In this week’s LA Weekly, reporter Gene Maddaus writes about how a marijuana dispensary’s surveillance video and an allegedly-planted handgun may have finally led the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department and the LA District Attorney’s office to pay attention to the actions of a cluster of rogue LASD deputies.
The story pertains specifically to a deputy clique known as the Jump Out Boys, the existence of which was first reported by the LA Times. The clique drew its members from within the ranks of Operation Safe Streets (OSS), the gang investigation unit within the department.
Two years ago, in February 2013, after news of the clique’s existence became a larger and larger story, the LASD under Sheriff Baca fired seven of the Jump Out Boys, ostensibly for “belonging to a secret law enforcement clique that allegedly celebrated shootings and branded its members with matching tattoos,” and related conduct unbecoming. The information that Maddaus has uncovered, however, suggests that the firings may have had more to do with straight-up criminal behavior—and that there may be more such behavior that has yet to come to light.
Here’s a clip from the story. As we are coming into the tale in its middle, you need to know that both “Martinez” and “Paez” are Jump Out Boys. “Yang,” is a young man who works at the Superior Herbal Health marijuana clinic.
Martinez was one of the clique’s “shot callers,” according to a sheriff’s source. He would later write a three-page narrative of the events of that day. His report would help generate two sets of criminal charges — first against Yang and then, when discrepancies emerged, against himself.
According to Martinez’s report, he and Paez were driving along 84th Place when they saw a black man exit a building. The report states that the man appeared to engage in a hand-to-hand drug transaction with another man. When the first man saw the officers, the report states, he reached into his pocket and pulled out what looked like the butt of a handgun.
The man — later identified as Antonio Rhodes, who’s a barber working in Long Beach — ran back into the building. Martinez got out of his car and tried to chase him, but the door was locked. Martinez wrote in his report that he could smell marijuana. He demanded that the door be opened, then ran to the side of the building.
The report says that, through an open window, Martinez could see Rhodes inside and witnessed him stash something next to a white trash can. Martinez returned to the front of the building and pounded on the door some more. Finally it opened.
He and Paez went inside, where they found a small waiting room full of people. There was no signage outside, and it was only then, the report states, that they realized they were in a dispensary. They ordered everyone out.
Another locked door led to a display room. Again, Martinez demanded that the door be unlocked. Once inside, he ordered the employees to exit with their hands up.
Martinez wrote that he could see “large amounts of marijuana in every room” and that they did a “protective sweep” of the building — finding three black handguns. Martinez’s report states that one was on Yang’s desk, where they also found his ecstasy pills. Then they discovered what the report described as Rhodes’ gun behind the white trash can. It was loaded. When they ran it through their system, it came back unregistered.
Read on for a story of false charges, and what appears to be the planting of two guns.…and more.
Those deputies go before the civil service commission next Wednesday to determine their fate
It’s embarrassing to see Dirty Deputies commiting crimes. Karma and cameras are in full effect.
These two idiots shame LASD and gives any community more reason to despise law enforcement.
You definitely won’t get comments from the usual “know it all” for this conversation. I wonder why?
Didn’t Paul say it was okay to operate in the gray???
Dirty Cops don’t belong however, I believe we have some throughout the executive levels?????????
On the note of “railroading”: Of course the blind Tanaka followers (from the Executive Ranks, on down) had no problem in “railroading” this innocent citizen – for years they watched their “leader” Tanaka and his highly (and strategically) placed executive minions destroy honorable employees’ careers for sport. This was Tanaka’s “leadership by example”, empowering the blind followers, all the while knowing that they were protected from any legal repercussions by the corrupt Paul Tanaka.
@Oldschool, I agree with you, the silence is deafening on this caper. I purposely waited several days just to see the response of the usual suspects, crickets. I suppose they will say their only sin was getting caught, on video. What they did was right out of the Gray Zone playbook, this is exactly what was inferred when all those visits to patrol stations were made and that stupid philosophy was spewed by the little man. Makes me wonder how many deputies, encouraged by their coin holder sergeants and lieutenants, capered and still caper with that mantra? These two goofs were proudly members of the Jump Out Boyz, remember them? The damage done by the previous regime is far from being told and most likely won’t be completely exposed until the Feds finish their investigations and McD cleans house and turns over all of the rocks for Max Huntsman to do his job. This caper probably started out with nothing but good intentions, doing the Lord’s Work, which I’m fine with. But something happened after that in which these two deputies did NOT just come up with on their own. Let the chips fall where they may, let the facts come out and the truth be told. With a few anticipated exceptions from the usual suspects, I reckon the coin holders will continue to be silent, and that’s a good thing.
This was common operating procedures under Tanaka, this is the Gray Area he spoke of, to a “T” and then some believe me. This is exactly what Paul used to talk to young Patrol Deputies about late at night with his foot on a car bumper and a beer in his hand at the old Lynwood Station, I was there listening to him talk. This Bulls*&t Tanaka used to puke out railroaded many good Deputies. The crazy thing about it is that Tanaka never did sh#t!!! he just talked about it like he had done it and would leave young impressionable men down the wrong path. When it EVER went bad he was the first Rat to crawl in the corner eating a big chunk of cheese! Just like he is doing now with the with the crew the Feds convicted! A pathetic example of a Leader and a Man.
I admit, stupid move by the Deps in this caper. By the way, still got my inked up arms, sleeves rolled up, and a mouthful of chew. Come and get me!!!
TT is irrelevant so let’s move on….
Unfortunately working backwards in the gray is still rampant. I would say it’s almost the norm. It has spread beyond the Tanaka crowd. I have heard from many supervisors NOT in the car that they have no real problem with working backwards. I didn’t become a deputy to be a criminal and lie on reports. Unfortunately this culture will take years and several young impressionable deputies getting caught on video to weed out.
You are correct Frank Murphy. It will take years to weed out the deputies who believe this is how police work is done. The damage that has been done to the LASD by those with “The ends justifies the means” attitude and approach has been evident for quite awhile, and it will be for a while longer. Another legacy of the Baca/Tanaka reign.