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L.A. County Sheriff candidates

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There’ll be a new sheriff in town come June 3. Former Sheriff Lee Baca stepped down in January amid a firestorm of controversy, and there are now seven candidates vying for his coveted spot. But not one of them is African American.

Only four people have held the L.A. County Sheriff position in the last 80 years. It’s an elected position, but there is no limit on how many terms one person can hold. And it’s rare in politics for an incumbent to be unseated.

There is no doubt that a change of guard is due. And the new leader’s job will be a challenging one, because he will be charged with restoring public trust and leading the agency into the future. A number of scandals have plagued the department in the past, including hiring practices that favored non-minorities, unfair arrest and jailhouse policies as well as obstruction of justice. In fact, 18 officers were recently indicted by federal law enforcement officials with charges that included jailhouse abuse and threatening an FBI agent, among other things.

There have also been allegations of White supremacists working within the force and of female officers being pressured for sexual favors.

In addition, the department’s misconduct has cost taxpayers dearly—$40 millions was paid out last year alone in settlements due to lawsuits filled against the department. One African American man was awarded more than half a million dollars after suing the department for beatings he says he took as a result of not allowing deputies to randomly search apartments that he managed.

And just last year, the U.S. Department of Justice released findings about the L.A. County Sheriff’s office that painted a picture of an agency that has practiced discrimination and racial profiling, specifically against African Americans.

Another study released last year, found that the Department used K-9 (or dog) units disproportionately when handling arrests of people of color. According to a study by the Police Assessment Resource Center (PARC), during the first six months of 2013, every person bitten by a K-9 during an arrest procedure was Black or Hispanic.

Another sore spot is the disproportionate percentage of Black inmates housed in L.A. County jails, which are run by the sheriff’s department. There is also an ongoing case underway right now surrounding several L.A. County Sheriff Department employees who were charged with conspiracy and obstruction of justice. In this case, the FBI had placed an informant in the jail system to report on civil rights violations, and when sheriff department deputies discovered him, members of the department launched an elaborate scheme to keep federal investigators from finding him.

On March 29, 2004, Our Weekly publisher Natalie Cole interviewed former Supervisor Yvonne B. Burke regarding a complaint that several African American deputy sheriffs felt existed within the Department. They felt that advancement opportunities were minimal because many were encouraged by supervisors to apply for community relations jobs. Once in these positions they realized they are somewhat “dead-end” jobs.

Several African American sheriff deputies were interviewed recently and they all said the issue still exists today. One deputy, who has been on the department nine years, said he worked for African American community relations officers when he was in high school and they are still in those positions today. He was also encouraged by his superiors to apply for community relations, but he refused.

Indeed, the subject of race and the jails was a hot topic at a recent debate among the seven candidates vying for the L.A. County Sheriff spot. Justice Not Jails (JNJ), an organization dedicated to “working against racialized mass incarceration in California,” co-hosted the debate. According to the JNJ website, “People that are picked up and sent to jail for drug use are overwhelmingly people of color and African American.”

At the debate, each candidate promised improvements at the jails, although none provided specific details.

Experts around who will have great influence on an area that is crucial to the livelihood and safety of millions of families and individuals.

Consider this: the L.A. County Sheriff’s office is the largest in the world with a budget of nearly $3 million. That includes 17,000 employees (of which 9,000 are police officers) and a salary of nearly $300,00o for the sheriff alone. Law enforcement personnel patrol L.A. County’s unincorporated areas and 42 cities, including East Los Angeles. The coverage area includes 3 million people.

The candidates include:

• James McDonnell—not from within the department; however, has served at the L.A. Police Department. Currently serves as chief of Long Beach Police Department and is president of the L.A. County Police Chiefs Association. He is endorsed by Attorney General Kamala Harris, LAPD Chief Charlie Beck and L.A. County District Attorney Jackie Lacey.

• Paul Tanaka—has 31 years of experience, including serving as Sheriff Lee Baca’s second-in-command. He is the mayor of Gardena and brings a more administrative approach to the table. However, his role in the case of the FBI informant’s disappearance within the L.A. County jail system is unclear.

• Todd Rogers—also from the Baca stable. A 28-year veteran of the force, he is assistant sheriff and in charge of budget matters and personnel.

• James Hellmold—a Baca staff member as well. He is also an assistant sheriff and handles the detectives and the patrol division. He has 25 years of experience.

• Robert Olsted —a former department commander. He claims that he was the one that brought in the FBI to stop the abuses at the jails. He in fact testified before the L.A. Citizens Commission on Jail Violence two years ago. He was also a critic of Baca.

• Patrick Gomez—a former department lieutenant. He actually ran against Baca twice previously and sued the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department once for retaliation and won that case to the tune of $1 million.

• Lou Vince—also from the LAPD. He is a senior detective supervisor and former U.S. Marine who also holds a master’s degree in criminology. Vince worked with the Sheriff’s Department. for four years as a reserve volunteer deputy.

In order to avoid a run-off, one candidate, must exceed 50 percent of the vote or the top two will face off in a runoff election in November.

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