After City CouncilmemberTony Madrigal failed to appear for his original court date, a judge sentenced him to three days in jail and a $774 fine for reckless driving. Madrigal was stopped by a CHP officer for driving erratically in his Prius. According to police, he was driving north on Highway 1 near Mar Monte when another driver called 911 to report him. He was not speeding or driving drunk, police say; instead he was texting and typing on his laptop while driving, which was causing him to swerve between lanes and endanger other drivers.
Though Madrigal did not appear in court, his attorney reached an agreement with the judge that he would pay off his fine in $40 installments. Rather than spending any time behind bars, he will serve on a work release program doing community service and will not have to turn himself in to the jail at night.
Leading city officials, including Mayor Mike Rotkin and Deputy Mayor Ryan Coonerty, have condemned Madrigal’s reckless behavior and failure to set an example for the community he serves, but Madrigal also has his supporters. Daniel “Nane” Alejandrez of Barrios Unidos says that Madrigal has done many important things for the community, and that “There’s a lot of other more important things to do than to dwell on that. How many times have we been on the cell phone or have done other things while we’re driving?”
Nor has Madrigal made a public statement about the issue, and he has avoided talking about it with reporters. This provoked a sharp response from Coonerty: “I don’t think it reflects the standards one expects from an elected official.” According to the city clerk’s office, Madrigal is the most truant city councilmember, having missed 23 percent of all council meetings in the past two years, including closed sessions and regular afternoon and evening meetings. Madrigal explains that he could not attend because of conflicting responsibilities as Executive Director of the California United Homecare Workers Union Local 4034. Read more at Fox 35 and Santa Cruz Sentinel.
