WitnessLA.com
Celeste Fremon is an award-winning freelance journalist specializing in gangs, law enforcement, criminal justice and education policy. She is the founding editor of WitnessLA.com, a nonprofit news site, and the author of G-Dog and the Homeboys: Father Greg Boyle and the Gangs of East Los Angeles.
Fremon is a former visiting professor of Journalism at UC Irvine, and a senior fellow at USC's Annenberg Institute for Justice and Journalists.
Repainting the Sheriff's department, tan and green Barring any unforeseen changes, there will be a new L.A. County Sheriff at the start of next week. Alex Villanueva defeated sitting Sheriff, Jim McDonnell, in this month’s midterms after running a partisan campaign that lead to the first ouster of a sitting Sheriff in more than a century. Villanueva told KCRW this week that his goal is to rid the department of officials that, he said, contributed to a corrupt culture under previous leadership. But there is a lot of concern about what that will look like and if recent reforms could be rolled back.
LA County Probation Department woes Is LA County's Probation Department allocating funding properly?
If first you don't succeed, try him again Former Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca is due back in court on Monday. This time, it's not for testimony or closing arguments, but for sentencing. He faces up to 20 years in prison after being convicted on three federal charges. His conviction is the highest profile win for the U.S. Attorney's office, so far, in its investigation of the Sheriff's Department.
Will a new civilian oversight committee prevent police scandals? The LA County Sheriff’s Department is getting a civilian oversight committee for the first time. The department has been plagued by scandal; sheriffs have been convicted of assault and misconduct inside county jails, and former undersheriff Paul Tanaka was convicted of obstructing an FBI investigation into that abuse.
Paul Tanaka's Trial and Tribulations Former LA County Undersheriff Paul Tanaka, is scheduled to go on trial for his alleged role in obstructing a federal investigation. How did the second in command at the Sheriff's Department end up on the wrong side of the law?
Lies, Damn Lies...and Police Statistics The LAPD admits that it misreported serious offenses for at least eight years -- which made it appear that the rate of crime was declining faster than it really was. And LA’s not the only place where misreporting goes on. It was good PR at the time, but what has the revelation done to public confidence now and for the future?
Can More Federal Oversight Fix L.A. County Jails? The L.A. County jails have been full of mentally ill inmates for years. Conditions are deplorable. and a rash of suicides in recent years prompted a Department of Justice investigation. This morning, the DOJ and the Sheriff’s Department announced a new deal for increased federal oversight in county jails.
Paul Tanaka Indicted Former Los Angeles undersheriff Paul Tanaka turned himself in to authorities this morning. The FBI and Justice Department charged Tanaka with obstruction of justice, alleging that he repeatedly sabotaged an investigation by the federal authorities into civil rights violations in Men’s Central Jail. We get an update on the case.
The End of Street Gangs in Los Angeles? "Los Angeles gave America the modern street gang. Groups like the Crips and MS-13 have spread from coast to coast and even abroad. But on Southern California's streets, they have been vanishing." That's the lead in an article in the latest Pacific Standard magazine by Sam Quinones, veteran reporter for the LA Times, now a freelancer, and author of several books, including the forthcoming, Dreamland , about black tar heroin distribution in the US. Photo: Jason Taellious
LA's New Sheriff and Civilian Oversight Corruption within the ranks and abuse of inmates in County jails led Lee Baca to resign as Sheriff, and the Board of Supervisors to create an Inspector General. With two new Supervisors, there now may be enough votes for a commission to provide civilian oversight. But a lot will depend on the newly elected Sheriff, Jim McDonnell.
Six Members of the Sheriff's Department Convicted A jury today found six current and former members of the LA Sheriff’s Department guilty of obstruction of justice and other charges. It’s a result of an ongoing federal investigation of LA jails. Prosecutors made the case that these deputies, sergeants and lieutenants took part in an alleged scheme to stymie a federal grand jury investigation into civil rights abuses and corruption. Celeste Fremon has been covering the case, she’s a journalist who specializes in criminal justice and she writes the Witness LA Blog.
Jail Trial Update The trial of sheriff’s deputies accused of abusing inmates in LA County jails continues this week with testimony from a former sheriff’s deputy. Six deputies are on trial for obstruction of justice - a charge that’s emerged from an investigation into the department by the FBI. Are more charges on the way? And how far up the food chain does the investigation go?
Dispute in Deputies' Union May Influence Sheriff's Election The LA Sheriff's Deputies Union is a political action committee with $2.5 million. Its endorsement could make a big difference in this years' unprecedented Sheriff's election. Incumbent Lee Baca has stepped down after almost 20 years on the job and six candidates are running to replace him. The union is divided for reasons so Byzantine, we won't go into detail, but the election appears to be one of the reasons. That's according to Celeste Fremon, journalist specializing in law enforcement and criminal justice and blogger at WitnessLA.com .
Inside the L.A. Sheriff's Department Scandal The story of the downfall of the L.A. County Sheriff’s department reads like a TV drama, including federal indictments and the resignation of sheriff Lee Baca. His deputy, Paul Tanaka, is suspected of pushing the limits of the law and is now struggling to win the upcoming election. Los Angeles Magazine reporter Celeste Fremon examines just how the department fell apart in the current issue of L.A. Magazine.
Are More Indictments Against Sheriff Personnel on the Way? Two more LA County Sheriff’s deputies face federal charges, this time for conspiring to assault a handcuffed jail inmate and covering up under oath. Witness Catholic chaplain Paulino Juarez testified about the incident before the Citizens Commission on Jail Violence. He repeated his remarks on video for the ACLU of Southern California. Two of the deputies Juarez mentioned were indicted Friday, bringing to 20 the total number so far in that and other incidents. Will there be more to come? That may depend on evidence of who else knew what happened and failed to take action.
FBI Arrests 17, Indicts 18 from LA County Sheriff's Department Illegal behavior has become institutionalized in the LA County Sheriff's Department, where some deputies "consider themselves to be above the law." That's according to US Attorney André Birotte, Jr. Today, he unsealed indictments alleging unjustified beatings of both jail inmates and visitors and conspiracies to cover up those actions. Eighteen deputies have been indicted and 16 are under arrest . Late this afternoon, Sheriff Lee Baca held a news conference to respond to the charges. Baca denied that abuse has become "institutionalized" but said he sadly accepted the US Attorney's investigation "whatever the findings are." (Both Sheriff Baca and former Undersheriff Paul Tanaka declined our invitation to participate in this discussion.)
[ ██████████ ] Mueller’s sentencing memo for Michael Flynn might have redacted “all the sexy parts,” but Josh Barro and Ken White speculate on the black bars.
LAUSD teachers and educators march ahead of a likely strike Public school teachers in Los Angeles are getting closer to walking off the job next month — it would be the first teacher strike to hit the LA Unified School District in 30 years. But contract negotiations with the district have hit a wall. Over the weekend, thousands of union members - teachers, librarians, counselors- took the streets of downtown LA to show that they’re serious.
A call to prepare for the next natural disaster A local environmentalist says we should spend more time and money preparing for natural disasters than responding to them. A Ventura resident who lost his home in the Thomas Fire says rebuilding is taking longer than he’d hoped. Local animal shelters are becoming critical evacuation centers. And California counties must now hold public meetings on their relationship with federal immigration agents.
Despite evacuation orders, some Malibu residents 'stay and defend' homes The Woolsey Fire destroyed 670 structures in Malibu, including more than 400 single family homes. That makes it the most destructive fire in the history of that beachside community. But some residents say even more homes would have been lost, if not for the private citizens who defied mandatory evacuation orders to protect their neighborhoods. The homeowners who stay during a fire can be a nuisance for fire fighters... but they say they're not going anywhere next time.