NEW LA COUNTY SHERIFF: JIM MCDONNELL TAKES OVER THE REINS
Newly elected Los Angeles County Sheriff Jim McDonnell secured 75% of the vote, effectively trouncing former undersheriff Paul Tanaka. (If you missed it, WitnessLA’s editor, Celeste Fremon, reported from McDonnell’s camp on election night.)
Of McDonnell’s decisive win, Hector Villagra, executive director of the ACLU of Southern California, said, “Today Los Angeles County residents made history. They elected an outsider to lead the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Their vote is nothing short of a mandate for reforming the department. We look forward to working with Sheriff McDonnell to bring about the much needed changes that voters deserve and that justice requires.”
On KPCC’s Take Two, McDonnell discusses his victory, coming into the department as an outsider, and the future of Men’s Central Jail and mental health diversion.
Here’s a clip from the transcript, but take a listen for yourself:
Your predecessor Sheriff Lee Baca left under a cloud of controversy. There were charges of corruption and violence in the jails, allegations by the DOJ that mentally ill were being housed in inhumane conditions. Some policies have been put in place to deal with this, but what do you think still needs to be done?
I think it’s a work in progress. The DOJ is looking closely at it. A lot has been done since the jail commission’s report with 63 recommendations for change. Many of those have been implemented and others are in process. Moving forward, infrastructure is one issue. Mens Central Jail needs to be replaced. But also the philosophy within the jail environment. We also talked about a two-track system where deputies aren’t sent from the academy directly into the jails for the next seven years, and then on the streets until they are promoted back in or get in trouble and go back into the jail. It was for too many years treated as a dumping ground for the organization, and it’s one of the most high-liability areas of the department, and to treat it that way, if we were a business, we’d be in trouble.
What would you most like to see a new Mens Central Jail facility have?
I’d like to see a secure facility that is state of the art. It also provides for treatment of inmates who are mentally ill, but before we even deal with that issue be able to have some screening on the front end where we don’t use incarceration as the first option for those who are mentally ill and have offended based on that illness. But have community-based mental health clinics and courts that would screen an individual and provide the appropriate treatment rather than just incarceration as the only option.
MOVING FORWARD WITH PROP 47
Proposition 47—the reclassification of certain low-level drug and property offenses from felonies to misdemeanors—passed on Tuesday with 58.5% of the vote.
Prosecutors, law enforcement, and advocates are already rushing to adapt to the changes. The LA City Attorney’s Office is looking to hire 15 new attorneys and staff to help manage the coming flow of downgraded misdemeanor cases, while social workers and drug courts are working to sort out what 47 means for substance abuse treatment.
The LA Times’ Paige St. John and Marisa Gerber have the story. Here’s how it opens:
Los Angeles County Public Defender Ron Brown walked into a Pomona court Wednesday and saw first-hand the impact of Proposition 47 — the voter-approved initiative that reduces penalties for drug possession and other nonviolent crimes.
His office had deliberately postponed sentencing for a defendant facing more than a year behind bars for possessing heroin and methamphetamine to the day after Tuesday’s election, waiting to see what voters would do.
The gambit worked. The man was sentenced and released from custody with no further jail time.
“They were felonies yesterday. They’re misdemeanors today,” Brown said. “This is the law now.”
The day after California voted to reduce punishments, police agencies, defense attorneys, prosecutors and even some advocates were scrambling to figure out exactly how it was going to work.
The greatest effect, experts said, would be in drug possession cases, noting that California is now the first state in the nation to downgrade those cases from felonies to misdemeanors. Thousands of felons are now eligible for immediate release from prisons and jails.
City attorneys accustomed to handling traffic tickets and zoning violations are now responsible for prosecuting crimes that used to be felonies, including forgeries, theft and shoplifting. District attorneys who used to threaten drug offenders with felony convictions to force them into rehabilitation programs no longer have that as an option. Social workers said they worried that offenders who voluntarily seek treatment will have trouble finding services.
“It’s going to take a little while to figure out,” said Molly Rysman, who operates a housing program for the destitute who sleep on sidewalks in L.A.’s skid row. She is glad that drug users now face only brief stays in jail, if any time at all, but said options for someplace else to go in L.A. are “dismal.” Rysman said caseworkers now spend weeks trying to find an opening for clients who need a detox bed or room in a treatment program.
U.C. Berkeley criminologist Barry Krisberg says California’s passage of Prop 47 has the makings of a new national trend.
The Yes campaign brought together a wide assortment of interest groups that had not agreed about criminal justice policy in the past. Recent campaigns to challenge capital punishment and to reform the three-strike law helped forge a broad coalition of some victims’ rights groups along with powerful allies such as organized labor, the California Teachers Association, the California Nurses Association and state Democratic Party.
The most visible advocates for Prop 47 were San Francisco district attorney George Gascón, Santa Clara district attorney Jeff Rosen and former San Diego Police Chief William Landsdowne. These respected law enforcement officials viewed California’s mass incarceration policies as fiscally unsustainable and harmful to low income communities.
Even prominent national conservative figures like Newt Gingrich and Rand Paul announced their support for Proposition 47, arguing that current sentencing laws waste taxpayers’ dollars and do not curtail drug use. They prefer a focus on locking up violent offenders.
While Senator Dianne Feinstein spoke out against Prop 47, many other state leaders such as Gov. Jerry Brown and Attorney General Kamala Harris remained neutral. One traditionally powerful lobby group, the Corrections Peace Officers Association took no position on Prop 47
It is significant that virtually all the past California governors and attorneys general almost always sided with the tough-on-crime position in ballot initiatives. In the case of Prop 47, their silence was deafening and hampered fundraising for the No camp.
[SNIP]
Public confidence in the state’s prison policies has eroded.
Even the US Supreme Court declared the prisons so crowded and inhumane that it ordered the release some inmates. This dramatic court judgment led Californians to reconsider who should go to prison. Harsh criminal justice laws have been on the books long enough for Californians to be able to weigh the cost and benefit of these measures. The well-publicized failure and financial drain of the so-called “War on Drugs” has created has an environment in which voters are seeking new ideas.
More generally, the popularity of Prop 47 resonates with a growing distrust of government overreach into citizens’ lives and a preference for decision making that is closer to where people live. The demographics of the voting public which is younger, more ethnically diverse, and more highly educated than ever before is also favorable towards more progressive social policies.
If California helped lead the national charge in favor of more tough on crime laws, the state could lead the charge in the opposite direction.
California has traditionally been ahead of national developments, but a good predictor of future political trends. Since California is the largest state in the country, if Prop 47 passes other states may well follow suit. As California goes, so goes the nation.
TOM TORLAKSON KEEPS HIS OFFICE AS CALIFORNIA SCHOOLS SUPERINTENDENT
Incumbent California Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson landed a victory for teachers unions, with 52% of the vote, over reform-minded competitor Marshall Tuck. (Backstory: here.)
San Jose Mercury’s Katy Murphy has more on Torlakson’s win. Here are some clips:
“We knew that when Californians look for direction on how to improve education,” Torlakson said in a statement, “they don’t look to Wall Street. They don’t look to Silicon Valley. They look to the people who are in the schools in their neighborhood every day — the teachers, the school employees, the teacher’s aides, the nurses, the counselors.”
The latest tally from the California Secretary of State’s office showed Torlakson winning by about 4 points.
Tuck conceded the race Wednesday morning, releasing a statement that said: “Together we proved that in California there is a growing call for change and that parents, kids and families can have a voice in education.”
[SNIP]
The contest showed a growing rift within the Democratic Party on how to better educate poor and minority students who languish in low-performing schools.
The reform agenda carried by Tuck — and just as passionately resisted by its opponents, including the state’s teachers unions — promotes competition from independently run, taxpayer-funded charter schools and an overhaul of teachers’ pay, evaluation and job protections.
Tuck had vowed to reinvent the state superintendent’s office, turning it from a “mouthpiece for insiders” to a “voice for students and parents.”
Torlakson, the union and Democratic Party favorite, said he would bring stability and continuity as schools recovered from the devastating budget crisis triggered by the Great Recession.
“I think that resonated well in the education community,” said Maria Ott, a former superintendent and an executive in residence at USC’s Rossier School of Education Community.
SHEILA KUEHL WINS 3RD DISTRICT LA COUNTY SUPERVISOR SEAT
Sheila Kuehl beat out Bobby Shriver in a very tight race for outgoing LA County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky’s seat.
KPCC’s Frank Stoltze and Alice Walton have more on Kuehl’s win and what it will mean for LA County. Here’s a clip:
“It’s the biggest job I’ll ever have, and it’s a career capper for me,” Kuehl said from her campaign victory party at The Victorian in Santa Monica. “Being one of 80 0r one of 40 is very different than being one of five running something the size of Ohio. It’s a much tougher job.”
Kuehl, 73, will be the first openly gay member of the county board, which controls a $26 billion budget. Final ballots were still being counted into the morning. She won 53 percent of the vote.
Kuehl had campaigned on her experience as a member of the state Legislature. She argued it better prepared her to sit on the county board, which must implement a slew of state laws on health care, welfare and a range of other issues. She said Shriver was ill-prepared for the job.
@ OH WELL…… You are slowly, but surely selling yourself as the sole reporter for your own online media station IKE (I Know Everything).
Your Wikipedia and Farmers Almanac based facts injected with your “grapevine” hearsay is getting tiresome.
Even “Boomer” takes a break. Be kind and follow his lead.
@ANONYMOUS YOU NOTICED OH WELL’S BS TOO? HAHAHAHA
I hear people talk about the “dual track” option. From what I understand it gives deputys the option to make a lifelong career in a custody environment. My question is why anyone would ever want to go through police academy and learn about the laws of arrest, weapons training and other “cop stuff and never put it to use? It seems like a waste of money for training someone who is going to be a jailer/corrections officer.
@.3…. It’s called options. If its not for you, don’t worry about it.
Why go to patrol if you don’t aspire to go to S.E.B? ..It goes on & on.
Just curious, does anyone know from a factual perspective, why in the world Pat Gomez jumped in bed with Tanaka?
#3 Waiting to see, as a young deputy I always wondered that too. After a few years on, several deputy friends of mine chose to do the minimum patrol requirement, going back to the jails or courts after a year on patrol. Some of them would have grown into great field deputies. They chose to go back for family reasons. Those of us that worked the field know how hard it is on family life. Getting held over on a great caper an hour before your shift ends, court, drafted. Working custody and courts, you get off on time 99% of the time. These deputies had all the best intentions of working patrol but priorities change. As for me, I’ve missed all the holidays with my children. I still enjoy being in the field but it’s a tremendous sacrifice on the family.
I agree that paying for a custody deputy to get a post certificate is a tremendous waist. I feel custody deputies should be paid multiple steps less than patrol deputies, not just 2 steps.
I agree! @ waiting to see..
@3&6 It shows how many folks came on not to be a cop, but for a paycheck. I pushed a radio car for more than half of my career, through various ranks. We all know the ups and downs of shift work, Frank laid it all out. Try supervising those folks whose only goal in life is an A+ schedule. They won’t cause a problem, but are truly police imposters. I don’t have to deal with them, but others do.
Well said @ FRANK MURPHY
Sachamoe: Not a fact, just a calculated hunch which is….To swing the hispanic vote to Tanaka, based on numbers.
The highest turnout for the Sheriff election comes from West Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley.
Statically speaking, it should be known that more “registered” voters are in these areas.(mainly Anglos)
Hispanic voters don’t have the(registered) numbers……yet.
It was a “Hail Mary” effort when Paul’s campaign money dissapated. A position near the top would have been Pat’s reward.
So who is worse the unabashed Tanaka supporters like Waters or the , all I have to do is get on a leg and write a check, supports like Goldman?
One clearly hitched his wagon to Paul the man with a vision, yes his vision drove us off a cliff, or the guy who knew it was wrong but sold his soul for his next promotion!
Hopefully McDonnell will clean our the diehard Tanaka supports but what do you do with the guys who’s vision was to do whatever it took to get their next promotion. These are people who knew what Tanaka was doing was wrong, particularly the pay for play scam, but went along to benefit themselves.
And let’s not forget the Baca supporters, who once Tanaka was out, sacrificed their ethics to shore up Baca the wounded candidate. In the end all of these Baca and Tanaka supports used their skills, abilities and positions to knowingly support morally bankrupt men. They could have all said NO!
Pushing a radio car through “various ranks”? (2 stripes & 3 stripes) with three stripes being a supervisor. Do tell.
Sachamoe, from a factual perspective Pat Gomez should have known he has as much ability to sway Hispanic votes as Bin Laden had the ability to convert the pope to Islam.
On the other hand, necrophilia has its practitioners, but that doesn’t mean it makes sense…
@1. Thanks…….I’m not alone. Good shot.
Sachamoe SRE YOU DONR POUNDING YOUR CHEST LIKE THE MEAT HEAD THAT YOU ARE! I BET YOU THINK YOU ARE EVEN EDUCATED WITH THE ONLINE DEGREE YOU PAYED FOR FROM SOME START UP UNIVERSITY. OH WAIT YOU HAVE A MASTER’S IN HOMELAND SECUIRTY? DID THEY ISSUE YOU A LEOTARD WITH A BIG L ON YOUR CHEST THAT SPELLS OUT LOSER? LMAO! GET OVER YOURSELF FOOLIO! YOUR JUST A LOW LEVEL COP BRO! YOU ARE NOT EVEN A SPECK IN THIS THING WE CALL THE UNIVERSE!
@12, the last rank I was actually 10-8 in a radio car was Lieutenant. Proud of the years I was assigned to patrol and actually worked the line. Would not have traded that time and experience for anything. It made me a better deputy, FTO, supervisor and manager.
Frank Dork, I have better things to do than engage in juvenile mental games with you. I do have an advanced degree and I did not buy it on-line as so many did through LASD-U, I earned them the hard way, in class and probably before you came on the job. You sound like an angry career long A+ schedule person whose only knowledge of working in the “hot years” was walking to your car from the courthouse you have been assigned to during last year’s summer heat wave. Now chill out with your pent up anger before you embarrass yourself. Work on your grammar as well, it’s why you have so many problems with your paper.
And for the record, I do not begrudge anyone for attempting to obtain a good schedule, later in their careers, for the betterment of family and a personal life. But as others have commented on, it has always puzzled me why someone would ever enter our profession, endure the hiring process and academy and then refuse to pay their dues for the sake of an A+. I know sworn personnel who have never stepped foot in a radio car but to make a chow run or work the Rose Parade. My circle of friends refer to them a police imposters. Nuff said.
Sachamoe: You have gained more fans by alluding/calling those who choose not to go to patrol as “POLICE IMPOSTERS” concerning the Dual Track in the LASO. Nice
To each his own. Would love to see your department jacket. Many who contribute to WLA are “Paper Tigers” until proven otherwise. We will never know.
#12 asked a very intriguing question. Brief us
Nice job Sachamoe. Nailed it. Be careful though. A lot of “anonymous” and (brand spanking new?) commenters similar to “Sore Eyes” are likely to show up out of the blue now that you’ve took a couple commenters to task and made them look bad simply by telling the truth.
Is it funny or what that they come out of nowhere after somebody points out the flaw in their arguments, gives them facts that contradict their talking points or asks them tough questions that make them squirm.
It’s purely coincidental I’m sure and definitely not the couple of commenters I’ve had to set straight that do it to the point of even making preemptive assaults like #1 lol.
Stevie Wonder could see thru their bullshit.
Again, nice job Sachamoe!!!!
#16 being 10-8 as an Lt.? Taking the shiny brand WC’s car for your free cup at starbucks doesn’t count….
*brand new for #19
Is anyone else as disappointed with Scott’s last few months as I am. What is the purpose of making last minute promotions 2 weeks prior to the new Sheriff coming on board. I guess he, and those being promoted, feel they will be revealed for the turncoat ass kissers they are and may not otherwise make it to the next step. Really, C.B. on the intent to promote to Captain! He and soon to be retired Captain J.R. were on the Tanaka train, this time last year. I guess if you don’t have the confidence to be recognized for any talent you may have, then you’ll do whatever you have to do for a better paycheck. More power to them, I guess! But, you better keep a look out for “Karma,” the great equalizer!
Patrol is where its at. Get out there, be one of the boys, make $400 more than the guys in custody, stay late and work for free, go to court on your off days, come back as a supervisor and tell us how cool it is out there and let me know how it feels when you divide up your pension with your ex wives.
#22 “Huh Says”. I am disappointed that Sheriff-Elect allowed these promotions to happen. If I had just won over 70% of the vote, I would expect that nothing changes without my direct involvement. Sheriff Scott was afterall appointed not elected by 70% of Los Angeles.
HAHAHHA TYPICAL FIX YOUR GRAMMAR! WHY DO YOU CALL YOURSELF A MANAGER? YOU COULDN’T HANDLE BEING A MANAGER AT DUNKEN DOUGHNUTS IF THEY PAYED YOU TOO. YEA U PROBALY WERE A MANAGER BUT IT’S NOT A TRUE MANAGER WHEN YOU HAVE A BUNCH OF YES MEN AGREEING WITH EVERYTHING YOU SAY. YOUR CICRCLE OF FRIENDS? WHAT ONE? GIVE ME A BRAKE Sachamoe YOUR AND OLD PLAYED OUT SHOE GET OVER YOURSELF BECAUSE GOD KNOWS YOU HAVE ONE FOOT IN THE COFFIN AND ONE FOOT ON A BANANA PEEL..NOBODY CARES ABOUT YOU GO ROCK YORSELF TO SLEEP ON YOUR LAZYBOY…
@ Generalhuthut HAHAHAHAH GOOD ONE!
@ 20 & 21……LOL I haven’t stopped yet. I take it that the FNG’S have to pay homage to “Oh Well” I think not
@ 23. You get the last laugh…….all the way to the bank. Solid Point.
@ 22, Huh! you are not kidding! Scott and Tyler have dropped any pretense of shame and propriety with these last minute promotions. Intent to promote to positions that don’t exist? Whoever heard of promoting to an “Acting Commander” position, particularly when they failed miserably as captain? We are scrapping the bottom of the barrel, while the actual talent of the department is just looking forward to retirement…
Hey look, it’s Maxwell Smart, another new commenter. That’s awesome. And now we have dork with the small letters. Awesome. Standing by for your wisdom filled tirades.
“Pay homage” to me? Not hardly. Pay it to the other hard working men and women who go 10-8 everyday in a radio car and do the Lord’s work. They’re the ones who hold the line. They’re the ones who make the sacrifices you speak of. They’re the ones who’s family life is affected by not getting off on time, working for free, spending their days off in court. They’re the ones with the ex-wives.
They’re the ones who will roll to your house when your wife calls 911 while you’re working a booth at TTCF.
Nevermind, go ahead and continue to make fun of them with your smug attitude. Continue with your “It’s all about me and I got mine” attitude.
Whatever you do, PLEASE stay where you are getting the easy bucks with your A schedule. You and your kind, who want the most amount of money for the least amount of work with little to no sacrifice on your part don’t get it and never will.
But by all means, be sure and tell all your civilian friends at the parties and BBQ’s know that you’re a COP on the LASD.
LMAO.
@27….I see why Anonymous (1) wrote what they did.
You’re “too much” buddy.
Maxwell Smart and DUAL TRACKER,
We need guys like you. I’m serious, no sarcasm intended. Just like the military needs their Chairborne Rangers and all the other non-combat personnel to support the mission.
With that being said, let me give you a word of advice.
Don’t dishonor yourselves any further by making light of the personnel who make the sacrifices, pay the price, and suffer the consequences because they choose to do the very honorable and commendable job of strapping on a gun belt and going 10-8. The men and women who make those sacrifices deserve better than your insinuations that they’re not “where it’s at” or that “you get the last laugh…all the way to the bank”.
The patrol personnel are the reason you get the money you do with your fat salary, benefits and retirement package. The personnel who wear a gun everyday are the reason there’s a Memorial Wall.
Check yourself. You’re making yourself look juvenile, selfish and petty with your comments.
I have to agree that some (OK, many…. OK, MOST) of the recent promotions have me scratching my head! I do not understand the reasoning behind promoting people to positions that don’t exist. I especially don’t understand promoting people to a higher rank who have not shown the ability to perform at the lower rank; it just doesn’t make sense. I do think #24 is absolutely correct in the comment that NONE of this has one iota of a chance of happening without the blessing of the Sheriff-elect. I have always respected John Scott, but these most recent decisions on promotions kind of show that everyone plays the game. I hope soon to be Sheriff McDonnell gets the true and real info on a lot of these leg clingers, but I don’t know if he will be able to right the ship (OR right the wrongs) any time soon.
His first move should be to get rid of Tyler; what an absolute joke he has come to be.
THANK YOU TO ALL THE VETERANS OF PAST AND PRESENT!
Been there done that with over 30 (years) working Custody, Patrol, Courts, and other assignments with various units. For those who are “issue laden achieve ith the Dual Track, Peep this…..We don’t need division amongst our “Sworn Personnel” period.
For those who have an issue with the “Dual Track” within the LASO, go to the originaters and plead your grief.
The debate can go on and on. Do what suits and concerns you. Next thing you know there will be three (3) Deputy associations and one Sheriffs for each track..You get the picture. Live your own life and allow others to live theirs. To thine own self be true. Sworn = Different Divisions, Same Team. Over.
The real joke is this transition team and who is leading it. My God… enough already…
If Sheriff McDonnell hopes to rebuild confidence in the department, he should start with an outside agency investigation of IA/ICIB.
If you have corruption and lack of integrity in these units who are suppose to be the watch dog of the department, then what is your foundation for rebuilding a department that can be respected?
Personnel in these two units are suppose to be held to a higher standard. You can’t expect IA/ICIB to do fair and unbias investigations of department members if some members of those units have been stragically placed in IA/ICIB by the old regime.
The feds are just scratching the surface of the problems in LASD. You have to be in denial if you think the problems are not deeper than what has been made public.
I don’t expect McDonnell to snap his fingers and fix the problems of LASD. It is going to be a process. Regardless of McDonnell ‘s resume he is coming into the largest Sheriff Department in the USA. When he helped LAPD recover from its darkness he knew what needed to be done because he spent his career at LAPD. Coming into LASD, he has to figure out who he can trust and who he can’t. Who is qualified to be in their positions and who is not. To accomplish this, it is going to require him to spend more time at the department and less time politicing and conducting interviews as the new LA County Sheriff elect.
Oh Well..I see that you’re a very infamous blogger.
Strictly Speaking,
I couldn’t agree more with your #34. It takes ALL of us to get the job done. You won’t hear me bad mouthing anybody who chooses a dual track path. I’m no Ithaca Boomer. We need jail personnel. We need people to work the courts. We need admin. personnel.
You also won’t hear me insinuating the men and women who do the hardest part of our job are idiots. That’s the meat and potatoes of our department. That’s what allows us to have all the contract cities. That’s the job that requires the most sacrifice. That’s the job that takes the biggest toll on a cop’s life.
Without the patrol personnel we cease to exist as street cops and become jail guards and court security. Without patrol personnel we don’t get the salary and benefits we do, all the way down the line. Working patrol is why we have to have a POST certificate. Without patrol we become the Cook County (Chicago) Sheriff’s Dept. and leave the policing of the community to the PD(s).
Making fun of personnel who don’t choose to go patrol is divisive. Making fun of our people who are STREET COPS is not only divisive, it’s insane and shows a lack of foresight and gratitude.
SOMEBODY HAS TO DO IT.
DUAL TRACKER and Maxwell Smart should be grateful that there are cops willing to do it. Otherwise they wouldn’t have the option not to do it themselves. They would be ordered to go to patrol, strap on a gun belt and answer calls for service. (As prior to the Dual Track Program). They would have to handle the 245JO/GSV’s. They would have to handle the 211N. They would have to work for free. They would have to spend their RDO’s in court. They would have to divide their retirement up with their ex-wives. They don’t want to do it. They should be grateful to those that do.
DUAL TRACKER and Maxwell Smart only have the options they do because of the patrol personnel.
They need to realize that. Maybe nobody has ever told them. Maybe they’ve never really thought about it. If they haven’t thought about it, I wanted to take the opportunity to point it out. If they have thought about it and still choose to make light of patrol personnel, well then, that speaks for itself.
I’m sure by now you get my drift. Yes, I’m long winded.
I could’ve given them the Readers’s Digest version or taken the approach of an arrogant asshole and asked them questions like: “Exactly how many deputies have been murdered in custody”?…….or “Exactly how many custody deputies have received the Medal of Valor”?
I’ll end with this. Same team. Same mission. Don’t be a cancer in the locker room.
We got bigger problems than I thought if we are arguing about dual tracker, custody v. patrol, etc…
Keep your eye on the ball folks.
We have a dysfunctional culture, lack of identity, and low morale. How did we get here?
Remove the cancer to save the body. Nobody said the road to recovery was going to be easy or not painful. Time to take our medicine.
And to the person who said quit calling out executives…. The 4th and 8th floor allowed every bit of this to happen department wide. I will pack your boxes and fill out your paperwork if you need help.
Best department in the World and it needs to do the best house cleaning job now.
You can not run one of the largest law enforcement agencies while being a mayor, city councilmen, not showing up 40 hours a week….. You don’t see that in comparable organziations that are responsible to the public. Get them out of here.
We used to have Corrections Officers in the jails. Same uniform, slightly different patch. Corrections Officers in the jails, Deputies on the streets. Win Win for all.
@ Jack Dawson
I see you posed the question, “How did we get here?”
My answer to that is arrogance, over confident, feeling above the law, lack of integrity, lying, corruption… and the list goes on. You are right to call out the executives and I will shine some light why.
The jail scandal just proved to the feds what they already knew about LASD. When executives were told to stand down and not interfere with the federal investigation into the jails what happen? Obstruction. Executives show an attitude of do as I say, not as I do, toward subordinates. It has been shown by their actions that law and policies do not apply to them.
From documents I read and evidence I reviewed this goes back to a incident that happen in 2010. The incident involved a drunk driver named Ronald Jay Teeman and an off duty deputy. What I discovered that LASD executives did in cohorts with Internal Affairs to cover up the crimes of this drunk driver was egregious and disgusting. Maybe it had something to do with this drunk driver’s father worked for LASD as a deputy and the sister as a dispatcher back in the day? It was stated in federal court documents that the father would use his authority as a deputy to get his adult son out of trouble in the past, and whenever he was sentence to jail time his father would move him out of general population and have him do his time as a station trustee.
Well, this deputy that executives and IA violated his rights to a fair investigation and liberty interest hearing is connected to a person in high places in the federal government. They allowed everything to play out to see if there would be any fairness with the investigation process. Once the 7 page D.A. report was finally turned over by LASD clearing the deputy of any wrongdoing, executives was put on notice to do right by this case or you will be sorry. The arrogance of executives to ignore the warnings and continue to retaliate, defame, and support their wrongful termination of this deputy lead to the current state of the LASD.
It was stated in a federal court document that drunk driver Ronald Jay Teeman told a deputy who initially contacted him, his reason for fleeing the scene was he had been drink and he was scared he was going to be arrested by the deputy. That statement, medical reports showing the deputy was injured, audio of the 911 call, and many other evidence that was favorable to the deputy was never turned over by LASD to the D.A.’s office during their analysis of the incident.
Basically, you had an executive decision made within a few days in this case and regardless what the evidence showed, subordinates followed orders even though they were wrongful orders. Sound familiar?
All the details you need to know can be found in a 4 disk data cd complaint sent to LASD. This complaint was assigned Watch Commander’s Service Comment Report # 227078. There is an overwhelming amount of evidence on these CD’s; which includes video, audio, reports, court documents, photos…etc. I bet this is another one of those pieces of evidence that disappeared and LASD has no record of. Karma is unforgiving, and for all those who are doing there job righteously, you have IA and executives to thank for LASD current state.
@ 41.) Typical LASO…….Think of countless others who were royally screwed over. The list is legion. You were correct regarding KARMA.
Mr. Scott you have less than two weeks remaining as your tenure of LA Sheriff. Well from all of the ethical and hard working members of the department who were screwed over by Paul Tanaka and his crew please pack your bags and go. You my friend were no different than him. Different name, same result. You started out by demoting several of his loyalists but since then you have been an utter disappointment and we can’t wait to see you go. Let’s review some of your recent promotions. The captains taking over OSS and Carson are 110 percent Tanaka loyalists. As much as they try and deny the rumors, everyone knows they were in the PT car. Were there other choices equally qualified, of course. Most beg to differ if these two were more deserving. Do you really expect us to believe they were the best choices available? Why do you even continue to promote? Are you taking care of the boys before you leave office? It certainly has that perception. Where is the counties CEO and board of supervisors and why have they not frozen all promotions until Mr. McDonnell takes over as sheriff?
Rumors from this mornings lieutenant break up will have and should have department members incredibly furious. So you completely understand, two lieutenants (just off probation) will be be appointed operation positions. Lt. T. Stewart is transferring to Parks Bureau and Lt. J. Wolak to MCJ. Did I mention as Operation Lieutenants. Both were recently released from probation status. It’s no wonder the department continues to fail.
Where are you Mr. McDonnell and why haven’t you taken the reigns of the department. Tell Mr. Scott to cease all decision making until you officially take over in less than two weeks. Since all of these recent promotions are in an acting capacity the right thing to do would be to undo the promotions until you have the time to fully evaluate the promotional process. Arent the operation lieutenants at these units capable of managing the unit until a suitable replacement has been identified? During your interview with POPA President B. Moruguchi you said and I quote, “the person has to be the right fit for the position!”
First we had Banaka and now we have the R and R boys. Rogers and Rothans. Where were these men when Banaka was ruining the department? I’ll tell you, they continued to receive their promotions. Mr. Rogers did not speak out against Paul until he was running for sheriff. Too little to late. Mr. Rothans is a smart and intelligent man but he is the bigger snake in the grass. Let us not be fooled, he was also a Tanaka loyalist. He was often visiting the cigar patio with Paul and company.
Mr. McDonnel I ask you this one simple question, Did either of these men have the courage to come forward and speak out against Paul when he was ruining the lives and careers of many hard working and ethical employees? Enough said.