Corruption Hits Cities in L.A.'s Shadows

By MICHAEL R. BLOOD
Associated Press Writer

December 2, 2006, 12:26 PM EST

LOS ANGELES -- A string of gritty suburbs in the shadow of Los Angeles has produced a growing parade of public officials jailed for corruption, and prosecutors say illegal schemes on a scale more commonly associated with big Eastern cities have devoured tens of millions of taxpayer dollars.

The latest to be led away in handcuffs is the former treasurer of South Gate, sentenced this past week to 10 years in prison.

Already known for clotted freeways and fading neighborhoods, the area south of Los Angeles now is drawing additional notoriety for thieving, bribe-grabbing public officials.


Within a generation, a largely white, middle-class population has mostly vanished, replaced by many Hispanics, including a large immigrant population. However, corruption charges have cut across racial lines.

"When new groups come to power, and become entrenched ... then they tend to rule it as a fiefdom," said Jaime Regalado, executive director of the Pat Brown Institute of Public Affairs at California State University, Los Angeles.