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 The shooting at Bell Gardens stemmed from an afternoon quarrel
between the mayor, Daniel Crespo, 45, and his wife, Levette, 43,
that escalated when their 19-year-old son, Daniel Jr., intervened,
sheriff's spokeswoman Crystal Hernandez said.
"Ultimately he got into a physical altercation with his father, and
(the woman) produced a firearm, and she shot her husband multiple
times in the torso," Hernandez said.
The mayor was pronounced dead at a local hospital, she said.
Hernandez said she had no further details on the nature or
circumstances of the argument that preceded the shooting.
She said no charges were immediately filed in the case, and a
message posted on the municipal website said the shooting did not
appear to be related to the city or Crespo's official duties as
mayor.
The mayor's spouse was detained by police while the investigation
continued but was later released and had not been charged, Hernandez
said.
No arrests have been made and the case has been referred to the Los
Angeles County District Attorney's Office, which will determine
whether to file criminal charges, Hernandez said.
A biography of the mayor on the website said he was born and raised
in a housing project in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, and
described Crespo and his wife as high school sweethearts who married
in 1986. The couple also have daughter, it said.
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Crespo was elected in 2001 to the City Council of Bell Gardens, a
predominantly Hispanic town about 10 miles (16 km) southeast of Los
Angeles, spanning about 2-1/2 square miles with a population of
about 45,000.
Besides serving as mayor, Crespo had worked as a Los Angeles County
deputy probation officer for the past 15 years, according to his
biography.
(Reporting by Steve Gorman; Additional reporting by Eric M. Johnson
from Seattle; Editing by Alison Williams)
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