2nd Garbage Truck Driver Dumps Trash at City Hall

A disgruntled garbage truck driver dumped nine tons of trash in front of City Hall on Friday, then waited quietly in his truck until a Sanitation Bureau official arrived to take him away.

The smelly mess blocked Main Street for more than an hour Friday afternoon and was removed with the help of a front loader.

“He mumbled something about harassment,” said William Knapp, the Sanitation Bureau official who escorted the driver from his truck.

“He said he had been under a lot of strain. He felt he was being harassed by his supervisor.”

The driver, Donald Ellison, apparently drove his truck downtown late Friday morning after picking up a full load of trash in North Hollywood, where he was assigned to work, Knapp said.

Ellison was taken to department doctors for evaluation, but no decision will be made regarding disciplinary action until the examination is completed, Knapp said. The Police Department is looking into the matter, but no charges were filed on Friday, a police spokesman said.

Ellison is the second garbage truck driver to dump a load of trash in front of City Hall in nine months.

Last November, Felipe Espinoza Suarez, a driver for 10 years, dumped about 10 tons of trash in the same spot, saying he was protesting unsafe trucks and job-related stress. Suarez has not returned to work and no disciplinary action will be considered until he returns with a report from his doctor, Knapp said.