On Bell’s agenda: abuse from residents

Insults have become part of the framework of Bell’s monthly City Council meetings as residents taunt and heckle elected officials for their alleged misdeeds. On Monday, two council members appeared to have had enough of the name-calling, storming out and cutting the meeting short.

The display was the latest example of the council’s difficulty conducting business and maintaining authority in the tiny town where all but one of the council members were charged with misappropriating $5.5 million. Over the last six months, residents have shown up in droves at the monthly meetings, and the public comment session — which sometimes lasts for hours — has become open-mike night for the angry and frustrated.

“Did you like the food in jail? You looked good in orange.” “I’m out of time? You’ll be out of time soon!” “You are another Ratzo Rizzo!”

Interim City Atty. Jamie Casso said the day-to-day operations of the city have not been affected by the outraged crowds and disruptions but that some decisions have been drawn out.

In some ways the remarks — often bolstered by cheers and additional outbursts — are a show of solidarity in a community that once had little civic engagement. And stuck in a stagnant situation, with a recall election more than three months away and a criminal trial further off than that, many find a more immediate justice in confronting the council.

“This is no longer a civic matter, it’s more of a personal issue,” said resident Nora Saenz, 31. “The council needs to develop a thick skin. It’s not like they took $500 from the petty cash box. People struggled to pay their property taxes, lost homes and businesses. And to find out that this was just for personal gain? Just like they sat there so many times before while they were robbing the people, they need to be there for whatever people have to tell them.”

Mayor Oscar Hernandez couldn’t avoid being the target of disdain even when he, along with Councilwoman Teresa Jacobo, called in sick to two consecutive meetings. Their absences forced the cancellation of the October meeting because one councilman had resigned and another remained jailed. Speakers instead took shots at the city staff. “You are full of empty promises,” one man said to Interim Chief Administrative Officer Pedro Carrillo. “I’m tired of your lies.”

At the next meeting, Hernandez showed up with a police escort. Jeered by the rowdy assembly, the mayor twice called a recess and police ended up clearing the room before the meeting continued.

On Monday, the meeting started off calmly, with some even wishing the council a happy holiday. However, Hernandez slowly grew agitated, pounding his gavel whenever the room erupted in applause or protest. He asked police to escort out a man who called the council “shameless thugs” in Spanish. When the officers did not move, Hernandez and Jacobo marched out before any of the agenda items had been discussed. The council members refused to return.

“We had laid down some ground rules,” Carrillo said. “We had agreed that the disruptions for being rude or disorderly were not acceptable.”

Hernandez later said in a statement that he left because the meeting was interrupted by “offensive and unwarranted accusations.”

“Given the circumstances, it would have been easier for me to resign from my position, but I continue to care about the residents of Bell,” Hernandez said.

The meeting has yet to be rescheduled.

Some residents wish the insults would subside so that the council could make decisions on the agenda.

“It’s frustrating,” Dale Walker, 28, said. “We have bigger fish to fry. We still need to move forward as a city and community.”

corina.knoll@latimes.com