Name: El Diablo
Universe: Post-Crisis
Alter Ego: Rafael Sandoval
Occupation: City councilman
Marital Status: Single
Group Affiliation: None
Base of Operations: Dos Rios, Texas
Known Relatives: Unnamed aunt and uncle; unnamed grandmother
Height: 6 ft. 2 in.
Weight: 190 lbs.
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Brown
First Appearance: El Diablo #1

History:
Rafael Sandoval grew up in the barrio section of Dos Rios, Texas. a city with a large Hispanic community. At an early age, he was swept up into the rough activities of the neighborhood youths and engaged in nickel-and-dime thievery and vandalism. One night, on a dare from his best friend, Sandoval tried to break into his neighborhood church and was caught by Father Guzman. Guzman, a young priest, took an interest in the boy and steered him away from a life of petty crime by pulling him into church activities and community programs and channelling his energies into other endeavors, such as boxing.

Despite Guzman's efforts to guide Sandoval, the boy refused to break all ties with his rowdy buddies. But when one of his friends was killed by heroin-runners, Sandoval turned his back on Dos Rios. He joined the Army and later graduated from Berkeley University with a law degree. Origin*, Sandoval had no intention of returning to his hometown, but his ties were too strong to ignore. He went back to Dos Rios as a public defender, eventually gaining the notice of Democratic mayor Tommy Longstreet, who used his political clout to help Sandoval win a seat as the first Hispanic on the Dos Rios city council.

Sandoval soon learned that his appointment was an act of political tokenism and that he was expected to be seen and not heard. An idealistic man with dreams. Sandoval was quickly disillusioned by city politics and was beginning to wonder just what he could hope to accomplish, when he discovered that restaurant owner Chuy Salinas, who owned a restaurant in the barrio, had reason to believe that the realty combine that owned his building had been torching its own properties and pocketing the insurance money — and that his own restaurant might be next. Sandoval tied to bring Salinas's suspicions to the attention of his superiors, but, without concrete evidence against the realtor, they could do nothing.

Frustrated by the way the system held him back, Sandoval decided to take action covertly. He secretly arranged a sting operation that forced the realty combine into taking action against Salinas's restaurant and planned to be there to bring them down. Knowing he couldn't be spotted on the scene as city councilman Rafael Sandoval without endangering his own political career. he instead donned an old festival costume and face-mask and arrived on the scene as El Diablo, "The Devil." Single-handedly defeating three armed arsonists, he brought them to justice and saved Salinas's business.

Salinas convinced his masked rescuer that El Diablo could do a lot of good for the community by working outside Dos Rios's often-corrupt system, so El Diablo continued to fight crime in the streets and quickly became the champion of the city's Hispanic community. He is often assisted by "Los Diablos." a loose-knit group of young adults from the barrio who serve as his neighborhood contacts.

In his job as city councilman, Sandoval works closely with a number of people, including Tommy Longstreet, the mayor of Dos Rios and Sandoval's boss; Virginia Dix, Longstreet's Executive Assistant, who finds herself attracted to Sandoval; and Austin Bowie, a lieutenant with the Dos Rios police force.

Rafael Sandoval is an unusually strong-willed man. A little more realistic than many when it comes to understanding the inherent dangers of fighting crime as an unarmed vigilante, Sandoval nevertheless has a deep-rooted respect for justice and will always put himself on the line to defend others.

Powers:
El Diablo is an accomplished athlete, trained in boxing and martial arts. One of his most potent "weapons" is his mystique; many people believe the rumors that he is somehow more than human.

El Diablo wears a bulletproof Kevlar vest at all times. He has been known to use a motorcycle as his main mode of transportation, but is careful to store it where it cannot be traced back to Sandoval.