Alex Villanueva

Citizens Oversight Commissioner Robert Bonner calls for the Resignation of Sheriff Alex Villanueva.

Celeste Fremon
Written by Celeste Fremon

Shortly after the noon hour on Thursday, former federal Judge Robert Bonner, who is a member of the LA County Citizens Oversight Commission (COC), called for the resignation of Sheriff Alex Villanueva.

In an eloquent statement, which appeared to have cost him emotionally, Bonner asked the sheriff to step down near the end of the four-hour COC meeting.

The statement was particularly startling in that Rob Bonner is arguably the most conservative member of the COC.  Certainly, he is the most experienced when it comes to law enforcement.

COC Commissioner Robert Bonner

In addition to his position on the commission, Bonner was a U.S. District Judge for the Central District, and the former head of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), appointed to the post in 1990, by George H. W. Bush. In 2001, post 9/11, George W. Bush appointed Bonner to head up the U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Robert Bonner is also a former U.S. Attorney, and a former prosecutor.

In other words, to say Rob Bonner doesn’t fully appreciate the challenges of law enforcement doesn’t hold up.

Bonner first became immersed in the functioning of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department when he served on the Citizens’ Commission of Jail Violence, so it was not surprising when he was also asked to serve on the COC.

“It is with great reluctance that I’m calling for Sheriff Villanueva to resign,” Bonner said, reading from a written statement that he appeared to have in front of him on his desk.

(The commission members and others all attended the COC meeting virtually.)

“I don’t take this step lightly,” he continued. “I do this because it has become apparent as he has demonstrated on multiple occasions that he lacks the judgment to be the sheriff, and that he’s unable to provide the leadership needed by the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department.”

Bonner then listed what he said were a few of the actions that the sheriff had taken that led Bonner to the conclusion that the LA County Sheriff’s Department itself deserves better “and “the men and women of the sheriff’s department deserve better.”

Bonner’s reasons

The first action Bonner listed was when Villanueva reinstated former deputy Carl Mandoyan “who’d been terminated for misconduct.” From the very beginning of his tenure, said Bonner, “the sheriff has demonstrated a lack of judgment and “the lack of ability to assess and reconsider his actions.”

Second, said Bonner, “he’s the only sheriff in modern Los Angeles history — and I’m going back to Sheriff Peter Pitchess — who has no effective relationship with the board of supervisors.”

Please understand, the former federal judge said, “that the sheriff is an independent elected official and he is not beholden to the BOS, nor should he be.  But for the good of the sheriff’s department, any sheriff knows, or should know — except apparently Sheriff Villanueva — that one should strive to develop a positive relationship with the board of supervisors.”

Instead, said Bonner, the sheriff has not only failed to develop a relationship, but he has also “gone out of his way to alienate and even insult supervisors.”

Third on Bonner’s list is Sheriff Villanueva’s resistance to efforts to provide any kind of oversight of the LASD. For instance, he said, when the commission asked the sheriff to come and brief members on, among other things, actions that were being taken at “LA County jails in light of COVID-19,” he declined their invitation.

“When we reluctantly issued a subpoena to compel his attendance,” said Bonner, “he defied it. And sent Assistant Sheriff Chase instead.”

Next up was Villanueva’s relationship to the LA County Inspector General, whose office provides the investigative arm of the COC.

“Not only has the sheriff resisted legitimate requests for information needed for oversight, in what can only be described as a crude attempt at intimidation,” said Bonner crisply, “the sheriff indicated that the department was  investigating the inspector general, Mr. Max Huntsman.”

(The investigation is reportedly still ongoing, although what exactly it has produced is unknown.)

Furthermore, in a time when “reforms are being demanded and are long overdue,” said Bonner, Villanueva “has generally dragged his feet.”

As an example, Bonner pointed to the matter of deputy gangs.  “Although the sheriff issued a policy last spring” prohibiting such deputy cliques, that many applauded, the former fed judge said, since then, “he has done little or nothing to enforce that policy.”

For these and other reasons, Bonner said he has reluctantly concluded that the Los Angeles Sheriff Department, which has “the potential to be one of the best and most professional law enforcement organizations in the county, and which has many, many dedicated deputies, deserves better.”

Finally, Bonner brought up the terrible shooting of the two deputies last Saturday night, September 12. Some of the sheriff’s behavior after the fact, Bonner said, “was not what one would expect from a mature law enforcement leader.”

In his listing, Bonner did not point to the controversial issues that had already been discussed earlier in the meeting, such as the peculiar and, in most cases, apparently false representations by the sheriff and department’s social media, of the circumstances surrounding the arrest of KPCC news reporter, Josie Huang in the wee hours of September 13.

Bonner did, however, list the “baiting a professional basketball player,” which he pronounced, “ridiculous.”  (The basketball player was Lakers star LeBron James, who had been vocal about systemic racism in America.)

He also noted the recent matter of an LASD press spokesperson tweeting blatantly racist comments, who was “unexplainably still working for the sheriff’s department,” said Bonner.   “It boggles the mind,” he said.

Commissioner Bonner added the handling of the “unexplained and unexplainable” incident in which deputies took and shared photos of the Kobe Bryant accident scene.

“Los Angeles County and the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department deserves better,” he repeated. And that was that.

No confidence?

For the first few seconds after Bonner finished, there was dead silence in the virtual room, as other members of the COC tried to quickly take in the implications of Bonner’s apparently unexpected statement.

By the meeting’s end, it was agreed that a newly formed ad hoc committee of the COC would draft a collective no confidence resolution regarding the sheriff — although what such a statement would accomplish was not entirely clear.

“Maybe it is time to not pretend anymore,” said Commissioner Patti Giggins, as she and the other commission members struggled visibly to gather their thoughts.

“We’ve gotten to this particularly serious point and I don’t believe it was of our making,” Giggins said. The commission was now “pretending” to do oversight, she said again.

Later in the day, two members of the LA County Board of Supervisors also called for Villanueva’s resignation, as Supervisors Mark Ridley-Thomas and Sheila Kuehl announced their support of the call for the sheriff to step down.

Echo chamber

Near the end of a 3:00 p.m. press conference on Thursday, Sheriff Villanueva answered a reporter’s question about the call by COC member Bonner to step down.

The sheriff said he’d “heard something” about what occurred at the COC meeting, but dismissed the Civilian Oversight Commission in general as “an echo chamber for the board of supervisors.”

They long ago “crossed the line” between “watch dog and attack dog,” Villanueva said.

As mentioned above, the call for the sheriff’ to step down comes five days after the ambush shooting of two LA Sheriff’s deputies by a still unidentified suspect who ran up to the deputies patrol car — where the partners were parked outside the Metro Blue Line station in Compton — and fired straight into the passenger side window, injuring both deputies gravely.

The deputies, who have not been identified by name, but whom we know as a 31-year-old woman, and mother of a six-year-old, and a 24-year-old man, both members of the department’s Transit Services Bureau, each underwent surgery, and now are expected to recover.

The male deputy has been released from the hospital, according to sheriff’s officials, but the female deputy remains and is expected to have more surgery. Both deputies have “long roads ahead,” according to an LASD spokesperson.

On Twitter, Sheriff Villanueva wrote that “We at @LASDHQ appreciate the outpouring of prayers and support” for the ambushed deputies.

Updated 7:35 p.m., 9/17,2020

77 Comments

  • If he is the most experienced “when it comes to law enforcement” than I should be the mayor of LA. He is in lala land and has no clue what the job of Sheriff entails. He does not realize there is a reason why the majority elected Alex to the position against the so called experts and Mcdonnel. Leave the guy alone, there are much more important things on Alex’s docket, like the Department, BLM, Covid, Homelessness. In my opinion, he has stepped up and done a great job, despite the naysayers….

  • Astounding to say the least in lieu of improvement needed.

    All this coming from a staunch conservative with an impeccable background in Law Enforcement and Judicial Hierarchy.

  • Alex, why don’t you have these knuckleheads do a ‘ride-along” with you for a day and see what you do as Sheriff on a daily basis, yeah, you to Celestial, I did it in court services when I provided the “shoot, don’t shoot” trailer and the court judges and administrators could not shoot the bad guy in the leg or arm. Each of them told me it was an eye-opening experience.

    Just thinkin outta the box.

  • So what? Now we find out Kizee was armed with a stolen Ruger, 15 rounds in it, in fact picked it up, took only one round in the back and had a lengthy criminal record (go figure) and had a pending case for bringing drugs into the jail. Yeah, your typical thug to protest over when he gets his just rewards for being stupid enough to try to outgun a Dep, or two, whose prepared and not sitting in a unit unaware of a planned out ambush. Well…Bye.

  • I would be curious if they conducted a truly representative poll that captured the opinion of a broad swath of LA County Voters, not just the ones who go to the board meetings every week or protest downtown because they have the time as they don’t have real jobs or responsibility, how they view the Sheriff and his job performance? The results would probably show most folks are either okay with the Sheriff’s job performance or ambivalent because they feel safe in their communities. All the flack the Sheriff is taking brings to mind the old saying, it’s lonely at the top. In his position as the head of the largest Sheriffs Department in the country, he is often faced with making unpopular decisions that the public may not like or on the surface, fully understand the reasoning behind them. Just because you’ve watched a few TV shows, ran Google searches or followed social media site content, doesn’t mean you know the job of law enforcement or that of the Sheriff better than its members or he does. The sheriff is the most unique elected position in the county in that he needs to strike a balance between being a politician with that of being the counties “top cop”. Unlike most full-time career politicians who will pander, claw and sell their first born to remain in office, this Sheriff appears to be focused on doing the work needed to protect the public now instead of worrying about re-election or higher political office.

    What Sheriff in LA County history has had to deal with such a tumultuous year like this one? Between on-going daily civil unrest around the county, fires, COVID 19 and constant mortar attacks from the BOS, Max Huntsman an now the Citizens Commission, I think he’s doing pretty good job weathering the storm of constant political attacks on how he does his job.

  • Another unelected bureaucrat calling out to undo another election.The left is in love with the idea of an unelected elite riding roughshod over the voters, correcting elections when the voters “get it wrong”. I hope this nonsense is stopped before the military starts getting big ideas.

  • Can’t get along with BOS (including, for God sakes, Barger, as staunch a supporter of LE as you’re going to find holding office around here)
    Can’t get along with OIG (idiotic move of trying to file criminal charges on Huntsman after getting his feelings hurt on a negative report)
    Can’t get along with COC (they’re all out to get me!)
    Pilloried by LATimes regularly (they’re still mad I beat McDonnell!)
    Can’t keep an U/S or CoS (Traitors everywhere I turn!)
    Are you seeing any kind of pattern here? He not only can’t play nice in the sandbox, he can’t even find the sandbox.

    Of all the above, the BoS feud is the worst for the Department. That is a no-win situation. He can do nothing to them (well, I suppose he can try to come up with some stupid criminal filing a la Huntsman and Hamai, but he’s probably gone to that well two times too many), and they can hurt the Department in all kinds of ways.

    “Leave the guy alone?” When he’s made us a laughing stock? Nah, it’s time for him to go. If he cares about the Department at all, he will hit the road. Hopefully the Board can find someone who can help the Department instead of drag us all down tilting at windmills. Make the mature decision Alex.

  • “More on this story shortly.”

    Hopefully, a lot more.

    What, exactly, did the Sheriff do?

    The story doesn’t say.

    Does this have anything to do with the Josie Huang arrest?

  • @Rakkasan

    Where is the apology? I asked you on another thread if you would when they proved CVC violation on Kizzee, which they did with a video.

  • Sour Deez:

    The CVC violation was riding on the wrong side of the street, which was the reason for the stop. Moreover, the pistol that Kizee had was stolen in a Las Vegas residential burglary & it was fully loaded. On top of that Kizee was a felon in possession of a gun so, all around, a bad dude.

    I do apologize, but Kizee got 19 rounds fired at him, so no more residential burglaries in Las Vegas from that dude.

  • Rob Bonner is dishonest and he needs to retire. Bonner wants to help create the same conditions in LA that we see in Minneapolis, Chicago, Seattle, Portland and every other liberal shit hole across the US.
    I wasn’t a fan of this sheriff in the beginning but Alex Villanueva is one of the last remaining good things left in LA County.
    God Bless AV and God Bless the LASD!!

  • Law enforcement officers are practitioners, doers and hands-on workers if you will , are far different than attorneys and judges who practice law and typically pick-up after all the dust has settled after an arrest. A police officers has to have a basic knowledge of the law and deals with all that comes with its actual enforcement. The “law enforcement experience” of a judge comes from a far different perspective than that of a law enforcement officer. I’m curious about the stress level of an attorney or judge who works in air conditioned office and only exertion is lifting a pen, striking a gavel or walking to and from court room. There’s a reason why judges can work well into their sixties and seventies compared to a police officer.

    Let’s not get it twisted to think lawyers and judges are the all knowing sages of the criminal justice system, law enforcement practices and discount the knowledge and experience of law enforcement officers.

    It’s akin to a researcher in a lab or academic institution versus a field technician or engineer who has to strike a balance between ideality and practicality and reality.

  • Not that AV is a shining star but he was elected.

    In my book, that means he can tell some lame ass oversight panel to go pound sand.

  • KPCC are staunch supporters of BLM

    That’s

    Burn

    Loot

    Murder

    a Marxist-directed criminal enterprise.

    That’s all I need to know about KPCC.

  • Michel Moore the Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department would like to thank the LASD sheriff and his deputies for all their scandals.

  • Interesting development. Sounds like they are going back to day 1 and telling Alex to take off his brass. The buffoonery started even before he took office. Anyone who tried to help him is gone. Leyva, Olmsted, Del Mease, Gutierrez, and many more. I had a good laugh seeing Alex remind us of Rothins who drove around in a 10-29v for a year as assistant sheriff. That wannabe gangster was hilarious. I’d like to thank undersheriff Vivian, Carl the slider door repairman and Burch Tree for the earlier posts here. Gotta back the money man at all costs. Godspeed to the injured deputies. They’re the only ones that matter here. The rest is simply a clown show rivaling Ringling Bros. Oh yeah, and the SIB spokesperson tweeting out Ebonics should be fired. And good luck fighting Lebron and Vanessa Bryant, they both have money and followers. ALADS, hope you’re saving for that rainy day because Ole McDonnell is lurking in the shadows. Best news of the day was Kizzee picked up the gun and the good guys won the gunfight. Enough said!!

  • HMMM, I challenge Villanueva to resign and then run for re-election as Sheriff. Yes you know what the results will be. He will lose by over 70%. He is the most incompetent Sheriff to lead LASD.

  • @rakkasan

    …as long as a violation occurred.”

    Ay, there’s the rub; did the violation occur, or was it made up? And if it’s made up do you go ahead & charge for it anyway, thereby falsely accusing for a a transgression that did not happen?

    In my link up above the Mayor of Compton said she did not commit the violation for which stopped.

    Above is your statement. Is the “rub” good enough for you now. So there is video the violation did occur; don’t come on here and speculate. Use facts

  • Sour Deez:

    “Use facts.”

    Using the Dijon Kizzee story in my SCPR link up above as a chalkboard let’s note:

    1. The original story was that Kizzee had dropped the gun & received 19 rounds when he “made a motion for the gun” on the ground.
    2. The final story was that Kizzee had picked up the gun gun & received the 19 rounds when he pointed it at the Deputies.
    3. For ten days between #1 & #2 one of the Deputies refused to talk at all about the event, and the version in #2 is based entirely on Deputy testimony, not on anything independent of what the Deputies said.

    The dead fish in #2 stinks like hell and, I am convinced, provided the catalyst for Bonner’s action

  • Maybe Josie Huang should carry her press credentials the next time she decides to barge into the middle of a chaotic crime scene. Does anyone really even care about Josie Huang and her worthless reporting?

  • A former Federal Judge who is used the telling to people how high to jump is mad because the Sheriff will not jump! The subpoena power of Federal Court is absolute. However the subpoena power of the COC has yet the be tested in court. There is a strong case that they do not have said authority. The California Constitution gives authority to the Sheriff no local ordinance or referendum supersedes that authority.

    Shiela Kuehl stated, paraphrasing, he is just like any other Department head. He needs to pull his big boy pants up and get to work. Well he is, much to her dismay, elected and independent. So he is not like any other Department head. Her comments were insulting. Particularly because this Board is knowingly undercutting the Sheriff’s Budget and has done so for over a decade. Maybe the judge should look into that.
    Do you remember the Mary Wickham debacle. She is the head of County Counsels office and is at odds with the Sheriff on many issues. She was the victim of I think the Jury Duty Scam like 10s of thousands of others. Someone claiming to be a member of the Sheriffs Department said she would be arrested if she did not pay a fine. She went public saying the Sheriffs Department threatened her. She was joined by most of the BOS demanding answers from the Sheriff. Suggesting it was actually the Sheriffs Department or one of its members who made the call. Anyone with a brain in their head saw this as part of an ongoing National Scam. Nearly every court jurisdiction is dealing with these type of scams. The news media shamefully ignored the obvious. The Sheriffs Department did actual find the culprits in Georgia. No connection to the Department. Did the Board members or Mary Wickham apologize! Of course not!
    The Board never accepted Villanueva’s election. They had greater control under McDonnell and liked the arraignment. Well perhaps the Board needs to adjust to the new Sheriff.

  • BONNER: Who elected you! You should be arrested and prosecuted for having accessed private files that you illegally obtained, just for a start.
    If you think you have so much influence then run for sheriff. We dare you! You are another egg sucking lawyer with no moral compass. Come on, you can run on the big-mouth ticket. And you need to sober up, you’re going to get caught!

    Sheriff AV: You inherited a agency in free fall. From Block, Baca to McDonnell I don’t see how you can clean up decades of corruption. I have always said to reopen past cases and prosecute past Major Executives. The LAT has never cared for LASD and that’s because the LAT hates workers. In 132 years the LAT refused to have a union to protect their workers. The BOS has for a long time has tried to take control of LASD. The voters of LA County will decide whether you are fit to continue and not some no nothing political hack like BONNER!
    Ask BONNER if he has donated to the reward for the capture of the suspect(s) in the recent cowardly shooting of the deputies? No, he has NOT! I checked. Ask around and see if anyone from the commission has given and print their names. It will be a short list. BTW: You will never get a dime from Lebron.
    You’re doing a good job with the shooting. All good people are praying for the recovery of the deputies and the apprehension of the suspect(s.) These attacks are coordinated.

  • The BOS wants a personal security force (aka police force) they can control like the now defunct Los Angeles County Police or Office of Public Safety. Maybe they can contract them out to provide security for Sachi Hami? The LA County Police was ran by a hand picked chief of police of the BOS’s choosing and was beholding to do things their way. Can someone say stay in your lane! The LA County Police just like the current LASD was not without problems but they also did a good job at providing security for the County Parks, County Hospitals and various other county properties and county buildings. An article put out later showed many LASD members who were also not without sins. Nevertheless, former supervisor Gloria Molina and others put a steak through the heart of the LA County police since it didn’t suit their needs anymore and gave control to then Sheriff Lee Baca.

    The BOS had a taste of absolute power with respect to controlling a police agency but were afraid of past Sheriff’s as they were better at playing politics. Sheriff McDonnell, a former police chief, accustomed to following the orders of civilian politicians rode in at just the right time as the Sheriff’s Department was in turmoil with the Baca/Tanaka debacle. The BOS loved McDonnell while most of the Department, save for the fair whether brown nosing lackeys, had no confidence in his leadership (or lack there of) since he did and support his line personnel. I highly doubt the Department would be handling the numerous challenges as well as it had that politician still been in charge versus the “retired lieutenant who rose no higher than a station Watch Commander“?

    We now have a Sheriff who is learning the political game as he guides the Department through very challenging times.

    Your honor! Your suggestion is duly noted but will be ignored. Stick to righting books, legal briefs and let the people who do the “real law enforcement work“, do their work.

  • For a supposed conservative, Barger comes up with some doozies. She’s no more conservative than her predecessor became in his old age. It’s really a board comprised of 5 wild-eyed liberals.

  • The BOS has always had a contentious relationship with every Sheriff, some more than others. McD weasled his way in via the “Blue Ribbon Committee on Jail Abuse.” He came in with the intent on firing line personnel, to have them fight for their jobs, to get reinstated.

    The Baca / Tanaka debacle is self explanatory. Yet there was animosity between the BOS and the Sheriff.

    The relationship with Block and the BOS was also contentious. If you recall, Gloria Molina and Block were going at it, until a certain Deputy, patrolling a certain hallway and office, came across some rather, shall we say compromising situation between Gloria & an aide, allegedly.

    AV is no superstar. He has made some mistakes and will continue to make mistakes, just like we all do. He’s a grown man and knows what he is doing. If he f**ks up, then that’s on him. Nonetheless, he is doing what he believes is best for the line personnel and the department. If his performance is that bad, the voters will decide.

    It is appalling that people on the department who complained about McD are also complaining about AV. It appears that you people are not happy with anybody or anything. Just speculating. However, if it is that bad, then run for Sheriff and see if you can do a better job. This is why we are divided and criticize each other, because some of us think we are better than others.

    Keep in mind, waiting in the wings are McD, Para, the Chief of Long Beach (Lopez) and possibly the ex Undersheriff from AV’s administration.

  • Well, well, well. Stand By to Stand By, as they say. Ole Alejandro got all butt hurt yesterday when the much much smarter and distinguished federal judge figuratively kicked Alex in his fat blubering mouth and told him to pack his bags. Time start the eviction proceedings.

    New HOJ tenants are being recruited & vetted as I type. All of the Skippers are making their “Workers Comp” doctors appointments as they ready those financial life boats as the SS-LASD is taking on water faster than ever before. Can someone please shake awake undersheriff Magoorakami? Or maybe assistant sheriff Steve “The Snake” Gross quietly tied some tombstone weights around Timmy’s legs? Assistant Skipper Robin Limon better watch out as she stays locked in her office. Her sly partner might plug up her office keyhole with some desert dirt and glue just to keep her contained. Not even Sweet Alice will be able to rescue her.

    Special recognition shout out to former (and current shadow) Chief of Staff Bigglesworth Burcher for his social media training that he provided to the line staff at SHB. It really paid off recently for the LASD’s image.

    Yes folks, Mr. “Historic” Sheriff Villanueva continues to make history. Can anyone ever recall a time where the LA County Sheriff was publicly asked to RESIGN because he failed the “Dopey” Remedial Training (I know I’m dating myself with that one).

    Judge Bonner hit the nail on the head when he said the many good people of the LASD and the residents of L.A. County deserve better. Yes, we deserve 1000 times better than what the current Clown Show Sheriff has and will continue to provide.

    Pack your bags BiBi. Question? Do Sweet-peas go sour and wrought on the vine? Just asking for a friend.

    #ResignSheriffV
    #RecallSheriffV
    #AdiosVillanueva
    #WorstSheriffEver

  • Bonner: Obviously the Sheriff is not adapt at playing politics such as yourself. He has a higher duty to care for the men and woman of the Sheriff’s Department. Not to say he has not made mistakes. But kissing the rings of the BOS is not one of them. Neither is challenging Labron to put up or shut up. Labron clearly supports the BLM which is openly hostile to law enforcement and an anti white/racist organization. The Democratic leaning BOS also openly supports the BLM. So please sir STFU and go back to retirement. Your opinion has no credibility or substance.

  • Actually, the conservative federal judge has a hellava lot more credibility than a Alex or any Villanueva Bandwagon fan. Also, take note; it’s spelled LeBron.

  • I happened to notice Villanueva’s limp was very pronounced today. Can you say IOD and disability retirement/ litigation? Those around AV know that has always been his long-term plan. Hop Along Alex, Hop Along. And for the person who posted the names of potential candidates, you missed a few with deep pockets already lined up!

  • don’t have time to read all the other comments, but…
    The sheriff has been a disaster. He is always saying the wrong thing. Never sounds like a responsible public official. Also, has he taken care of the gangsters in his own ranks. Not talking Trump-like but there really is a cult in the dept.

  • Keep pontificating there Pat. It’s easy to understand that the past and current Sheriff weren’t cared for by the troops. The next one may be.

    BTW, I don’t think the list you posted of those “waiting in the wings” contained the next Sheriff.
    Here’s a clue..I think it’s gonna be the guy who said “Don’t fuck with the feds” and nobody listened. Wisdom cannot be discounted.

  • Laughing Clown: How appropriate….LeBron or Labron…..could care less about our BLM sympathizer. The fact you know tells me you follow a lot of basketball and are probably a BLM supporter as well…..please let me known when our learned basketball player/scholar has contributed
    to the reward fund to find the shooter of our two deputies….in the meantime I’m sorry Alex did not promote you with the last bunch….I bet contributing to Tanaka’s election campaign every year didn’t
    help either……you and laughing have a lot in common…always bitching about Alex yet offering no solutions! Perhaps you should run for Sheriff…..laughing can be your driver…..it’s only way he’s going to get into the car!

  • Lastly it took great political courage for the Sheriff to condemn BLM and other hate groups rhetoric that has led to the violence against police officers nationwide. You won’t hear Bonner or the BOS talking about that will you. But you haters won’t even give him that as he tries to protect our officers.

  • One has to love the logical thinking powers of Alex’s social media monitor squad members. If a commenter points out his simple minded misspellings (yes multiple times) of an Internationally known & recognized sports superstar, that automatically makes them a BLM Organization sympathizer or supporter. Wow, you must be applying for Villanueva’s strategic think tank crew.

    Hey Bandwagon AV Fan, here’s a newsflash for you. I also enjoyed watching Muhammad Ali boxing matches back in the day. I guess that makes me a Nation of Islam member with your simple minded logic. Why am I not surprised you are an Alex Villanueva worshiper?

    But I understand, those who “suffered” an untimely exit from their LASD careers are still holding out hope that Alex will some day resurrect his ill conceived “Truth & Rec” committee so they can once again pin on their self-tarnished badges.

    Hey Bandwagon AV Fan, just follow the words of who I’m sure was one of your most despised POTUS: Keep Hope Alive! Who knows, if you keep up your WLA AV defense posts, maybe BiBi will move you closer to the top of her most treasured “brown noser” list.

  • The Sheriff may be a disaster as some claim but it “takes two to tango, work together, come to the bargaining table, have a discussion or negotiate”. The entire BOS was upset where their whipping boy, sure bet “horse in the race” lost the election for LA County Shetiff. The BOS and incumbent Sheriff were arrogant and assuumed incumbency woukd be enough for Sheriff “Uniforms and Brass” to be re-elected. The BOS has were not only upset that Sheriff Villanueva dare win the election but had no intention of making his term easy as the fix was already in and they already had a plan in place to work with Sheriff Mcbuckles. Several Board members Kuehl (aka Spanky), Ridley-Thomas (aka Little Napoleon or mini-Greenspan) and Solis (aka Molina hand puppet) have been vocal “haters” of the Sheriff and the entire Sheriff’s Department since day one of him taking office. This same BOS turned in DA Lacey as well. An attack on everything that is law enforcement (Probation) it would seem. The BOS are just bitter because the Sheriff stands up to them and their BS.

    The nerve of this retired judge, who’d entire career delt with the administrative side of “Law Enforcement” and BOS to try and push a narrative asking the Sheriff to resign? What kind of juvenile mind games do they think they are playing? Seriously! Maybe the BOS should try an impeachment hearing and find themselves with the same result as their friends on The Hill?

    The BOS should spend more time “administering” the other departments under their pervue and get off the Sheriff’s back all ready. It’s bordering on an unhealthy obsession and fatal attraction. Not healthy for these senior adults.

  • The same old Alex “The Board Hates Me” Villanueva defense has been played out for the past two years. Yes, McDonnell lost, he is long gone, and this has been Alex’s LASD since December 2018.

    What Alex has done to the LASD is all his. Other than wearing multi-pocket pants and over the top vests for all, everyone I ask can’t name a single meaningful program that Alex has implemented since taking office. Instead he has done the opposite by eliminated valuable programs because his predecessor started them, mismanaged his multi-billion dollar budget, and alienated almost every contract city. The list could go on and on but everyone gets the point.

    Sorry Partner, but this Clown Show demonstration of total ineptness is all Alex Villanueva. He’s owned it since day one and the slow public destruction of the LASD the past two years will only get worse over his final two years. Only then will the Rebuild and Restore work truly begin.

    Until then, take out your taxpayer checkbook L.A. County as this is going to be expensive failed experiment and lesson of why the formerly retired lieutenant who is now playing sheriff, retired as a bitter & barely competent lieutenant in the first place.

  • Riding on the wrong side of the street, having a stolen, loaded gun, outstanding warrants, and bad dud. It is good to know what the criteria is for getting shot to death.

  • Hmmm and AV Clown Show, hard to believe but both accurate posts. Absolutely, the BOS was not happy with AV from the get-go and badly wanted McBuckles (who was an internal LASD disaster but was very BOS-friendly) to win. Then AV started his tenure with the Mandoyan debacle and things went from shaky to bad and then real bad with a number of public missteps by AV – like marching down the Hall of Administration and fronting off the Board and subsequently suing the County over what was an obvious legal and public loser and giving the BOS further reason to sharpen their AV scalping knives.

    From there the BOS (and their surrogate, the LA Times) took every opportunity to heap criticism on Sheriff AV. Unfortunately, he gave them plenty of ammunition; major fights over the budget and AV calling them anti-LE, who runs the County EOC, and the initiation of a criminal investigation against the County Counsel. And external of County politics there was the Kobe photo disaster which Sheriff AV totally mishandled resulting in the story became an international LASD embarrassment and the “Deputy gangs” issue which he initially fumbled at East LA by giving it the usual window dressing in the hope that it would all go away. Of course there was the midnight press conference where AV carted out a scared-out-her-mind Queen of the Skippers to admit that the “Sniper” in AV was a false story – even thought the LASD knew the story was false within hours of it’s occurrence. No use to keep going on and on, but the LASD under AV’s tenure has been one public and public relations disaster after another and the BOS have (rightly) pounced on each one with much-deserved criticism.

    Yet through all of this AV has played the victim role. But most, if not all, of these wounds are self-inflicted. From the beginning AV has been determined to have things his own way. More experienced staff members who he could have taken counsel from were ignored and ultimately disposed of. He was not interested in advice because he knew more than anyone else. In face AVs entire LASD pre-Sheriff career was filled with instances where he was determined to have things his own way, often causing him to resort to going to court if he did not get what he thought was his way. However, in his new position, there is no “higher authority” to whom he can turn to play his usual race-card (not with a diverse BOS filled with liberals), so he’s playing the victim-card this time to the public.

    The fact that there are a number of prominent local officials calling for AV’s resignation, often citing many of things cited here (along with a catalogue of additional transgressions) is not going to deter AV from completing his term in office. AV is not the sort of person to think he has done anything wrong. It is “they” who are wrong and he is right. He also knows there is no mechanism in place to replace him short of a recall effort. The BOS, as someone said, can pound sand in their effort to have him resign as far as he is concerned.

    So, where does that leave the LASD? AV is popular in some quarters inside the LASD – “he has our backs.” (That attitude in itself can cause problems with Deputies getting themselves in trouble by pushing in to the infamous “gray area.”) But, overall from the public’s perspective, the lack of judgement on his and his staff’s part is wearing thin (can’t imagine someone from SIB “tweeting” that crap in a “professional” LE organization and not be walking the decks in some jail on EM’s the next night – SMH at the lack of JUDGEMENT). Previously there has been talk of a recall effort and after this current round of calls for AV’s resignation, one wouldn’t be surprised if there wasn’t a serious effort to collect enough names to put it on the ballot in one of next year’s elections. That may sound good to some, but that may put the BOS in a position to appoint his replacement.

    Careful what you wish for.

  • The criteria is that the Deputy must “fear for his life” and there must be a valid reason for that fear. #1 in my post doesn’t meet the requirement for ‘a valid fear; #2 does.

  • Well said, however, you left off one other possible way his early removal from office might occur. That would be in FBI handcuffs. Tick tock, tick tock, tick ……..

  • Whispers of recall are being heard all around the Hall of administration. There is no way the establishment is going to tolerate 21 more months of Sheriff Alex and Undersheriff Vivian’s stupidity!!! It’s over. Puerto Rico, Poland, or Mexico for retirement. Their choice.

  • Not so long ago as a member, Alex Villanueva exposed ALADS and now they embrace him.

    Hopefully Alex can make amends with the B.O.S. and get down to business, only time will tell.

  • Way to go Alex. You handled this one nicely. Anyone care to guess how much this one will cost the Los Angeles County Taxpayers? Alex & BiBi’s response: Please put this on our tab and how bout another round for my friends.

    FOX 11 LA: “Deputy sues LA County, claims LASD failed to protect him from alleged Compton Station gang”
    https://foxla.com/news/deputy-sues-la-county-claims-lasd-failed-to-protect-him-from-alleged-compton-station-gang

    Maybe Alex will call on LeBron James again and demand that he contribute financially towards settling this lawsuit.

    #ResignSheriffV
    #RecallSheriffV
    #AdiosVillanueva
    #WorstSheriffEver

  • Clown Show, do you expect anything different from Sheriff Villan, U/S Bibi, A/S JP Bigglesworth, and A/S Mandoyan?

  • Alex has proven to be a real idiot with no allies anywhere. The OIG and Board of Supervisors have pretty much dropped him like it’s hot.

    Hard to believe anyone can be as foolish as Alex is. When one looks a the sheriff’s office today, it’s a far cry from a ‘tradition of service’ with Alex it’s more like how low can I go. Alex has proven to be able to play the limbo with the best of them. He got down so low he cannot get up now.

    Alex will/is learning the hard way. That it’s rough being an elected leader who’s burned all his bridges. In recognition of his incredible stupidity I’d recommend the Board with the OIG recess to close session to consider all their options.

  • I wonder if the County will pay for Villanueva’s defense when she goes after his personal finances… property etc.. this shit can’t get any better.

  • Does anyone know how many lawsuits have been initiated and caused by Alex Villanueva’s ineptness and mismanagement of the LASD? Anyone?

    FOX11 News: Vanessa Bryant sues LA County Sheriff Villanueva, LASD over leaked crash scene photos

    https://www.foxla.com/news/vanessa-bryant-sues-la-county-sheriff-villanueva-lasd-over-leaked-kobe-bryant-crash-scene-photos

    Maybe it’s time for the Board of Supervisors to refuse to cover Alex’s punitive damages. I bet he’ll wise up quickly, or better yet, he’ll smartly decide to resign to keep from losing BiBi’s estate.

  • @Info,

    Brush off, or willful obstruction of justice? Only the Feds will know. Meanwhile, the LA County taxpayers will pay, and continue to pay dearly behind the disaster of The Sheriff named Alejandro Villanueva.

    #ResignSheriffV
    #RecallSheriffV
    #AdiosVillanueva
    #WorstSheriffEver
    #ShamefulSheriffV

  • The AV Clown Show,

    How exactly do you blame AV for young, stupid deputies taking unauthorized pictures at the crash site? That’s right – you can’t. Next related issue would be, how does Vanessa Bryant have any standing to complain about what level of discipline AV meted out to those who took the unauthorized photos? That’s also right – she has no standing. Although the protections for peace officer personnel records have been eroded by leftist kooks, there still stands a confidentiality that she is not entitled to pierce.

  • Dose, you blame him for not disciplining them. “Erase them from your phone” really. I hope the County forces Villanueva to pay for the lawsuit. It was his screw up.. he pays. Period!!

  • @Dose,

    You just keep drinking that nasty tasting Koolaid that Alejandro is serving. His decision to ORDER the destruction of those unlawfully obtained “gore pictures” will be litigated by people who are much smarter than Alex and his inner circle of clowns.

    I guarantee that Vanessa Bryant and the rest of the families devastated by this horrific and tragic crash have more “standing” than anyone posting on this blog and that will become painfully obvious as this case proceeds through the courts.

    Nice Job Idiot SheriffV

  • “…Will be litigated by people who are much smarter than Alex and his inner circle of clowns.:

    Good point!!!

    In the Dijon Kizzee case the results of the independent autopsy have just been released, and this is it

    https://ktla.com/news/local-news/civil-rights-attorney-ben-crump-to-provide-results-of-independent-investigation-into-lasd-fatal-shooting-of-dijon-kizzee

    Be sure to click on the videos in the link for detailed information on the independent autopsy.

  • Dose, although you asked Clown Show, I’d like to chime in. You can’t blame AV for the (idiot – nice that you gave them an out by calling them young, who cares – they are fools) Deputies taking the pictures. But you can blame him for how the matter was handled by the LASD once it was brought to the Department’s attention. You may recall that the person in the bar where they were flashed around filed an on-line complaint. There followed several days where, evidently, the Department located (what they said were) the phones containing the photos and, in exchange for waiving discipline, deleted the photos. There was no public announcement and Mrs Bryant was notified of the situation. That about sum up what happened?

    From the point that the complaint was filed on-line, the matter is on AV. He hushed it up. When the news broke, the Information Bureau Captain, where the complaint went, later said “I didn’t see any complaint.” (Like shit he didn’t!) Anyway, the photos were destroyed “in exchange” for no discipline being administered (WTF – who ever heard of a “deal” like that! Sounds fishy to me.), AND then Mrs. Bryant finds about it via the media. You call that properly handled? Sounds like a classic cover-up to all but AV Kool-aid drinkers.

    Maybe a better way to go would have been to notify Mrs Bryant what had happened, APOLOGIZE, tell her you have gathered the photos and were conducting a thorough investigation. Then do just as you told Mrs Bryant. Also have the individuals involved write reports regarding the taking of the photos and submit them as evidence along with their reports. Send the photos to the investigating agencies to “assist in their investigation.” And make a timely public announcement as to what you have done. Include in the announcement that a thorough administrative investigation is being conducted in to the activities of the Department’s personnel (including supervisors who were at the scene). Then take your lumps.

    As you said Dose, AV was not on the scene and could not stop those idiots, but he still had to take the lumps for their actions. Part of the job. But he deserves the real lumps for his actions in the aftermath where he had a chance to show that he was forthright and proactive. Instead he left it looking like he was either incompetent or trying to cover it up or ……..both.

  • Well, it’s looks like Lil Allie stepped on it again as he has attracted the attention of a new “Dream Team” of attorneys. Let me be clear, I have no remorse for the ex-con riding around the streets of SLA, strapped, and failing to submit to a lawful detention. However, the results of this interaction during a very challenging time for law enforcement on a national level requires a leader who has the foresight, intelligence, experience, skills, savvy, political support, and intelligence (yes I said it again). Every trait that Alex Villanueva sorely lacks and never will posses, as his only desire is to win the glowing admiration from the “cliques” who always kept him at arms distance his entire career yet now welcome him with open arms.

    Now he has the likes of Super Power attorneys Dale Galipo, Benjamin Crump and Carl Douglas who are about to publicly embarrass Alex at the expense of the entire department. Word of advice to Allie and BiBi as we all know you are both seriously pissed off right now after being publicly called out and humiliated the way Carl Douglas did yesterday, but whatever you do, don’t refer to Carl Douglas and Benjamin Crump as “Knuckle Draggers” again, as your favorite go-to derogatory term will only come back to bite you in the ass, again.

    Open your checkbooks LA County, as this self proclaimed “Dream Team” of attorneys will not go home empty handed.

    https://ktla.com/news/local-news/civil-rights-attorney-ben-crump-to-provide-results-of-independent-investigation-into-lasd-fatal-shooting-of-dijon-kizzee/

  • AV Clown…it’s nice to see you have so much glee, joy, happiness and exuberance due to the fact a lawsuit is being mounted against Sheriff Villanueva, two deputies, LASD and LA County on behalf of the criminal who was legally stopped, detained (fought and refused to yield) and attempted to shoot at two Sheriffs Deputy’s just doing their job. I hope you never worked for LASD or any other law enforcement agency as the ease with which you can trash an entire Department and it’s members due to the fact you hate and despise its leader is so much in line with the mindset of certain members of the BOS. The philosophy, “I don’t like one person, so all of them are bad and will suffer my vindictive wraith”, is something you learn when roam the halls of the executive ranks I guess. If these two deputy’s had been shot I wonder how you would have felt. You’re probably one of those who would be saying, “oh well, they took the job and new the risk” and “better them then me”. No ability to identify with the two “grunts” just a willingness to hang them out to save your ass. If you were an executive, I’m sure you would have been all ready to shed the crocodile tears for the camera, say the canned pat remarks, read from the recycled pre-prepared “exemplar eulogy” your aide would use the “find and replace” function to ensure all the appropriate personnel details were updated and corrected as you carry out the acting job and act as if you really give a damn.

    Let the lawsuit go forward. The BOS will probably settle but I actually think they will let this one go to court. Will the BOS and their egos allow this the civil suite to go to trial in the hopes of casting a dark cloud over Sheriff Villanueva and the entire Sheriffs Department in the hopes of gaining media and public support for their “Hate Sheriff Villanueva and LASD” campaign?

    If a jury rules in the favor of a criminal reaching for gun we have a far bigger problem in our society going forward than a petty game of “who’s balls are bigger”.

  • @Hear more or less,

    Nice try on the lame shame attempt. That’s right out of the Alejandro Villanueva “blame everyone except me” playbook on how to avoid any and all accountability and responsibility for one’s idiotic decisions and inept abilities. I’ll give you a “B” for the effort but a FAIL overall due to your weak attempt to defend the indefensible formerly retired lieutenant who is miserably trying to play sheriff, and is single handedly destroying the once great reputation of our beloved LASD.

    Now quickly scoot along and send a screenshot of your posting to Allie and BiBi to collect your social media posting points. They should be worth something at the Chuck E. Cheese redemption counter.

    #ResignSheriffV
    #RecallSheriffV
    #AdiosVillanueva
    #WorstSheriffEver
    #ShamefulSheriffV

  • Actually dumbass Moore would like to thank the constant deployment of SRT teams to assist his tactically deficient officers. Moore is an embarrassment…

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