LOS ANGELES - Jury selection begins today in the trial of the former mayor of Bell and five ex-City Council members accused of misappropriating public funds by collecting exorbitant salaries.

About 100 potential jurors are expected to be handed questionnaires gauging their knowledge of the case against former Mayor Oscar Hernandez and former council members Teresa Jacobo, George Mirabal, Luis Artiga, George Cole and Victor Bello.

Prospective jurors will be given about a week to fill out the questionnaires, and jury selection will resume before Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Kathleen Kennedy Jan. 22.

The defendants are each facing multiple counts -- some as many as 20 -- of misappropriating city funds through their work on various city agencies, including the Community Housing Authority, Public Financing Authority and Solid Waste and Recycling Authority.

Read more at Long Beach Press Telegram