City of Bell scandal - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The City of Bell scandal is a scandal involving misappropriation of public funds in Bell, California over a period of several years in the late 2000s. In July 2010, two Los Angeles Times reporters, Jeff Gottlieb and Ruben Vives, wrote an investigative journalism article on possible malfeasance in the neighboring city of Maywood, California. In their exposé, they revealed that the city officials of Bell (a small blue collar community) were receiving salaries that were reported as the highest in the nation.[5] Subsequent investigations found atypically high property tax rates, allegations of voter fraud in municipal elections and other irregularities which heightened the ensuing scandal.[6] These and other reports led to widespread criticism and a demand for city officials to resign.[7][8]
The salaries and pensions scandal that led to City of Bell officials being expelled, also brought into question the issue of voter fraud. In the 2005 election fewer than 400 votes were cast in a special election that cleared the way for City Council members to dramatically boost their own salaries. In that election, more than half the votes cast were absentee ballots, the most vulnerable method to manipulate fraudulent votes. One resident of Bell, on condition of anonymity, told The Times he was assigned the chore of retrieving absentee ballots. "Our objective was to collect absentee ballots, and if they were not filled out, instruct them how to fill it out, and if not, fill it out for them", he said. It is estimated that less than 1% of registered voters actually showed up to cast their ballot.[6] It has been reported that some residents went to the polling place, only to find that their votes had already been cast.[
