It's Not Easy To Run An Enterprise Zone Under These Conditions

From the Los Angeles Times:

The mayor of Lynwood, a City Council member and three former council members were charged today with collectively misappropriating hundreds of thousands of dollars in public funds.

Mayor Louis Byrd and Councilman Fernando Pedroza allegedly padded their salaries by using city credit cards and other city funds for personal expenses, such as trips for their spouses, and in the case of Pedroza, a session with exotic dancers in Guadalajara, Mexico, authorities said.

Along with three former council members, Byrd and Pedroza allegedly made nearly $80,000 a year over two years just by attending numerous brief committee meetings without authorization, said David Demerjian, head deputy district attorney for the Public Integrity Division.

Prosecutors began looking into Lynwood after a 2003 investigation published in The Times highlighted the hefty perks enjoyed by City Council members.

The charges comes a year after Lynwood's longtime mayor, Paul Richards, was sentenced to 16 years in federal prison after being convicted of public corruption charges.

Byrd, Pedroza and former council members Armando Rea, Arturo Reyes and Ricardo Sanchez are scheduled to be arraigned Friday.