Posted on 10/19/2010 4:56:16 AM PDT by EggsAckley
SANTA CRUZ --" City Councilman Tony Madrigal is due in court Nov. 10 on charges of reckless driving after being pulled over because the California Highway Patrol said he was typing on his laptop, texting, impeding traffic, swerving and driving on the center divide.
The charges came to light after Madrigal failed to appear in court for an arraignment last month and a bench warrant was issued for his arrest.
Madrigal, 37, was cited for the offenses on Aug. 30 while driving his 2004 Toyota Prius north on Highway 1 near Mar Monte and Freedom Boulevard, according to the charges filed in Superior Court.
Madrigal, who is serving his second term on the council, entered a not guilty plea to all counts Thursday, according to the court file. The warrant was recalled Oct. 8.
Neither Madrigal nor his attorney Edison Jensen returned several phone calls and e-mails seeking comment. Madrigal works as a union organizer for health care workers in King and Tulare counties.
A witness traveling behind Madrigal called 911 to report an erratic driver, CHP spokeswoman Sarah Jackson said.
"The officer observed him driving in a very, very unsafe manner," Jackson said. "He observed several moving violations. In this instance, what the officer saw was a wanton disregard for the safety of persons and property on the roadway."
A reckless driving conviction is punishable by up to 90 days in jail and/or a fine not more than $1,000. It counts as two points
(Excerpt) Read more at santacruzsentinel.com ...
He grew up in Turlock and moved to Santa Cruz to attend UC Santa Cruz.
Madrigal, one of the first Latino council members to serve in years, has been an advocate for low-income people and the Spanish-speaking community.
Democrat.
Of course. It’s Santa Cruz.
> his 2004 Toyota Prius
Maybe it’s just me, but I despise those things.
Most of the ones I’ve seen have 0bama stickers or those stupid “Coexist” ones, as if Mohammedans can peacefully coexist with anyone.
We have a looney left selectman in our town who drives one and wants to foist his draconian envirowhacko ideas on the town. The lemmings in town think he’s so smart. He may be clever, but he ain’t smart.
From reading the article one would have to guess at Mr. Madrigal’s political party affiliation. Complete factual reporting went out of style at most news organizations long ago.
I wonder which party that might be.
Democrrat and a former SEIU employee.
The article does say, "Madrigal works as a union organizer for health care workers in King and Tulare counties." He quite obviously must be a Republican.
Even so, it's incredibly irresponsible of the journalist not to mention his reactionary tendencies at every conceivable opportunity.
OK, seriously, I'm not doubting what you wrote about your impression from simply reading this article--it's entirely possible that Madrigal's officially third-party or independent. I looked, though, and you won't be surprised to find a Tony Madrigal of Santa Cruz as a member of the Voter Services Committee of the California Democratic Party.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAUtZbG2D50
Si se pue’de?
A community organizer, Tony Madrigal is SEIU and an organizer for prop 22.
Voters are thoughtful and choose their representatives carefully? This one probably voted for Madrigal.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5oVzbwYWpg&feature=related
LOL!
Yeah, that video is one of our “top ten” in Santa Cruz. There are LOTS of people just like her up in the UCSC area.
OK, seriously, I'm not doubting what you wrote about your impression from simply reading this article--it's entirely possible that Madrigal's officially third-party or independent.
I meant "...from reading this article--if we're going from this article alone, it's entirely possible...."
Second: widdle_wabbit, I didn't link to this next one because I expected it to be removed very quickly ;), but here's also
Tony Madrigal For Santa Cruz City Council 2008 (conveniently linked from the page for "your" video)
with more mentions of Democrats (see 0:19 for his doing something against the backdrop of a "DEMOCRAT[IC] PARTY / SANTA CRUZ COUNTY" banner, and see 0:42 ff. for his Obama support) amid an interesting array of endorsements and activities.
The music here is a surf-guitar version of "You Are My Sunshine." I mention the music mostly because something about it jumped out at me more than what was probably intended. Certainly it'd stand out in a quiet room.
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