Bell Gardens Ca Government Employees

A massive search for a missing Bell Gardens police officer ended Friday evening when he was found walking along a street in Victorville, the city where his abandoned police cruiser had been found earlier in the day, authorities said. Officer David Larimore, 35, was spotted about 6 p.m.--about 12 hours after he disappeared with the patrol car--walking along a residential street in the southern section of the city, Sgt. Michael Lenihan of the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department said.

Michael Estrada, who has served as interim city attorney, has been hired to the post by the City Council. Estrada's first task was to design a fee schedule that will save the city thousands of dollars annually in legal expenses. He has delivered his proposal to the city manager but would not discuss his fees until after the City Council sees them on Monday. Henry Barbosa was fired as city attorney last summer, in part because his rates were too high.

The wandering Bell Gardens police officer who told authorities he blacked out last week and regained consciousness 12 hours, and two counties, later has been undergoing psychological tests to determine what caused his curious desert pilgrimage, authorities said Tuesday. Officer David Larimore, 35, who disappeared in a patrol car early Friday, was picked up unharmed later that day in Victorville--a Mojave Desert city 28 miles north of San Bernardino--after a massive search by authorities.

A plan to hire an ombudsman to investigate residents' complaints about city employees has been abandoned by the City Council, after an advisory panel split over what the ombudsman should do and who should be selected. The position was suggested in March by Councilman George T. Deitch, who said he wanted to employ a person at City Hall--preferably someone bilingual--who could impartially handle residents' allegations of mistreatment by city staff.

Former Bell Gardens City Manager Claude L. Booker, who was fired in March after the recall of four Anglo City Council members, is suing the city for breach of his $124,000-a-year contract. Booker, who had worked for the city off and on since 1967, was one of four high-ranking officials--including the city clerk, the city attorney and the police chief--who were fired or left office when a Latino majority council was elected.

A plan to hire an ombudsman to investigate residents' complaints about city employees has been abandoned by the City Council, after an advisory panel split over what the ombudsman should do and who should be selected. The position was suggested in March by Councilman George T. Deitch, who said he wanted to employ a person at City Hall--preferably someone bilingual--who could impartially handle residents' allegations of mistreatment by city staff.

Michael Estrada, who has served as interim city attorney, has been hired to the post by the City Council. Estrada's first task was to design a fee schedule that will save the city thousands of dollars annually in legal expenses. He has delivered his proposal to the city manager but would not discuss his fees until after the City Council sees them on Monday. Henry Barbosa was fired as city attorney last summer, in part because his rates were too high.

Former Bell Gardens City Manager Claude L. Booker, who was fired in March after the recall of four Anglo City Council members, is suing the city for breach of his $124,000-a-year contract. Booker, who had worked for the city off and on since 1967, was one of four high-ranking officials--including the city clerk, the city attorney and the police chief--who were fired or left office when a Latino majority council was elected.

The wandering Bell Gardens police officer who told authorities he blacked out last week and regained consciousness 12 hours, and two counties, later has been undergoing psychological tests to determine what caused his curious desert pilgrimage, authorities said Tuesday. Officer David Larimore, 35, who disappeared in a patrol car early Friday, was picked up unharmed later that day in Victorville--a Mojave Desert city 28 miles north of San Bernardino--after a massive search by authorities.

A massive search for a missing Bell Gardens police officer ended Friday evening when he was found walking along a street in Victorville, the city where his abandoned police cruiser had been found earlier in the day, authorities said. Officer David Larimore, 35, was spotted about 6 p.m.--about 12 hours after he disappeared with the patrol car--walking along a residential street in the southern section of the city, Sgt. Michael Lenihan of the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department said.