Mario’s Tow Truck Troubles - State Senator Gil Cedillo & Councilman Mario Beltran - Los Angeles

“With a tough election seven weeks away in Bell Gardens, State Senator Gil Cedillo ventured into the working-class city to help out a protégé who could be in deep trouble: Councilman Mario Beltran.

Cedillo stood side-by-side at a press conference with Beltran, a young, trouble-prone politico with a criminal record and called for an end to a widespread police policy of impounding the cars of unlicensed drivers for 30 days. It made good local political theater and armed Beltran to fight for a just cause. Within a matter of days, he persuaded his colleagues on the City Council to end the practice. In Bell Gardens, stuck in the rough-and-tumble belt of heavily immigrant cities that lie southeast of downtown Los Angeles, the high cost of towing penalties often meant the owner lost the car.”

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