Quick, which mayor has the biggest PR headache: Oakland's Jean Quan or San Marino's Dennis Kneier?
After KRON-TV captured video of Quan driving while using a cell phone two nights in a row, she was accused of running a red light while using the phone Sunday night between church appearances in West Oakland. Her accuser: a driver whose car scraped against one of Quan's rear tires.
The mayor contends she didn't run the light and denies using the phone. An eyewitness vouches for her. (No one was hurt in the caper at 26th and Market streets but the mayor was reportedly cursed and yelled at by bystanders over random matters, including the Raiders, once people recognized her.)
Meanwhile, in the tony LA suburb of San Marino Mayor Kneier is under fire after being caught on a home security camera tossing a bag of dog poop onto neighbor Philip Lao's front yard while out for a stroll with his wife. The mayor says he found the bag next to a nearby lamp-post and was unthinkingly trying to find a better place for it. But Lao, who claims the mayor has harrassed him over past differences (including his opposition to a dog park), isn't buying it and won't accept Kneier's apology.
Come the next election look for the poop to hit the fan.
Image: Philip Lao's security camera footage via KTLA-TV, Channel 5