Posts Tagged :

2021

Sheriff alex villanueva graphic. portrait of sheriff in tan shirt black tie. Sheriff's uniform, on greeen background with the hall of justice building behind him faded in the back ground.
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS MISSUSE OF CORONER INQUESTS 1024 249 SIB Staff

BOARD OF SUPERVISORS MISSUSE OF CORONER INQUESTS

BOARD OF SUPERVISORS MISSUSE OF CORONER INQUESTS

Amended October 5, 2021

The Board of Supervisors (Board) has voted to open a coroner inquest on three Deputy-Involved Shooting (DIS) cases (Mr. Dana Mitchell “Malik” Young, Jr., Mr. Samuel Herrera, Jr. and Mr. Dijon Kizzee).  What is difficult to understand is for what logical reason. 

All completed internal criminal investigations are submitted to the Office of the District Attorney – Justice System Integrity Division (JSID), as well the Office of the Inspector General (OIG). Going forward, my intent is to share force investigations handled by the Homicide Bureau with OIG, shortly after they are given to JSID, unless JSID objects to preserve the integrity of the investigation, or on the following grounds: (1) disclosure would endanger the safety of a person involved in the investigation; (2) the completion of the active criminal investigation would be jeopardized; or (3) the privacy interest outweighs the interests of the disclosure.

Additionally, all three of these cases have been publicly posted for some time at LASD.ORG with the official finalized coroner reports, incident summaries, and names of involved deputies.  In the case of Mr. Kizzee, video footage of the DIS and video of the press conference are also available to the public.

Note: Due to the Board’s funding delay tactics, the Department was not yet equipped with body-worn cameras (BWC) at the time of these incidents, therefore no BWC footage exists.   

A coroner inquest can only address the question of circumstance, manner, and cause of death.  In all three of these cases, those questions have already been determined and the cases are with JSID to decide if the deputies’ actions were lawful.  

Although a coroner inquest may provide for good political theater from which to launch political attacks, this will be a colossal waste of tax dollars and will not provide one single shred of new information.  Additionally, these actions may serve to jeopardize any criminal case which could be determined by JSID.  

The Board should address the real problem; why does it take so many years for JSID to make a decision as to the lawfulness of each DIS?  I have already publicly called on the DA to issue a letter of opinion on each DIS within 90 days of the case being submitted, and I ask the Board to join me.

All loss of life is tragic and our hearts go out to the family and friends of Mr. Young, Mr. Herrera, and Mr. Kizzee.  It is painful to see the Board exploit tragedies for their political agenda.

Sheriff Villanueva Responds to the RAND Report and Discusses Reforms in the Sheriff’s Department 1024 683 SIB Staff

Sheriff Villanueva Responds to the RAND Report and Discusses Reforms in the Sheriff’s Department

On Wednesday, September 22, 2021, Sheriff Alex Villanueva held a press conference at the Hall of Justice to respond to the recent RAND Report. Sheriff Villanueva read 188 pages of the report and under his “Rebuild, Reform, and Restore” campaign, out of the 37 recommendations that were identified, LASD had 30 of those recommendations actively in place prior to the release of the report. The remaining 7 are under review and some of them involve training which requires funding. It is important to note that the cost of providing 8 hours of training to the Department is approximately $7.2 million, and the current budget does not allow it.

Sheriff Villanueva noted that implementing significant reforms does not happen overnight and correcting 50 years of failed leadership will take time. He focused on reforms that have taken place under his leadership such as the Deputy Cliques Policy (MPP3-01/50.83). It is a policy that did not exist before and it took effect on February of the year 2020.

As a result of the George Floyd murder, the Duty to Intervene Policy (MPP 3-01/030.14) was implemented. The Department had a policy that was subject to interpretation but this new policy leaves no doubt that Department members shall intervene and report an incident when they observe a serious violation of any Department policy. Failure to intervene may result in criminal prosecution.

Other important policies that have been initiated are:

  • Whistleblower Protection Policy – (MPP 3-01/30.22)
  • Protections Against Retaliation for Reporting Misconduct Policy – (MPP3-01/030.22)
  • Threat Assessment of Department Personnel Following Involvement in Significant Incidents (Detective Division Order 21-2)
  • Transparency Promise (all information the Department can lawfully share is on the website)
  • Body Worn Cameras (20 out of 23 stations are now using body worn cameras and in two more months, all stations will have them.)

Sheriff Villanueva announced that a total of 874 personnel have been disciplined from December 3, 2018 to September 13, 2021, and out of that number, 120 have been given Letters of Intent to Discharge. He emphasized that he has held employees accountable, but one thing he does not do is prosecute, as that is the job of the District Attorney. LASD is responsible for criminal investigations and those are turned over to the D.A. and those investigations sometimes sit with the D.A. for years.

He also noted the report contradicted itself, stating at one point deputy cliques were still actively adding members (p.xi), while later saying they did not seem to be actively adding members (p.97). Print news media widely used the first statement while completely ignoring the latter.

“With all the negative press associated with the deputy subgroups, with the efforts that I’ve done, my administration has done, putting the policy, enforcing the policy, creating a video that every single member of the department had to see, they had to sign an attestation form, and it goes into each individual’s personnel jacket. None of this was mentioned in the RAND study. Why? Because they were not interested in the truth, that’s the sad reality,” said Sheriff Villanueva.

Sheriff Villanueva pointed out a statement he found troubling: “Community leaders and members were mostly critical of current department leadership, expressing concerns about a lack of transparency, a lack of trust, and a culture of aggressive policing” (p.161, p.xii). “I read through the entire report and did not find a single reference comparing current Department leadership and past Department leadership, not one, So, how did they come up with one?” asked Sheriff Villanueva.

It was later discovered that the Civilian Oversight Commission, which is appointed by the Board of Supervisors, provided people who had participated in focus groups in the process of gathering information. If the information had been drawn from the public at large, it would have been a rather fair report but the information came from people that were biased against the Department.

The RAND Report is the first of its kind entirely devoted to LASD sub-groups. The actual cost of the report was over $1 million and there was also a $1.5 million in property tax forgiveness that the County bequeathed to the Santa Monica-based RAND Institute.

Press Conference

Additional Material

Press Conference Slides – PDF

Sheriff alex villanueva graphic. portrait of sheriff in tan shirt black tie. Sheriff's uniform, on greeen background with the hall of justice building behind him faded in the back ground.
PUBLIC CORRUPTION INVESTIGATIONS 1024 249 SIB Staff

PUBLIC CORRUPTION INVESTIGATIONS

PUBLIC CORRUPTION INVESTIGATIONS

September 22, 2021

Tomorrow, a local newspaper will release a story about the department’s long overdue creation of a Public Corruption Unit.  The Sheriff’s Department has been conducting public corruption investigations for decades under every single sheriff, but it has never been formalized until recently.  The department has been investigating multiple complaints of public malfeasance since I took office in December of 2018, which is well within the authority of the department consistent with California Government Code Section 25303 and 26600.  As a matter of fact, the California Constitution bestows investigative authority to the Office of the Sheriff as an independently elected official, and who is not subordinate to any other elected official in the county.  This is of particular significance when the community is demanding transparency and accountability from all elected and appointed officials.  No one is above the rule of law.

In the article, the reporter will push the narrative that I created this team to attack my political opponents and their appointees.  This is false.  The sole responsibility of the Sheriff’s Department is to investigate allegations of criminal conduct as they are discovered, regardless of how inconvenient it may be to the subject of the investigation.  The unit is supervised by the Undersheriff, and I have recused myself from all decision making to avoid any potential conflict of interest.  The department routinely seeks out the opinion of the District Attorney, the State Attorney General’s Office, and the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) to decide jurisdictional issues and appropriate prosecutorial venues on all cases. 

#FactsMatter

Sheriff Alex Villanueva

Image of Coffee beans layed out on a table with a full cup of coffee that is steaming. The tet reads Coffee with at cop. September 28,2021. 8:30 am to 10:30 am. The Coffee Gallery, 2029 Lake ave. Altadena, CA 91001.
Coffee with a Cop – Altadena 940 788 SIB Staff

Coffee with a Cop – Altadena

JOIN YOUR NEIGHBORS AND LOCAL ALTADENA SHERIFF’S FOR A FRIENDLY CONVERSATION.

September 28, 2021
8:30am to 10:30am

The Coffee Gallery
2029 Lake Ave.,
Altadena, CA 91001

Image of a coffee cup on a plate, the plate is covered with coffee beans. Everything is sitting on a burlap material. At the top there is a Sheriff's star, gold six point star with an engraving of a bear in the middle. The text reads "Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, Coffee with a Deputy"
Coffee with a Deputy – San Dimas 1024 653 SIB Staff

Coffee with a Deputy – San Dimas

Join your neighbors and local San Dimas Sheriff’s for a friendly conversation.

Thursday, October 7, 2021
4-6 p.m.

Starbucks – San Dimas
114 E. Bonita Avenue,
San Dimas, CA, 91773

We Will Never Forget, September 11, 2001. Image of the american flag waving over the One Trade Center Tower on the left of flag and the Right side of flag are the Twin towers very faint over the orange purple sky.
LASD Remembers and honors the 20th anniversary of 9/11 900 900 SIB Staff

LASD Remembers and honors the 20th anniversary of 9/11

Today marks the 20th Anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.

LASD will Never Forget 911!

Sheriff alex villanueva graphic. portrait of sheriff in tan shirt black tie. Sheriff's uniform, on greeen background with the hall of justice building behind him faded in the back ground.
RAND CORPORATION REPORT ON DEPUTY SUBGROUPS 1024 249 SIB Staff

RAND CORPORATION REPORT ON DEPUTY SUBGROUPS

RELEASE OF RAND CORPORATION REPORT ON DEPUTY SUBGROUPS

September 10, 2021

Today the Board of Supervisors released a study performed by the RAND Corporation titled “Understanding Subgroups Within the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department: Community and Department Perceptions with Recommendations for Change.”  I received the 230-page study the same time everyone else did today, so I have not had an opportunity to read it.  I look forward to learning about their study, methodologies used, limitations, and seeing how their recommendations can inform the massive reform efforts already underway.  This is part of leading a learning organization devoted to serving the public safety needs of our community.

Sheriff Alex Villanueva

deputy sheriff is walking with two hispanic men down the street towards a camera. They are having a friendly conversation. The Deputy is wearing a tan longsleeve shirt with a black tie and green pants. there are two men on either side of the deputy. They are holding books and a backpack.
Policy Regarding Immigration Inquiries and Notification 662 522 SIB Staff

Policy Regarding Immigration Inquiries and Notification

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) Policy Regarding Immigration Inquiries and Notification

This policy is intended to reassure immigrant communities that there is no need to fear contact with the Sheriff’s Department.  Policy Section 05-09/271.00 “Immigration Inquires and Notifications.”

  • Department members shall investigate criminal activity without regard for an individual’s legal status.
  • Department members shall not initiate police action with the objective of discovering the individual’s immigration status.
  • Deputies shall not arrest an individual on suspicion of violating a federal immigration law relating to illegal entry, being unlawfully present, or overstaying a visa.
  • Department members shall not inquire about an individual’s immigration status.
  • If a victim’s, witness’ or offender’s immigration status is discovered during an investigation, deputies shall not forward that information to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
  • Department members shall not use an immigration authority as an interpreter.
  • For additional policy information visit www.sheriff33.lasd.org.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I be deported by LASD during a routine traffic stop or call for help?
Answer: No.  The Sheriff’s Department does not enforce federal immigration laws.
Deputies from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department are prohibited from asking about a person’s immigration status during routine traffic stops or calls for service.

If a deputy discovers I’m an undocumented immigrant, will the deputy arrest me for a violation of a federal immigration law?
Answer: No.  Sheriff’s Department policy prohibits deputies from arresting or booking an individual on suspicion of violating federal immigration laws.

Can I be deported by LASD if I report a crime or call for help?
Answer: No.  The mission of the Sheriff’s Department is to investigate crimes that have occurred, regardless of a victim’s or offender’s immigration status.  When receiving a call for service, the focus of the Sheriff’s Department is helping victims and witnesses, not enforcing federal immigration laws.  If a victim’s or a witness’ immigration status is discovered during an investigation, Department personnel are prohibited by policy from notifying ICE of the person’s immigration status.

What happens to a Deputy who asks about my immigration status?
Answer: A deputy sheriff who inappropriately inquiries about immigration status is subject to administrative discipline.

Does the Sheriff’s Department assist ICE with immigration enforcement operations?
Answer: No.  The Sheriff’s Department does not participate in or assist ICE with immigration enforcement operations.  We may participate in joint federal task force operations with federal immigration authorities only where the purpose of the task force is to investigate violations of local, state, or federal criminal laws.

Guía Informativo Sobre Inmigración

Preguntas Frecuentes
¿Seré deportado por ICE después de haber sido encarcelado por un delito?
Respuesta: Depende.  El gobierno federal tiene acceso a las huellas dactilares de todos los que es­tán encarcelados por todo el país y puede comen­zar procedimientos de deportación. Sin embargo, el LASD solo permite el acceso de ICE a reclusos que han sido condenados por ciertos crímenes, tal como son enumerados en el Proyecto de la Ley 54 del Senado de California (Consulte la sec­ción 7282.5 del Código del Gobierno de Cal.).

¿Cuál es el procedimiento para que una víctima de un delito solicite una “Visa U”?
Respuesta: La persona debe ser víctima de un crimen calificado. En algunos casos, los testigos y / o miembros de familia pueden ser elegibles en solicitar una Visa U. El solicitante o el detective de la estación pueden iniciar la solicitud de la Visa U (Formulario I-918 de Ciudadanía e Inmigración de los Estados Unidos (USCIS)). El formulario debe ser llenado y presentado al detective manejando el caso. El detective revisará el expediente y de­terminará si el solicitante fue víctima de un cargo calificado y fue útil en la investigación. La present­ación de cargos penales y un enjuiciamiento crimi­nal no son requisitos para nuestra certificación en la solicitud de una Visa U. Si se cumplen todos los requisitos en la solicitud, la estación o el capitán de la unidad certificarán la solicitud, firmándola en nombre del Alguacil. La copia original es devuelta al solicitante o al defensor. El peticionario enviará todos los documentos aplicables al USCIS.

Para preguntas o quejas por favor llame a la:
Unidad de Información del Alguacil (213) 229-1700
Unidad de Asuntos Internos (800) 698-8255

Les animamos en ponerse en con­tacto con cualquier estación local del Alguacil para ob­tener respuestas a cualquier pregunta adicional o si tiene una preocupación.

Sheriff alex villanueva graphic. portrait of sheriff in tan shirt black tie. Sheriff's uniform, on greeen background with the hall of justice building behind him faded in the back ground.
RUMORS OF MANDATORY COVID VACCINATIONS UNDER THE THREAT OF DISCIPLINE 1024 249 SIB Staff

RUMORS OF MANDATORY COVID VACCINATIONS UNDER THE THREAT OF DISCIPLINE

RUMORS OF MANDATORY COVID VACCINATIONS UNDER THE THREAT OF DISCIPLINE

August 25, 2021

Personally, I have received the COVID vaccination, and I encourage others to become vaccinated.  I also respect the individual rights of others to make decisions about their own bodies.  Considering recent countywide directives being discussed related to mandatory vaccinations, under the threat of discipline or termination, I must state my belief this is a labor issue which must be worked out between the unions and the County Board of Supervisors.

As this issue is worked out by all involved parties, I want to reassure Department personnel NO ACTION will be imposed prior to completion of the meet and consult process.

Once this issue has been through the entire legal process, if there were ever policies regarding vaccination status which could result in discipline, the implementation of such policies would start from the top of the executive staff down.  I look forward to seeing this issue resolved in a manner consistent with labor laws, the Constitution of the State of California, and the Constitution of the United States of America.

Sheriff Alex Villanueva

image of a hand writing on a chalk board, the board reads "BACK TO SCHOOL" and has a smile under the two o in the word "School".
Back to School 900 900 SIB Staff

Back to School

IT’S BACK TO SCHOOL!

THE SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT ENCOURAGES THE PUBLIC TO STAY AWARE AND STAY SAFE IN SCHOOL ZONES: As students head back to the classroom, schools and the communities around them are going to be busier than they’ve been since the start of the pandemic. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department reminds everyone to stay aware and stay safe with increased traffic returning to school zones.

There are going to be a lot more parents, students and staff out than residents have seen in more than a year. Please drive carefully in school zones, especially during pick-up and drop-off times. This includes remembering what to do around school buses.

The easiest, safest thing to do is to stop the car when you encounter a school bus with a stop sign and flashing red lights. There are going to be students getting on and off the school bus. It’s also the law.

California law requires drivers to stop when a school bus is in front of them and extends its stop sign with flashing red lights. Drivers must remain stopped if the red lights are on. Drivers in both directions must stop on any two-lane road without a median or a center turn lane.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department offers the following tips to stay safe around schools: • Slow down. • Follow any school rules for dropping off or picking up students. • Stop for school buses. Watch for children rushing to catch the bus or exiting. • Whenever possible, avoid blocking the crosswalk while waiting to make a right-hand turn. • Always look both ways before crossing the street. Make sure cars see you. • Walk on sidewalks, when available. Cross at marked crosswalks, preferably at stop signs or signals. • Watch for cars entering or backing out of driveways or leaving parking spaces