastern Los Angeles County, it's going to get attention once news breaks. And ever since the LA Times broke the story two weeks ago, the small city of Bell has been immersed in controversy. The latest move came this morning when California's Attorney General Jerry Brown announced that he has subpoenaed records. more ›

The three highly paid city of Bell officials have all agreed to resign, following an LA Times investigation that revealed extremely high salaries that prompted community anger and government investigations. City Manager Robert Rizzo, who is paid nearly $800,000, and Police Chief Randy Adams, paid $457,000, will resign at the end of August. Assistant City Manager Angela Spaccia, who is paid $376,288, will leave at the end of September. more ›

The Bell City Council this afternoon will hold an emergency meeting to discuss the extremely high salaries that have caused controversy in the small southeastern L.A. County city, according to the LA Times. Councilmembers are asking for resignations from the City Manager, Assistant City Manager and Police Chief. Respectively, the three make close to $800,000, $376,288 and $457,000 a year, easily making their salaries some of the highest in the nation for positions of that stature. more ›

Despite calls for a resignation or firing of the city's top public official, the Bell City Council last night did succeed at either, setting off even more anger and disdain at the elected officials. more ›

Controversy last week erupted in the small L.A. County city of Bell [map] when the LA Times learned that it's top city official earns a nearly $800,000 salary, which possibly makes him the highest paid public official in the country. That salary a lot more Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, and even President Barack Obama. more ›

Walking in at the Troubadour that night was like walking into a magic forest glade. I half expected to see sparkling nymphs in gauzy outfits leaping around from behind the concert goers, cackling merrily as they played tag. Perhaps if there had been any absinthe in the place that would be exactly what I saw. Brooklyn's electro pop piece Bell was on stage spreading their musical glitter all over the Troubadour making it sparkle and shine. more ›

When the Gold Line Eastside extension opens this summer whisking commuters from downtown to East LA, that won't be the end of the line if Metro gets their way. Metro staff has four light rail routes they are studying and proposing that would go from unincorporated East LA to the possibility of other cities such as Monterey Park, Whittier, Montebello, El Monte and others. more ›