LA County to Settle With Family of Man Killed by LASD Deputies During Mental Health Emergency
On Tuesday, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a $3.3 million settlement with the family of John Berry, a 31-year-old schizophrenic man killed by LA sheriff’s deputies outside his family’s home in Lakewood.
John’s brother, Chris Berry, a federal law enforcement officer, watched the entire incident unfold. He had called the sheriff’s department’s non-emergency line seeking help for John, who was experiencing a mental health crisis, and was refusing to get out of his car. Chris said that when he requested a mental evaluation team, which would have included a mental health care professional, he was told deputies would be responding instead.
From across the street, a witness filmed the events leading up to the fatal shooting. Berry’s family released the video (above) shortly after John’s death. The video shows least six officers surrounding John’s car. Deputies reached into the car, swinging batons and appearing to Taser the man several times as they attempted to remove him from his vehicle.
Berry reportedly reversed his car and then drove forward. Deputies say Berry rammed his car into a patrol car, pinning an officer between the two vehicles, events that were not caught on film by the witness’ video. Deputies fired what sounds like dozens of rounds into Berry’s car.
The Berry family filed a lawsuit alleging the deputies involved violated John’s civil rights and wrongfully killed him. LA County District Attorney Jackie Lacey found the deputies’ actions to be justified. And the US Supreme Court ruled that the officers involved acted lawfully, believing that their fellow officer was in danger.
Last May, a KPCC investigation revealed that members of LA County Sheriff’s Department shot into moving cars at least nine times (the latest tally is ten times), while LAPD officers shot into vehicles only twice during those five years.
In 2016, the sheriff’s department brought its policies regarding shooting at cars in line with those of the LAPD and most other LA area police departments. by barring deputies from firing at moving cars except when threatened by a gun or other deadly weapon. An LASD training video instructs deputies to move out of the way of moving vehicles, explaining that it’s extremely difficult to tell if a driver is attempting to get away or are using their car as a weapon.
Officers Involved in Controversial Shooting No Longer With the Inglewood PD
In February 2016, five Inglewood police officers fatally shot Kisha Michael, 31, and Marquintan Sandlin, 32, after officers found the two unconscious in an idling car in the middle of the street.
The five officers involved in the perplexing shooting, Michael Jaen, Richard Parcella, Jason Cantrell, Sean Reidy and Andrew Cohen, are no longer employed by the Inglewood Police Department, as of the May 28 completion of an internal investigation into the shooting. The statement from Inglewood Mayor James Butts did not say whether the five were fired.
Responding officers reportedly shot Michael, a mother of three, in the head, neck, and back 13 times. Bullets struck Sandlin, a father of four, at least two times. In this case, as in the John Berry incident, officers fired into a car. Michael died at the scene. Sandlin died at the hospital.
In a police radio clip, one of the officers involved said there was a gun in Michael’s lap. Officers reportedly attempted to rouse Michael and Sandlin, attempting to “de-escalate the situation,” according to Butts, NBC Los Angeles’ Patrick Healy reported in the days after the shooting.
Both Michael and Sandlin’s families described the two as loving parents. Their loved ones said they didn’t know why Michael and Sandlin were found with a gun.
A warrant had been issued for Michael’s arrest earlier in February after she violated the terms of her probation by failing to appear in court. (Michael was on probation because of a misdemeanor theft.)
Many of the details surrounding the shooting are still unclear. The autopsy revealed that both deceased had blood alcohol contents above the legal limit for driving. No drugs were found in Sandlin’s system. Michael had traces of amphetamine in her blood.
Following the shooting, Inglewood police remained particularly quiet, giving hardly any information about the circumstances of the shooting. The department never revealed whether either of the deceased reached for the gun before the officers let loose a hail of bullets.
The video is disturbing but thank God that a citizen filmed it. Without the video one can imagine “the spin” indicicated on a dubious police report.
The tactics were deplorable, the clueless and “out of shape” Supervisor along with “contagious fire” made everything ALL BAD. Videos are priceless and the king of exposure.
Absolutely no noticeable signs of leadership nor direct supervision by the Field Sergeant. He looked befuddled and I saw nothing on the video that indicated he remotely attempted to take charge of this incident, slow it down, tell the deputies to put their guns away, and come up with a tactical plan to deal with this obvious mentally disturbed individual. Instead, it appears he just stood there, while the deputies appeared to be jacked up, over their heads and were engaged in a circular firing squad. If the car engine was running, why in the world was ANYONE standing in front of or behind that car? Hello Sergeant! You are supposed to see those potentials and instruct deputies what to do, it is called Assertive and Direct Supervision. So with all those rounds fired and the lack of supervision, the Shooting Review Panel, alllllllll the brass up to the Sheriff said this was “in policy?” Guess not much has changed. 3.5 million was a gift.
Yeah..all the Monday morning quarterbacking, second guessing and education by TV show in the world will never put anyone in the minds of the officers on scene. The best tactic in this case would have been not to respond at all since mental illness is not a crime and sometimes better left for families to handle or let the guy drive off and the chips fall where they may.
Jesus, “all the Monday morning quarterbacking, second guessing and education by TV show in the world will never put anyone in the minds of the officers on scene?” You will probably see an officer raping a puppy, put on your report that it was a black pit bull that attacked the officer with his ass, and, after you see the video, you will make an excuse for the officer. Stop it, already. That is why a significant percentage of the population does not like or believe you. Call a spade a spade. These officers fucked up and should be fired, at least, and, perhaps, some prosecuted.
Cf ,stop huffing the leaded gas. You’re hallucinating again.
It all comes down to the Sheriff Department’s lack of clear policies and training. At the time of that incident, there was nothing clearly written down in the form of a policy that could help a deputy or supervisor do the right thing. The typical way of handling a mentally ill call was precisely what you saw, take the mentally ill person into custody, by force if needed. Most of the time the force used in taking a mentally ill person was insignificant, but there is the one like this that goes very wrong. Anyone who has worked patrol knows, that when family members call asking deputies to remove their family member, they are demanding, not asking for help. Yet, when their mentally ill family member gets hurt by the deputies they change their tune. During this calls deputies are hesitant to intervene, however, the family will threaten the deputies that if the mentally ill person does hurt the family or anybody else, the deputies are at fault. So you have deputies responding to this calls wrongly assuming they are obligated to take the mentally ill person by force if needed, fearing liability. The truth is that mentally illness is not a crime, and the situation should be dealt by the family members and the mental health professionals. The sheriff department has recently come up with a policy that gives the option to walk away from a mental illness situation, but it is still vague and not clear enough. The policy needs to state clearly, that from a safe distance the deputies should only verbally advice the mentally ill person to surrender. If the mentally ill person is armed threatening to kill self, do not approach, as long as he/she is not threatening others, killing oneself is not a crime. Although verbal efforts should be made to de-escalate the situation and offer help, within a reasonable amount of time the deputies shall walk away after the refusal of any help. If in the future, the mentally ill person kills self or others, then at that time a new plan should be developed and the incident should then be handled according to policies and procedures. Deputies need to follow those directives, and when in doubt tactically retreat, yes, as deputies it is hard to imagine a retreat, but either you retreat or the possibility of getting fired and prosecuted. I am sure, there will be a case in which deputies did not take a mentally ill person by force, as directed by policy, and later a mentally ill person killed self or others, but that would be another discussion.
P.S Currently, the Sheriff’s Department only wants deputies to be good witnesses, document incidents and let someone else deal with the problem. They feel that time will fix the problem, which usually does. Deputies need to avoid risks, so, detaining a suspect, issuing a ticket, arresting a suspect are risky businesses, a deputy can get killed, or a complaint generated, which could result in firing and prosecution. Avoid the risk, that is, no detentions, not dockets, no arrests, drive around and wave at people with a broad smile. Driving around smiling will give you the chance of being and executive on the HOJ 8th floor, being proactive will kill you, or prosecuted, your choice.
Truly stated, however force and target shooting resulting in death are totally different. I was not there but anyone can see that there was no direction to properly proceed. If we’re being brutally honest…. anyone can see that it was a big cluster F#CK. More training is needed.
CF, Fired? Prosecuted? I’m happy Mr. Berry didn’t murder a deputy prior to being killed himself.
The family called the Sheriff’s Department for help. If all they wanted was a mental health professional, they should’ve Google searched one on the internet. If someone calls the Sheriff’s department, deputies are dispatched. If a mental health expert was in fact requested, deputies will still respond and assess then address the situation prior to the mental health professional’s arrival.
The deputies responded. They assessed the situation. They introduced less lethal tactics prior to Berry starting the motor on his 3500 pound car and using it to pin a deputy between it and another car. Yes, different tactics could’ve been deployed. Unfortunately, deputies aren’t given a whole lot of training regarding the mentally ill. Thankfully the deputies survived and Mr. Berry didn’t go mobile in that car.
Is there a back story on Mr. Berry? Had responding deputies requested a mental health unit to respond? If so, was one available to respond? Had deputies responded to his home in the past? Had he ever been convicted of a violent crime? Was it narcotics that led to his mental illness? Had he been diagnosed as mentally ill by a doctor? Had he previously been a patient in a mental hospital? Maybe the deputies had prior contacts with him and maybe those contacts led to violent confrontations. How much money did the civil attorney pocket and how much did the family get?
I wonder how many more people would’ve been killed in France had responding officers not fired when that terrorist driven truck was running over people in that marketplace?
CF, maybe you should educate yourself by volunteering some hours at a local hospital with a mental illness ward. Until then, your opinion is nothing more than uneducated and biased nonsense.
MAD, unfortunately, that is what the public and the leaders in the department want, dead deputies and dead innocent people, before any proactive action. It is easier to defend dead deputies. Think about Sgt. Owens, the “fresh eyes, McBuckles” was so quick to put out that intranet video, assuring deputies that Sgt. Owen did not hesitate in shooting at the black suspect, that Sgt. Owens simply did not see it coming. McBuckles was afraid about the rumor that because of his policies, and that of the CPA of destroying deputies lives for doing their job, Sgt. Owens hesitated in defending himself. Mcbuckles wanted to immediately quash the rumor, for his own political gain. McBuckles and the corrupt, despicable political class did no waste the opportunity for a photo opp, and the video at the 6:00 PM newscast, showing their ugly faces, eulogizing a person they did not know and could simply not relate to.
Now imagine, Sgt. Owens seeing the furtive movements by the black suspect and shot him several times on the back. McBuckles and the same despicable political class would be on the 6:00 PM newscast demanding a federal investigation, accusing Sgt. Owens of murder. The black lives matter movement would then burn the city and McBuckles would rally with them holding hands.
Sgt. Owens would then be relieved of duty, no pay and no medical insurance for his family, suffering intense mental pain and suffering and the possibility of going to state prison.
Great hypothetical input, unfortunately this thread is not for your diatribe towards the Sheriff.
Not to worry. I’ve taken direct action. No additional training needed. I assessed immediately, had deputies on scene, especially the sergeant, been presenting the proper “FULL TACTICAL PACKAGE” of BR-ASS!!! This event would have never occurred. The mentally ill man would have been sooooo impreseed… he would have asked to straight jacket himself. Unfortunately this one came in under the belt buckle. Additionally, to get our cars into the tactical package also, I have directed fleet to change “A Traditon of Service”… to…wait for it… “A Traditon Of Service”. More training money well spent.
your welocome,
Jim
ps. I know its a lower case y. Not to worry. Im having ALL the new stationary changed. Ive been saving TONS on training.
CF: in the words of the late Ronald Regan, “There you go again”. More “filling in the blanks” posts and going on tirades when something doesn’t go your way. What a child. I hope you are in no way, shape or form associated with the judicial system.
John Doe: What does the physical condition of the supervisor have to do with anything? Prejudice and bias are not only applicable to race, sex and religion.
No matter how much training you have, you can never prepare you for the complex and unpredictable scenarios the human mind can throw at you. The cops were in a no win situation no matter how you slice it. If the cops did nothing and the guy hurt himself or others they still would have been screwed. The old “Damned if you do, damned if you don’t” dilima.
Known: Go get the Sheriff his coffee and stop trying to cover his back side…….that is exactly what this tread is for…if you disagree with unknown…..then debate him…..I’m quite sure the Sheriff is capable of defending himself and his policies…..Celeste welcomes open debate on this “thread”.
Hey, Known, everything good or bad in the department is the direct result of your sheriff McBuckles, yes, my diatribe included….
Hard to tell what happened from this lousy video. My main concern is the actions of the sergeant. He seems to be more a casual bystander than the supervisor on scene directed the actions of the deputies based on some sort of tactical plan that addressed likely contingencies. I’m guessing the $3.3 million dollar settlement speaks volumes about what should have happened and didn’t. Not the department’s finest hour, for sure.
No, Inglewood Police Department…..Your wicked deeds are not forgotten. Don’t get me started on them.
The inaction of the Sergeant was all too obvious from the moment he arrived on scene. We all can agree that things went downhill real fast. A teaching and training scenario of “what not to do” for the Sheriff’s Department. Can’t blame or make or make excuses for the deputies. It is what it is.
My god, what a group of whiners. To read some of your posts it seems that you are an oppressed class, trying hard to be heroes but the bureaucracy, the BLM, lawyers, the Sheriff or Chief of police, depending where you come from, the left, and everyone else, are keeping you down. I’m not sure if I have ever heard any group of employees complain more about their jobs, then those on this blog. If it so bad, go do something else. Quit. A hint as to why you will not do that is this is great government job, as much as you, as a group, whine about the government, and you have a great union, as much as you, as a group, gripe about unions, and you have great benefits, as much as you, as a group, complain about not having funds and resources to do the job. And, for another hint, take a look at the picture at the top of this post. You have a deputy that probably weighs 300 lbs. Where else, but the government, not even at Walmart, can you keep a job in that bad of shape. That man couldn’t catch a cold, let alone a suspect. I suspect the last thing that man apprehended was a dozen Krispy Kreme donuts. No wonder some of you are quick on the trigger- you can’t chase or tackle the suspects.
No one is out to get you, no one. Society needs the police, just like we need doctors, and lawyers, and mechanics, etc. But, we do not have to tolerate any wrongdoing by any of them. Take a quick look at the number of lawyers in California and number disciplined, or of doctors, and compare that to police officers. There are about 100k doctors in California and the board noted about 900 disciplinary actions. Hell, I doubt the public can even find that information out for police officers. So, please stop whining, do your job, and do it in a way that “protects and serves.” Really, 31 rounds to a man with schizophrenia sitting in a car. Correct me if I am wrong, but I understand that there were 31 rounds fired, and one officer alone fired 13 times. WTF? Really. 31 and 13. You really see nothing wrong with that. That is why you have no credibility with the people on the street.
You guys have a nice weekend.
CF, you are right in some respects. If I understood correctly your message above deputies should be happy with their great government job. Well, I will tell you how I feel and I will not speak on behalf of others. I was not happy in the way this business has been run, yes, I felt oppressed and fearful of doing my job, and yes, I felt someone was out to get me. Now, as far as a great job, it all depends on the person, for me, at one point in my life, it was, because how it is run now, it is not. I would not encourage, any of my children or anyone else to join law enforcement, much less to join the cesspool, the LA Sheriffs Departments. Yes, my children had a better life than I did thanks to the LA County Sheriff’s badge, but they know better, and I know, law enforcement is something they WOULD NEVER pursue.
They understand that a mistake on the job, during a highly intense, uncertain and rapidly evolving situation, where force may be used against them or suspects is likely, which in turn can cost them their life, their career and the great possibility of being prosecuted for their perceived mistakes. So they say no, thanks.
Great Unions? No, you are mistaken, there is no such thing as a great union, they do little to nothing for the deputies, who on a semi-monthly basis pay their dues. I will not get into any details because there is plenty of information in that regard on the internet, research it.
Being out shape? Agree, we all regardless of our occupation should stay fit and healthy. Yet, you do not have the right to disparage a person only because of his appearance, disparage his actions, I think that would be more acceptable.
Regarding the incident above, no-one is defending the deputies actions, what I have said is that they lacked proper training and direction in the form clear policies and procedures. That is the fault of McBuckles and CPA Diana Teran who should be looking at training and policies to prevent the above. You see, Diana Teran sits in her office, protected by deputies who she despises waiting for them to screw up, in many cases due to lack of training and clear policies. She should be at the ACADEMY teaching constitutional policing, teaching recruits when to shoot and when not to. Diana Teran should teach recruits to tactically retreat (run away) if force may be needed, and training that conforms to her beliefs and expectations. She can not just sit and be waiting for mistakes, she should be proactively writing policy and training deputies before she wants to put them in jail for their perceived mistakes. So, if you think McBuckles runs the Sheriff’s department, you are wrong, it is the QUEEN, she replaced Tanaka in all respects.
So, yes CF, you are right in some respects.
Your post is enlightening and altruistic. Too bad LASD has diminished from over 30 years ago.
A question for anyone who may have inside information. If Diana Teran is in charge of all deputies investigations, and dispositions, what do the other 12 or 13 Division Chiefs, and 24 to 26 Division Commanders do on the 8th floor at the HOJ? Isn’t it a waste of money and resources? Each division chief costs the county at least 300K, and each commander at least 250K, a year for a great total of more than 9.6 million a year. All those positions should be scrapped and that money saved. Then send all those executives back to patrol, to deal with those pesky (5150) mentally ill calls, (SCAR) child abuse calls, (273.5R) domestic abuse and all those calls they probably hated handling, I would love to see that. I am dreaming right….
I think most of us realize that those executives are probably bored doing nothing, absolutely nothing on the 8th floor, just waiting to max out their retirement benefits, and “hasta la vista baby” while the department as a whole is a mess….what a shame…
Unknown. My post was in reference to your post about the current state of LASD.
Copy, thank you.
CF, God forbid someone attempts to carjack you at gunpoint, you panic and step on the throttle. In doing so your car speeds forward and hits a pdestrian in a crosswalk directly in front of you. Someone videotaping from a porch provides the footage to the local news. That footage is aired and someone posts a comment that you were at fault for hitting the pedestrian because you’re licensed and have been operating a motor vehicle for quite some time. You should have reacted differently. You see CF, what that commenter was too ignorant to understand is that you panicked because you had the business end of a pistol screwed in your ear and someone trying to pull you from the same vehicle you worked so hard to buy. Your fight or flight instinct set in, yet you were so scared you couldn’t decide if you should change your radio station or turn on your blinker, so you gassed the throttle. I’m also certain a 14yr old who has never driven a motor vehicle or been carjacked, but is a champion at Grand Theft Auto 6, could provide a professional opinion stating you should be jailed for reckless driving because only a fool reacts in such a manner when being carjacked.
I once read that It’s far better to keep your mouth closed at the risk of people thinking you have no idea what you’re talking about, than to open it and remove all doubt.
I’ve been doing this job for close to 3 decades and I did see some things in the video that I did not agree with. However, I don’t know all the circumstances and I was not there. The video only shows a portion of the story and from one perspective. For me to say they should be fired and jailed would be ludicrous.
Excellent post. Diana teran is running a rampant and the Jim McDonnell loves it. All the chiefs and commanders have no power, and because of that policy if they speak up they can be subject to discipline. Witnessla, you should do an article on that policy and how it has silenced people on the department.
“Unknown” has some great insight.
We were once judged by case law such as Graham v Connor. Now anything unpopolar or not supportive politically is punished with a harsh severity. Once executives had walked the same miles we have in our boots. No longer. There are the career carpet and tile walkers. There are the asphalt and concrete walkers. A true caste system. McBuckles was the savior. The Chosen One. Nope. Just another politician delegating the decisions on the careers and livelyhoods of good deputies who make honest mistakes to a leftist politicak hack who can’t make it on her own. Plausible deniability. Custody is tired of forced OT. Patrol (and everyone under a patrol roof) is tired of forced OT. Crash after your 4th double? Well, that’s your fault.
Time to lock down the jails. Title 15? What’s that? Fill patrol first. Sorry, judge, your snivel court is without a bailiff today.
By the way, when I retire, I will me handing in chrome snaps. Maybe by then, the right sife of my assigned car will have the new stickers since fleet only did the left.
Condolences to the family, more training for the deputies along with transparency from the Sheriff’s Department. Let’s move on.
Police Chief Magazine|Columns
Research in Brief: Officer Fatigue and Officer-Involved Shootings—A Deadly Combination for Error S
David Blake, MSc, Blake Consulting & Training
Edward Cumella, PhD, Kaplan University
Law enforcement data indicate that officers frequently suffer from high levels of fatigue due to lack of sleep, unusual shift schedules, and long hours awake. Research confirms that fatigue impairs a person’s mental functioning, especially in areas such as decision making, reaction time, and memory.1 However, there has been little research that directly investigates fatigue’s …
Read More
– See more at: http://www.policechiefmagazine.org/research-in-brief-officer-fatigue-and-officer-involved-shootingsa-deadly-combination-for-error/#sthash.70zeujqz.dpuf
The video provided by the family of John Berry depicting his fatal encounter with LASD deputies certainly leaves a lot to be desired for anyone seeking a clear and complete picture of the actions which took place.
However, we don’t need a video to understand that this particular LASD service dispatch had a far less than optimum outcome by several measurements – which include negative impact to public confidence in the quality of LASD services and the qualifications of its deputies and a negative contribution to county finances.
I propose another approach to deliver a useful perspective on this costly L.A. County resident O.I.S. fatality.
Let’s place the video aside for a moment,
so that we can make a brief comparison of similarities found in the John Berry fatality by Lakewood Station LASD
and the death of Kelly Thomas resulting from his arrest by Fullerton P.D. officers.
Both incidents involved a suspect whose immedeate family member was a career law enforcement.
The father of Kelly Thomas.
The brother of John Berry.
Both incidents involved law enforcement responding to a call about suspect behavior that results from mental illness.
Both incidents resulted in suspect death as a direct effect of force tactics which, in hindsight, were deemed excessive and unneccesary and which, in the judgement of many, were violations of policy and violations of suspect’s civil rights.
Now, take a look at this:
Fullerton P.D. use of force on Kelly Thomas
Tuesday July 5, 2011
Lakewood Station LASD use of force on John Berry
Monday July 6, 2015
That most basic and mundane detail tells us something that we don’t hear in the video.
it tells us something that our Sheriff won’t say, that charlie beck won’t say, the mayor won’t say, the board of supervisors won’t say, Gov. Brown refuses to say, you won’t hear it from the President and no police union official in this nation dares to acknowledge.
It tells us something that no incident report, no inquiry, no inspector general’s 5,049 page inquisition, investigation and blue-ribbon panel review of Kelly Thomas or John Berry that cost $3 million taxpayer dollars will tell us.
It will not tell us what the police officers and/or the deputies were doing in the 72 hours prior to the deadly use of force and the fateful incident in question.
It will not provide any information which could be useful in evaluating the severity of officer fatigue and the corresponding level of impairment to cognition, memory, reflex and emotional control.
Optimal functioning of these human systems is essential to optimal performance and minimal risk of error in complex, high tension law enforcement encounters.
What 3-4 days of the year consistently requires the most back-to-back on-duty in the field holdover shifts for the greatest number of law enforcement personnel across the nation?
if it isn’t a 4th of july Holiday weekend, then what is it?
What can happen to an officer whose physical conditioning and potential aggressiveness is an asset in handling situations which require an element of intimidation and dominance?
After 4 days running a high deficit of quality rest, the human system is now set for irritability and responses which run out of proportion to the provocation.
The cognitive veneer of self-control which overlays fight-or-flight anger and aggressiveness has worn paper thin. When Kelly Thomas resists and hits and kicks, the base human response — beat him to a pulp.
What do you think you are seeing in the John Berry video?
Are you watching an incompetent, lackadaisical, do-not-care supervising deputy who needs discipline and retraining or quick termination?
Perhaps.
What i see is at least 3 of the responding LASD to the John Berry incident who are completely zonked.
Barely functioning.
Barely standing.
The tank is empty.
3 pots of coffee and fumes is all they got to keep moving.
Maximum fatigue.
operating room surgeon – illegal zone.
truck driver/airline pilot – illegal zone.
firearm carrying law enforcement officer – legal for response to all incidents,
at maximum risk for deadly error.
CF will not ever take the side of law enforcement in an OIS regardless of the amount of rounds fired. If he did, he won’t post about it because his hate for cops won’t allow him to. The amount of unnecessary force used in the vast, and I mean vast majority of use of force incidents are necessary and warranted and he knows it, but he’ll never admit it. That’s why nothing he ever says will matter here. We all know errors are made but the derogatory comments and low brow attacks is all CF is here for, not anything else. Deps and others need to learn from these type incidents and do their absolute best to not repeat any mistakes that attributed to the outcome that might have been avoided.
10-35, you are absolutely right, Diana Teran is a liberal police hater who could not make it on her own. I am going to show you some evidence here, in a minute. In her public profile, ( https://www.linkedin.com/in/diana-teran-93290117/ ) she boasts that she was a Los Angeles County District Attorney, then Criminal Appellate Attorney, from March 2000 – October 2010. However, she failed to mention that she entered into an agreement with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office to serve as the advisor to the Sheriff akin to what she currently does with the LA Sheriff’s office. See agreement: ( http://cams.ocgov.com/Web_Publisher/Agenda05_12_2009_files/images/O00109-000639A.PDF )( http://cams.ocgov.com/Web_Publisher/Agenda04_28_2009_files/images/A09-000639.HTM )
RECOMMENDED ACTION(S)
Approve Agreement between County of Orange and Diana M. Teran as Staff Attorney for the Office of Independent Review for the period May 1, 2009, through August 31, 2011, for $179,800 per year, plus reimbursement for actual and necessary expenditures consistent with the terms of the agreement. This agreement may be subject to an increase at the discretion of the Board of Supervisors and under the following conditions: Board approval, availability of funds within the OIR budget, and a recommendation from the Executive Director.
The question is why is it she does not mention it on her resume? Because she got booted out, her ways did not go well with the executives at the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. The Orange County Sheriff’s executives had the guts, the spine to tell her to go pound sand. So she came to where she knew, she could sell her mantra. She was right, the LA Sheriff’s executives drink her kool-aid. She drives a bit more from Orange County Beach to LA, but hey, she has got a good, safe, and secure job.
Diana Teran is nothing more than a government leech, akin to a person on welfare, who can only survive via the county handouts. Yet, she likes the good life, and for that reason wanted to be with the Orange County, to be closer to her family who lives in a very upscale neighborhood, in a house worth over a million dollar near the beach in Orange County. The hypocrisy of the liberals at play, champions of the poor and the criminal element, yet, they want to live far away from them.
During the opening of the video, one deputy is striking Berry with the ASP to no avail. A second deputy does the same shortly afterwards. The neighbor shouting “Stop beating him” called it correctly. Tactics and control are tantamount in law enforcement. Wanton strikes and contagious fire to Berry looked very bad. Training, training, train.
Hmm….based on the positioning of the patrol cars it spears there was an effort to block the car in and by the numer of deputies there I’m sure they had been talking to the guy for some time and trying to persuade him to get out of the car. It’s not easy getting someone to do what you want them to when they’re not confined let alone behind the wheel of a car who doesn’t want to get out and that starts to move. Very easy to judge the tactics and handling of an incident with the safety and clarity of hindsight. No tactical situation never goes ideally and the old adage, “plan for the worst and hope for the best” is apropos.
Just as the former police chief of Dallas PD put ou the challenge to the protestors during the shooting last year to join the department if they wanted to make a difference. Why don’t all the folks who criticize the tactics and second guess incidents like this put out some suggestions as to how they would have handled it. I’m sure LEO’s would be interested in listening or is it safer and easier to just criticize.
I’ve never commented on this site before, but there has been some very insightful comments that I would like to elaborate upon. It is so true that being overly tired, to the point of exhaustion, is so much in play because of the extensive use of overtime to fulfill basic public safety obligations. And while the lack of deputies is present at every station and facility, what is even more a factor is the lack of direct supervision. I’ve heard patrol stations often have no field supervisors whatsoever because they are short staffed and buried in paperwork. They work overtime to catch up, not to be in the field where they are desperately needed by the deputies. When they are needed, they are commonly too late to be involved and make a difference. They end up just documenting what they had no ability to supervise or change. I wonder how many vacant sergeant positions their are on the department. I’m betting it is in the hundreds, which should be absolutely alarming to anyone that understands law enforcement and liability. Undoubtedly, without proper supervisors that are not bogged down with too many overtime shifts, the department is destined to repeat their failures over and over again in these high risk/ low frequency encounters. I do pray for all of the deputies each day and wish you all the best.