Violent Incidents Involving LA County Deputies Under FBI Criminal Investigation

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has initiated criminal inquiries into two episodes of violence involving deputies from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, one of which saw a deputy striking a woman in the face as she held her child.

Officials from the FBI visited the headquarters of the LA County Sheriff’s Department to gather relevant documentation for these investigations, as revealed in an email discovered by the Los Angeles Times.

Department officials confirmed the FBI’s visit and stated their intent to fully collaborate with the investigation, as reported by the newspaper.

An incident under the FBI’s scrutiny involved a deputy aggressively throwing a woman to the ground by her neck in a supermarket parking area last month after she began filming an arrest on her mobile phone.

Alongside the federal inquiries, the California Department of Justice has consented to reevaluate the case of 18-year-old Andres Guardado, who was fatally shot in the back by a deputy three years prior in Gardena, a city located south of Los Angeles, according to the same email.

Despite the ongoing investigation, an FBI spokesperson declined to confirm any active criminal inquiries into the aforementioned incidents.

An internal county email obtained by the Los Angeles Times revealed that “federal criminal investigations are underway concerning recent events” in Palmdale and Lancaster, both located north of Los Angeles.

A 2022 traffic stop in Palmdale, which took place in July, has now become public following a news conference held by Sheriff Robert Luna this week, where he unveiled the bodycam footage and confirmed the deputy’s suspension.

The eight-minute footage captured a nighttime traffic stop where deputies noticed a vehicle driving without headlights. Upon stopping the vehicle, the deputies detected the scent of alcohol and observed four women, three of whom were holding infants instead of having them in car seats. The deputies arrested the women on suspicion of felony child endangerment, and force was used on two of them when they refused to let go of their children.

The incident in Lancaster occurred on June 24, when deputies answered 911 calls about a robbery at a local grocery store. On arrival, they found a man and a woman who reportedly matched the descriptions of the suspects. As deputies arrested the man, the woman started recording the encounter on her phone, leading to a deputy throwing her to the ground.

Sheriff Luna, who took over the department in December, has pledged to reform the country’s largest sheriff’s department.

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More about FBI Investigation

• Los Angeles Times: For detailed news and reports about the FBI investigations into the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department incidents.
• FBI’s official website: For official statements and press releases about the investigations.
• California Department of Justice website: For further details about the review of the Andres Guardado case.
• Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s official website: For any official statements or releases from the department related to these incidents.