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Lawmakers face explaining arrest records as they seek re-election

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With California voters going to the polls next month, some candidates for the state Legislature are having to defend arrest records as much as their voting records.

In the last 20 months, five state legislators and one former state senator with active campaigns have been arrested on suspicion of crimes including drunk driving, perjury, voter fraud, shoplifting and trying to carry a loaded gun through airport security.

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The imbroglios come as the Legislature struggles to improve its reputation with a skeptical public, according to a story in Saturday’s Los Angeles Times. You can read it here.

Most recently, charges were filed last week against former state Sen. Richard Alarcon, a Democrat running in the 39th state Assembly district. He has pleaded not guilty to charges that he lied about where he lived and voted fraudulently.

Others running in the Assembly district are Democrat Raul Bocanegra, a legislative aide from Pacoima; Green Party candidate John Paul Lindblad, an architect/community organizer from North Hollywood; and three Republicans: Sylmar businessman Ricardo Benitez, Sylmar retired legal administrator Margie Carranza and Van Nuys parole officer Omar Cuevas.

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