Los Angeles Sexual Assault Lawyer Blog

In the past three years, county taxpayers have been footing an enormous bill to settle litigation involving the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department.

Our Los Angeles sexual assault attorneys understand that between 2009 and 2012, the county's board of commissioners has authorized judgements, settlements, court costs and attorneys' fees in excess of $100 million.

What's more, that $100 million figure didn't include another approximately $20 million that had been paid out of a fund that is specifically set aside for these types of claims or the $500,000 paid to the Citizens' Commission on Jail Violence.

That's according to Supervisor Gloria Molina, who recently reported that the county currently has more than 250 legal claims still pending against the agency.

A risk management and liability hearing was supposed to be held by commissioners in January, but the meeting has been postponed until the end of this month, as the county's CEO has requested additional time to review the information.

While any large operation may inevitably incur some liability, just based on sheer volume and the kind of business it conducts, the sheriff's department stands out in its liability payouts. During the 2010-2011 fiscal year, the county (i.e., taxpayers) shelled out nearly $108 million for all claims in all departments. The sheriff's office accounted for about a third.

Excessive force cases in particular shot up 75 percent that year. The county's litigation manager warned that this was something that the sheriff's office needed to watch. Setting aside the cost of such action, the fact is excessive force is illegal. That alone should be reason enough for the agency to re-evaluate its policies, procedures and practices!

The largest of these county-approved payouts was a $6 million class action case brought about due to gender discrimination. Another $5 million claim was filed after an impaired sheriff's deputy crashed his cruiser while on duty. Then there was a $4.3 million claim filed by a man who is now a paraplegic after a Taser injury while he was in his holding cell. Another $1.9 million payout was awarded to a man who was left paralyzed by a sheriff's deputy who shot him as he ran away.

More recently, the county agreed to pay more than $430,000 to the family of a man who died while in sheriff's office custody. The case stems from a 2007 arrest in La Peunte, in which officers apprehended a 41-year-old suspect who was visibly upset - yelling and striking vehicles. He reportedly tried to burglarize a home nearby. When deputies got there, he reportedly refused to obey orders.

They pepper-sprayed him. Then they handcuffed him. Then they restrained his ankles. Soon after, he was dead. The agency denied culpability, but agreed to pay the man's family in order to avoid having to go to court.

The sheriff's department's annual budget reaches almost $3 billion. For these kind of abuses to go on, routinely unchecked, is absolutely unacceptable.

Even the county's supervisor has said some management issues may to be blame for ongoing litigation concerns weighing on the agency.