LA Sheriff’s Investigators Target Political Rivals: Paper
Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva has been using an anti-corruption unit to quietly undermine his rivals, a Los Angeles Times investigation claims.
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Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva and other top sheriff’s officials are accused of using an anti-corruption unit to go after outspoken critics of Villanueva or the department, reports the Los Angeles Times. The nine-officer unit, named the Civil Rights and Public Integrity Detail, has pursued a long-running investigation into one of Villanueva’s most vocal critics, L.A. County Inspector General Max Huntsman, and others despite sheriff’s officials being told by the FBI and state law enforcement officials that it appeared no crimes had been committed.
The team also has an open criminal inquiry into a nonprofit that is run by a member of a county board that oversees the sheriff and is associated with county Supervisor Sheila Kuehl, both of whom have clashed fiercely with Villanueva and called for his resignation. The unit has spurred a bitter confrontation between Villanueva and the Civilian Oversight Commission, which oversees the sheriff and his agency. Commission members say they fear the sheriff is using it to intimidate people who challenge him and to score points in personal vendettas, not conduct legitimate inquiries into possible crimes. The sheriff has refused to honor a subpoena from the commission to respond to the claim, releasing instead a public statement defending the unit as a tool for fighting corruption.
