Re Lancaster Incident

7/28/2019 Re Lancaster Incident

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It was a gruesome scene. Con-critically injured Mendezto get out of the shack. Bleed-t certainly heading intowas made to crawlout andsurrounded bydeputies. Para-ripping of f hi s clothes toground, nude an dMinster videotapedcan be heard trying to getthat he'd pointed his BBwith terror, Mendez

says he did not point his BB"Why*dthe gun at my deputies?"sir," Mendez cries out. He tellsbed, and Iit,sir, so I could get up.Sir,guy." He repeatedly says he'sSheriff's investigators andAlarcon intently focused on in

andGarcia were taken to An-Hospital. The next day, Oct.fought back fears that hi slegwouldbe ampu-Homicide sergeants GrayRodriguez questioned him. Ac-assures

incident report laterthe department immediatelyas a suspect. Inthat Oct. l"assaultweapon...officer" anda] firearm inpresence."d Pedersonas AngelhospitalMendez againBut as GrayencouragepointedConley,them: "Ithem,he doesn't

Mendeze, No,shoot me!'an d again an d againand Garcia, who had criminal

model citizens. Theyconvicted in February 2OO8 ofwillful cruelty to a child,"to the L.A. County DistrictOffice. A month later, Mendezofmisdemeanor posses-the shooting, Garcia, whoMendez, tells investigatorsto abuse meth but got soberadmits that Mendez still usesinvestigator Rodriguez, "Isomebody clean."Department charged Men-"an imitation firearm,"Attorney Steve Cooley'sto prosecute. DeputyDAwh o heads the Justicerity Division, says there was

ties to undergo "tactics" training and toreview the incident.Ryckman is outraged. "They just stormthese places and do whatever the hell theywant," he says. "We're lucky we didn't endup with twopeople dead."About 20 miles outsideLancaster next toHighway 14, a huge billboard announcesthat persona l- in ju ry lawyer R. RexParrishas won $921 million in verdicts andsettlements. Parris, who is also the mayorof Lancaster,was first elected in 2OO8 asa law-and-order man. But he got into hotwater with civil rights leaders by stronglysupporting the armed Sheriff's deputieswhoentered apartments to check forSec-tion 8housing violations.Parris, an imposing man witha full,white beard, has made local and nationalheadlines several times. He once said Lan-caster was "growing a Christian commu-nity" and proposed playing bird chatteron loudspeakers on a main thoroughfareto spruce up the town. When LA. Weekly

,*Mendez's

his past statements and actions concern-ing Section 8.Yet several police experts and watch-dogs are not convinced, given eventssuch as the shooting in the backyardshack, that Baca has a grip on things.In its blistering report, the Citizens'Commission on Jail Violence deemedBaca's response to excessive force in thejails "insuff ic ient" and noted a "failure ofleadership" at the top.Civil rights attorney Paz points to find-ings by the commission that UndersheriffPaul Tanaka, Baca's recently departedright-hand man, urged deputies to "workin the gray area'" and "undermined thecredibility of Internal Affairs Bureau onmore than one occasion."Pazsays Sheriff's Department leaderswere "reinforcing" the unwritten policythat supervisors should let deputies "dotheir jobs as they see fit." That, he says,"encourages violence."Paz now is assisting in a federal lawsuit

,

contacted Parris about the Mendez case,he described the incident as "tragic"butwouldn't comment further.Throughout L.A. County, small citieslike Lancaster, West HollywoodandCompton pay the Sheriff to provide policeservices. Baca spokesman Whitmore saysthere's a "combined" and "community"effort between these townsand the Sheriffas to howdeputies carry out their work.Catherine Lhamon,an attorney withPublic Counsel, the nation's largest probono law firm, says Parris "declared a waron Section 8," and deputies acted as hismuscle. Her firm sued Lancaster and theSheriff's Department and won a settle-ment.Before the lawsuit, she says, 74percentof the city's Section 8 investigations

involved deputies. In L.A. County, thefigure is only 8 percent. "It was aber-rant how involved [the deputies] were,"

involving Kenneth Rivera III,who waskilled in Lynwood in 2012 by a Sheriff 'sdeputy who shot him in the back.TomParker, the fo rmer head ofL.A.'sFBI office, read the Sheriff's an d L.A.County District Attorney reports onthe Mendez shooting, aswell as DavidDrexler's opening statement at trial. Hehas come to suspect that COPS HIT andTOPwere engaged in the "very common"practice of"testi-lying"after a bad shoot.Parker is a retired 24-year veteranof the FBIwhose distinguished careerincluded undercover investigations,police corruption and brutality cases andinvestigations of agent-involved shoot-ings. Last year, the Legal Aid Foundationof Santa Barbara gavehim a HeroesofJustice Award for his work oncriminal-justice reform.Parker says police sometimes lie about

deputy ever saw big, at Albertsons or wheinformant even exist"From that point foreferring to the depuAlbertsons, "there's rprocedures happeninO'Dell leave Albertsoties were not in a "hoHughes' home. Nor wand immediate threaParker says, "Withostantial probable caua right to go into the through buildings, neHe says the killingofman shepherd waswno right to be on theno right to shoot theProfessor O'Donnethere's not an emergeto have a warrant to ghouse." But he notestional pressures, officmanders often feel thwere wrong.O'Donnell adds, "Ifful, then what are yousay?"

Parker explains, "Ifthe premise that [polbe there, that damageaspect of the shootinJennifer are innocensituation."O'Donnell says it'sthat Mendez was notpoingun.do asays.his hO'DutiesexplabulletshackalwaymainguyhParkit's podeputiin lookactivitLarsenweren'tO'DellSheriff's version of evpass his smell test.Baca spokesman Wcan paint the picture cahoots, which is finething is said and donethe shooting."The men representibefore Judge Fitzgeraing on the case for twstill get outraged ovedistrict attorney's invsays of the DA's officeany independent invecriticizes the JusticeDivision's weighty naFo r Ryckman, the hsawmade by police o

ties to determine whathat day haunts him tup this chain of comm


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M- area.The WeeklyteamsSupervisor MichaelAn-led by Sheriff'spolicing theof residents often to ferret outland use violations,

the teams created anby truckers, retirees ande region's independentLancaster deputies

forusing dis-against mostly poorLancaster residents ofSection 8 rentalleaders,with help

LawCenter, suedSheriff's Departmentand harass-8recipients, claiminginitiated 'compliance8tenants' homesharass and intimidate."Baca's departmentattorneyfede ra l lawsuit againstdeputies Conley and

sayMendez'sright to a reason-of privacy was violatedfailed to announceclaim Mendezwasforce, resulting in

if it's a mansiona matter of an expecta-from U.S.Districthoping to winclient.Whitmore says, "Law-this

He was pointing aand that's why hebattling sides don'tfacts. Butcertain intrigu-in investiga-Department and

f rom theCOPSHITunit and itstitled Target-Orientedanon 2Oth Street West. Auotes Sgt. Greg Minster"got some info" thatbig, white parolee andV i a r l been sootted at

program and been pulled over in hisvehicle by deputies but had bolted onfoot, leaving a toddler behind. After that,according to the Sheriff's Department,deputies sought O'Dell for"felony childendangerment" and violating his parolebut couldn't find him.The Sheriff's Department labeled O'Dell"armed and dangerous." That was asomewhat dramatic description, probablyinspired by the fact that he'd eluded depu-ties and raised their ire. O'Dell's arrestrecord showed

**,' So Conley, Pederson, Minster anddeputies Billy Cox and Veronica Ramirezheaded to Hughes' home, just three min-utes f rom Albertsons. Another team wentto Larsen's home.According to a Sheriff's Departmentdocument, the Community-OrientedPolicing Services Bureauto which COPSHIT is assigned is "highly specialized"and provides "prevention, interven-tion and suppression law enforcementservices" to Sheriff's stations. Under thebureau, the High-Impact Team,orHIT,handles "quality-of-life issues," serves

warrants,

" '" '

HP

ISWTHEBiGITWENTTiWNMEDIATELY." - B E P U T Y B I L L Y M X

no violence in his long historyof drugpossession, DUIs and driving without alicense.Minster and his deputies includ-ing Conley and Pederson swarmedAlbertsons. But they didn't find O'Dell.While still at the supermarket, they got atip that he might be at a nearby residence.In a deposition, Sheriff's Deputy Clau-dia Rissling testified that her informantclaimed to have spotted someone lookinglike O'Dell riding a bike on l8thStreetWest near Paula Hughes' home. Risslinginformed the COPS HIT and TOPSdeputies that two people lived in a shackbehind Hughes' home. According toMendez's attorney, Drexler, Rissling even"identified Angel and Jennifer by name."Rissling said her informant told her that

"independently" canvases areas and con-ducts "saturation patrol." In essence, theyare troubleshooters.Conley and Pedersonwere part of COPS HIT.

Capt. Robert J. Tubbs, who commandsthe COPS bureau, declined to talk withthe Weekly. But Eugene O'Donnell, apolice-procedures expert at the John JayCollege of Criminal Justice in New YorkCity, says teams such as COPS HIT andTOPS can be troublesome.

"When you establish specialized units,"O'Donnell, a former New York City policeofficer and prosecutor, says "you have tobe careful that there's not spin-off.Youhad that problem with the Los AngelesPolice Department, where the supervision[was] lax" toward the anti-gang CRASHunit, leading to the Rampart scandal." f> 1- ~-l^lHnn Ws tu f f that's not

M* ****;**,!> only underscores the depover-aggressiveness. "Whycall yourself that?"a dismayasks. "Are you going to callassassination team? We donpolice to be 'hit teams.' Thethat comes out of it, brandinvery aggressiveway."As young recruits, COPS

Conley and Pederson hadbBaca's North Facility jail atDetention Center in Castaicmer prisoner told the Citizesion on Jail Violence that hseven strip searches after aand was h a n d c u f f e d anda shower fo r sixhours. Tsion found that Baca's jaihumiliation tactics.As Conley and PedersonHughes' home that afternolater told investigators, theclear the backyard. MeanwCoxand Ramirez went to Hdoor, banging on it with a romanding entry, according ttestimony from neighbor CHughes refused to open hdeputies, Green said, so thea "battering ram" on her f rohad no searchwarrant, but sthem in.Ronnie O'Dell wasdid police find a cache of drAccording to a Sheriff's reand Pederson meanwhile aptiny backyard shack construwood,with an air conditionefrom itold in

j, . . . heA > - ^ A .

poandHe explainfiring and backing away alminstinct."

More than sixmonths lateSgt. PatrickKimasks Conletime passed between the timthe suspect and the time yoweapon?"Conley responds,"MaybeThat's more than enoughdeputy to shout "Freeze!Pocover. When asked about thDeputy DAAlarcon couldntells the Weekly, "I reviewedthat was provided to me. It aa thorough and complete inOn May 25,about eight mthe shooting,Alarcon conclConley and Pederson "actedself-defense."As Conley unloaded his gMendez and Garcia, Pedersinvestigators, she feared forand fired off five rounds f romBeretta.Deputies Cox and RamireMinster,who'd been dealingHughes, moved toward the erupting gunfire . Cox then sHughes' German shepherd and killed the pet with one bran out snarling, ran at me,"


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did not haveannouncean d Garcia, whocrime and did notof the big,sought,shack door with hism semiautomaticho had on therifle-style BB gunrats, sat up andConleyMendez'sthrough it andproof , his attorneyshing downtowhen shot,it was them," Men-Homicide Sgt. Rob-say 'police'! Theydidn't say 'dropfired at will, pep-14 more bullets,seven-months-right upper backMendezhit multiple timesand side; bloodWeeks later,hose keyin half, had to be

as aparamedicpolice cantogun at Conley.d him,die. sir!" then

point hishe was movingtold Baca's Internalrifleopened fire.to kill me,"Sgt. Patrick Kim,jump on me'Here's my

happened too farurban core to earnin the mediaDepartment web-the fe w thata federal lawsuit

an d that Mendez'sviolated.trial before U.S. Dis-LosAngeles,

Lancaster COPSHITdeputies on edgeleading up to the shooting, the shootingitself and Baca's internal f indings that theshooting was "in policy."Critics suggest the Mendez case is fur-ther proof that Sheriff LeeBaca,who hascome under withering attack for repeat-edly failing to prevent his deputies fromabusing and harassing jail inmates, is los-ing control of a department some see as acowboy-style organization rather than amodern lawenforcement agency.Prominent civil rights attorney SamuelPaz, who has won many police-brutalitylawsuits, says Baca's deputies "think theydon't have to worry about being investi-gated because the top guys [Baca and hiscommand staff] tell them they have free

the Angel Mendez tragedy.TomParker, fo rmer head of the FBI'sLo s Angeles office, who read an internalaffairs report by Baca's department and areport by the LosAngeles County DistrictAttorney, questions almost every aspectof the Mendez shooting, calling it "a messf rom the get-go." Baca's report, he says,was"kind of a whitewash... which is verytypical of the Sheriff's Department" in2O1O and 2011.Baca spokesman Steve Whitmore saystalk ofdeputies running amok is "abso-lutely not true" and defends Baca's inter-nal investigation as thorough. "Where'sthe cover-up?" adef ian t Whitmore asks.Michael Gennaco,chief attorney

Angel Mendez's plywood shack .tuckedbehindaforlorntree and piles of debris

A N G E L M E N D E Z M A D E 1 C R A W L F R 8 MT H E S H A C K C R S S f i U T

'IPazcites a 2O12 report by the Citizens'Commission on Jail Violence producedby such heavyweight civic leaders as Rev.Cecil Murray, Long Beach Police ChiefJim McDonnelland former CaliforniaSupreme Court Justice Carlos R. Moreno,which f o un d serious problems.Peter Eliasberg, legal director of theACLU of Southern California,says theMendez-Garcia shooting is "definitely"cause for alarm. Under Baca, nearly all

deputies must first serve in L.A. County'stroubled jails, which Eliasberg says

at the county's Off i ce of IndependentReview, who acts as a Sheriff 's watchdog,says there were no signs of a cover-up andno red flags went up forhim. He "con-curred" that the shooting was not out ofpolicy. Ifsomething comes up as a resultof the Mendez lawsuit, Gennaco says, "Imay want to re-examine."Deputy DARosa Alarcon,of the DistrictAttorney's Justice System Integrity Divi-sion, tells the Weekly she'scomfortablewith Conley's explanation that Mendezpointed his rifle-like BB gun at him and

"We thought it was a very straiward case," Alarcon says. "The s[by the deputies] were very consthere were no red flags."But Gerald Ryckman, a partnecase with David Drexler, Mendetorney, says neither the district anor Baca's internal affairs team ca thorough bullet-trajectory invto test Mendez's contention thatshot his arm as he reached downthe BB gun on the floor."No one did the science," he saspeaks volumes about what was going on here."Garcia and Mendez declined totheir harrowing experience. Butsays, "They shoot Mr.Mendez anhappens? They start a massive cmachine. It's shocking."One recent day, a petite woman wing teeth and darkly tanned skining a yard sale in f ront ofPaula Hhome on l8th Street West in LanHughes is out of town in Las Vegthe woman, who doesn't give heris watching Hughes' home for heworking-class high desert neighShe remembers hearing aboutshooting of Angel Mendez and JGarcia in the shack in the backydoesn't want to say much more tthat other than to describe L.ASheriff 's deputies in Lancasteraaggressive." Says the woman, "Toff as if everyone's a punk." Acrostreet, Bridget Coss, an affable,blonde who lives in a well-mainranch house with her husband, cr e m e m b e r s Oct. i, 2010 "Thec othe street blocked off," she saysI couldn't get in with my grocerwasn't happy about that."Until the Mendez incident, Cthe street was quiet and she hathat MeGarciadesperationH

"tsto k[Menda BBgunasks."I think they were just doinjobs."The Antelope Valley has provean unusually thorny problem fordeputies just doing their jobs.On March 27, an L.A. County that another ofBaca's deputies, SSorrow, used excessive force. So15-year-old William Fetters in th2009 after ordering Fetters to drgun on the ground in Palmdale. Tawarded the teenager $1.1 millioThe year Mendez was gunned Special Counsel MerrickBobb, apaid watchdog over the Sheriff'spartment, found that deputies enin "overzealous use" of"obstruccharges to just ify arresting blackin Lancaster. While Afr ican Amecans make up 19 percent of Lanpopulation, 64 percent of those a

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Re Lancaster Incident