Bell is one of the poorest cities in L.A. County. Photo: Robert J. Lopez

I was part of a team of 20 Los Angeles Times reporters and editors, led by Jeff Gottlieb and Ruben Vives, that was awarded the 2011 Pulitzer Prize gold medal for public service. Our series of articles exposed how top officials in Bell, one of the poorest cities in Los Angeles County, enriched themselves with extraordinary salaries and benefits while illegally raising taxes on residents and resorting to other legally questionable schemes to raise revenue. The stories produced by our team of reporters and editors resulted in criminal charges against eight former officials and new government disclosure laws in cities and counties across California.
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