Deputies

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has relieved three deputies of duty while it investigates the circumstances of the bloody beating of a Valencia man outside a Santa Clarita bar last year.

Parker Seitz, 25, alleged in a federal lawsuit that off-duty sheriff’s deputies attacked him outside a bar called the Break Room last Thanksgiving Day.

He sustained multiple serious injuries, according to the complaint filed in California’s Central District federal court on Aug. 25, including a fractured jaw, a punctured lung and a bruised collarbone.

Seitz is suing the county, multiple L.A. County sheriff’s deputies, hired security guards at the Break Room, and the bar itself for unspecified damages.

“Parker Seitz was violently attacked by off-duty Los Angeles Sheriff’s Deputies, under the watchful eye of security guards contracted by a local business,” Josh Stambaugh, an attorney for Seitz, said in a statement. “He suffered serious injuries and, as we allege in our lawsuit, members and leaders of the LASD then attempted to conceal the truth of the attack and evade accountability on behalf of the organization.”

The sheriff’s department said in an email that it “takes these allegations seriously,” and that on Dec. 2 it “initiated an internal investigation into the incident. Three employees have been relieved of duty pending the outcome of the investigation.”

Management at the Break Room did not respond to requests for comment.

The complaint alleges assault and battery by off-duty deputies Randy Austin and Nicholas Hernandez and an unidentified third assailant, along with a civil conspiracy by the county and a number of sheriff’s department employees accused of trying to bury the incident.

Parker Seitz, 25, alleges off-duty sheriff’s deputies attacked him outside a Santa Clarita bar called the Break Room last Thanksgiving Day. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has relieved three deputies of duty while it investigates the incident.

(Robert Hanashiro / For The Times)

About 10:30 p.m. Nov. 27, Seitz and two friends visited the bar, where Austin, Hernandez and the third assailant “began to bother and harass Seitz, including by repeatedly reaching for the sunglasses resting on” his head, according to the complaint. Minutes after Seitz left the bar about 1:36 a.m. Nov. 28, the complaint said, Hernandez knocked the shades off Seitz’s head “in a rude and offensive manner” and “an altercation broke out.”

The altercation dissipated quickly, according to the complaint, but then at about 1:46 a.m., Austin, “suddenly and without any justification,” punched Seitz and knocked him down, then Austin, Hernandez and the unidentified third person proceeded “to beat and stomp on him while he was on the ground.”

Seitz was bloodied during the beating and taken to a nearby hospital. Shortly after his arrival there, Justin Diez — who was a captain in charge of the Santa Clarita Valley sheriff’s station at the time of the incident and was promoted in April to lead the department’s North Patrol Division as commander — and deputy Richard Wyatt allegedly defamed him and violated his constitutional and civil rights in an effort to intimidate him and cover up the assault, the complaint said.

Wyatt, Seitz alleged, told one of Seitz’s friends that he had thrown the first punch and that he had been disruptive while at the hospital, which Seitz denies.

Later that morning, Diez called Seitz’s father, Ryan Seitz, and told him his son had “started a fight with off-duty deputies of the LASD” and “if Ryan Seitz would leave it to” Diez, he “would make sure the situation would go away,” the complaints said, describing the call as an attempt “to cover up the true circumstances of the beating … and to intimidate and dissuade Seitz from filing or pressing charges or pursuing any claims against the deputies” or the county.

The Sheriff’s Department did not directly respond to the allegations outlined in Seitz’s complaint, but it said that it “has established policies and procedures that clearly outline the standards of conduct required of all employees. … Any violation of these standards will be addressed promptly, and appropriate action will be taken if evidence is found to support the allegation of misconduct.”

Stambaugh said Seitz “was out with friends after a Friendsgiving dinner celebrating the purchase of his first home” the night he was allegedly assaulted.

“Parker Seitz’s lawsuit is a demand for accountability in response to the wrongs he has personally suffered, and an effort to ensure that the actions of these specific LASD members remain an anomaly,” Stambaugh said in his statement. “This is not the LASD that the Seitz family had supported and believed in.”

Aug. 2 (UPI) — Polk County, Tenn., Sheriff’s deputies found 14 explosive devices inside the Old Fort home of Kevin Wade O’Neal, whom they arrested on Friday for allegedly threatening public officials.

The deputies were enforcing arrest warrants for O’Neal, 54, for allegedly threatening to kill Polk County law enforcement members and public officials.

Sheriff’s deputies and detectives contacted O’Neal and arrested him inside his home when they “realized something was smoldering inside the bedroom where Mr. O’Neal had been located,” the Polk County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.

“Officers observed what they believed to be an improvised explosive device inside the room” and “immediately evacuated the residence,” the PCSO said.

The Chattanooga Police Department’s bomb squad and agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives searched the property and located 14 improvised explosive devices.

“O’Neal attempted to detonate the devices upon officers’ arrival and while they were attempting to apprehend him,” the PCSO release says.

The failed effort resulted O’Neal being charged with nine counts of attempted first-degree murder for allegedly trying to kill the nine PCSO deputies and detectives who arrested him.

He also faces 14 counts of prohibited weapons and one count of possession of explosive components.

O’Neal remains in custody at the Polk County Jail pending the outcome of a bond hearing.

Old Fort is located about 45 miles east of Chattanooga in southeastern Tennessee.

July 18 (UPI) — At least three people are dead following an explosion early Friday morning at a Los Angeles County Sheriff Department facility.

The three people killed are deputies with the law enforcement agency, KTLA first reported.

Officials have not said what caused the explosion, which took place at the Biscailuz Center Training Academy in East Los Angeles at about 7:30 a.m. PDT Friday, the LA Times reported, citing law enforcement sources.

Other injuries have been reported but authorities have not elaborated on their nature or extent.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom‘s office said he had been briefed on the situation and “has offered full state assistance.”

The Los Angeles Police Department bomb squad responded to the scene following the explosion.

Federal officials are also involved in the investigation.

“Our federal agents are at the scene and we are working to learn more. Please pray for the families of the sheriff’s deputies killed,” U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said on X.

Bondi said she had been in contact with Central District of California U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli’s office.

“We are closely monitoring the tragic incident that took the lives of three sheriff’s deputies at a training facility in Los Angeles,” Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said on X.

“Our federal partners are on the ground, and we are working to support the ongoing response.”

“I am heartbroken to hear of the terrible tragedy that has unfolded today at an LA County Sheriff’s Department facility. I am closely tracking the situation as we learn more about what occurred and the condition of those affected,” LASD Supervisor Kathryn Barger told KNBC-TV.

“My heart is heavy, and my thoughts are with the brave men and women of the Sheriff’s Department during this difficult time. I stand with them and their families as they navigate the hours and days ahead,”

Five years after her son was beaten so badly by Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies that he needed more than 30 stitches and staples to his face and head, Vanessa Perez is still looking for answers. So are county officials tasked with holding the department accountable for misconduct.

Despite a subpoena and an ongoing legal battle, obtaining a complete account of what happened to Vanessa’s son Joseph Perez has proved impossible — at least so far.

The sheriff’s department has released a heavily redacted report outlining its version of what transpired in the San Gabriel Valley community of East Valinda on July 27, 2020.

According to the report, deputies from the Industry Station stopped Joseph, 27, on suspicion of breaking into a car. He punched and kicked them multiple times, the document states. Three deputies injured their hands and a fourth broke his leg falling off a curb. Six deputies punched Joseph and deployed various holds and takedowns before he was arrested and charged with five counts of resisting an executive officer, court records show.

But entire pages of the department’s “use of force” report are blacked out, leaving Vanessa and members of the Civilian Oversight Commission wondering what details are being kept secret.

County oversight officials issued three subpoenas in February for cases under scrutiny, including one seeking an unredacted copy of the Perez file. The County Counsel’s Office has resisted, arguing the files should remain confidential, and the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department has declined to hand them over.

Amid the subpoena standoff, Vanessa, 43, shows up to speak at nearly every monthly meeting of the oversight commission in a black T-shirt with a picture of her son’s bloodied face.

“Surviving an arrest shouldn’t look like Joseph. And it shouldn’t look like 121 punches either. That’s what they admitted to,“ she told The Times, referring to an unofficial tally she made based on the deputies’ statements in the redacted document.

Vanessa Perez holds a photograph of her son, Joseph Perez, taken after he was beaten by Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies in July 2020.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

The beating was so severe, she said, it left her son struggling to carry on a conversation.

“He’s not able to do that anymore,” she said. “It’s just hard for him to socialize, period, with the constant fear.”

A month after the oversight commission‘s subpoena, L.A. County Sheriff Robert Luna responded by filing a lawsuit, asking a court to determine whether his department must comply. Luna said at the time that the County Counsel’s Office had advised the department that releasing the documents “violates the law.”

In a statement to The Times, the sheriff’s department said it is “taking deliberate steps to resolve the dispute and ensure its actions align with both the law and the principles of transparency.”

Last month, the County Counsel’s Office said in a statement that it “has fully supported” the commission “in its efforts to seek the information it needs to play a powerful oversight role on behalf of LA County citizens. This includes assisting with a declaratory relief action that will hopefully bring judicial clarity to the commission’s ability to obtain the information it seeks.”

Joseph maintains he was not the aggressor in the July 2020 incident. His mother said he was in the middle of a “mental health episode.”

Court records show Joseph has been jailed multiple times since on a range of charges, including methamphetamine possession and damaging a vehicle. In August 2022, he pleaded no contest to one of the five charges from the beating incident and was sentenced to 32 months in state prison.

He is currently incarcerated at Pitchess Detention Center in Castaic after violating his probation from a separate case in which he was convicted of resisting two West Covina police officers.

He has struggled with addiction and been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, depression and psychosis, according to his mother.

Anne Golden, Joseph’s public defender, said in a recent court hearing that he suffers from impaired executive functioning due to a traumatic brain injury inflicted by the deputies.

In a brief phone call last month from jail, Joseph told The Times he believes the full report about what happened to him should be released to “show that I was in the right.”

Vanessa Perez holds a photo of her and her son, Joseph Perez.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

“They’re lying about a lot of stuff with my case,” he said. “They lied about how it went down; they’re saying I’m the aggressor when I wasn’t. The reality is they beat me up — they left me for dead.”

The sheriff’s department said the deputies involved in the incident declined to comment.

The department said in a statement that every use of force “incident is thoroughly reviewed to evaluate if policies and procedures were followed,” adding that in “this incident, the use of force … was determined to be within policy.”

Oversight officials seeking records related to Joseph’s case and others have been stymied at every turn, according to Loyola Law School professor Sean Kennedy. Kennedy resigned from the commission in February following a dispute with county lawyers over another matter.

“To have effective and meaningful civilian oversight, it’s necessary for the commission to be able to review confidential documents about police misconduct and use of force,” Kennedy said. “Without that, this is all just oversight theater.”

Last month, Robert Bonner, the oversight commission’s chair, revealed that L.A. County Supervisor Kathryn Barger intended to replace him despite his desire to stay on and finish ongoing work.

Barger said in an email last month that the move “reflects my desire to continue cultivating public trust in the oversight process by introducing new perspectives that support the Commission’s vital work.”

During the commission’s June 26 meeting, Bonner, 84, alleged that powerful people in county government do not want meaningful oversight over the sheriff’s department. A former federal judge who once served as U.S. attorney in Los Angeles and led the Drug Enforcement Administration, Bonner was fiery in his remarks.

He said he believed the County Counsel’s Office was advising the sheriff to withhold documents as a means of “telling this commission what it can and can’t do, and that goes over the line.”

“They treat our subpoenas like public record requests,” Bonner said.

The Civilian Oversight Commission has said it is willing to go into closed session to review the full reports, but the county’s lawyers argue that’s not legal.

On Tuesday, the state Senate’s public safety committee approved a bill previously approved by the state Assembly that would allow oversight commissions across California to conduct closed sessions to review personnel records and other confidential materials.

But the proposal, AB 847, still requires approval from the full state Senate and governor. And even if it does become law, the county counsel’s office argues that the L.A. County code explicitly bars the commission from reviewing sensitive documents in closed session.

Robert Bonner, chair of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Civilian Oversight Commission, speaks during the commission’s meeting at St. Anne’s Family Services in L.A. on June 26.

(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Bonner has pushed for the county code to be changed, saying he and other members of the oversight body “vigorously disagree with County Counsel’s interpretation” of it.

“This commission needs subpoena power to be effective, and it needs to have effective subpoena power, which means it needs to be able to go into closed session,” Bonner said during the commission’s June meeting.

The sheriff’s department said it “will abide by the ultimate judicial determination as to whether those records can be lawfully disclosed.”

Whether the oversight body can issue subpoenas is not in dispute. In March 2020 — four months before Joseph was beaten — L.A. County voters overwhelmingly approved Measure R, a ballot initiative that granted the commission subpoena power.

But the county is thwarting the legal orders, according to Bert Deixler, former special counsel to the Civilian Oversight Commission. That intransigence, he said, contributes to a culture of impunity in the sheriff’s department.

“More momentum will be built in the wrong direction, the county will continue to get sued, the county continues to have more and more financial challenges, and it’s a race to the bottom,” he said.

On June 3, Vanessa Perez drove in from her home in West Covina to attend a hearing for her son at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse in downtown L.A.

After waiting several hours for him to emerge, she became emotional as Joseph finally walked into the courtroom through a side door. His hands were cuffed in front of his wrinkled yellow jail T-shirt and his ear lobes were stretched with white paper plugs over his tattooed neck.

Vanessa Perez stands at the location in East Valinda where her son, Joseph Perez, was beaten by Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputies in July 2020.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

But despite his lawyer’s pleas for the court to allow Joseph to enter a job training program and immediately begin receiving treatment for his mental health problems, Judge James Bianco ordered him to remain behind bars pending a mental health diversion reinstatement hearing.

“Mr. Perez has been given all the chances that I’m inclined to give him,” Bianco said.

Joseph looked back at his mother once before being escorted back out of the courtroom.

While her son remains locked up for now, Vanessa is demanding the unredacted version of the beating report be made public. She wants to understand why his beating didn’t warrant an internal affairs investigation or discipline for the deputies involved.

“We know Joseph wasn’t the first and won’t be the last,” she said. “With Joseph’s story exposed we … will know how they lied, how they covered their asses, from the deputies to the sergeant to the captain.”

May 27 (UPI) — Deputies in central Florida fatally shot a man believed to be on drugs who allegedly charged at them after emerging from a lake where he appeared to have been attacked by an alligator.

The incident happened Monday morning in a gated community in Polk County.

The deceased has been identified as Timothy Schulz, 42. The county sheriff, Grady Judd, told reporters during a press conference that Schulz had a long criminal history related to methamphetamine and was most recently released from prison on May 20.

“He’s dead. Deader than four o’clock,” Judd said.

“I don’t know if this is a suicide by cop or a suicide by being absolutely out of your mind on methamphetamine.”

Two deputies, one a trainee, shot and killed a garden-shears-armed Schulz as he entered their running patrol car and allegedly tried to take either a rifle or shotgun from the vehicle, the sheriff said.

“This is one more example of how violent people are when they use meth and they use drugs,” he said.

Judd said law enforcement was first notified about Schulz by a local racetrack at 5:56 a.m. EDT, reporting there was a “bizarre” man on the premises who was “shaking” and asking to call his son.

About two hours later, a second witness called to report a White man seen swimming in an alligator-infested lake. One witness, Judd said, tried to give Schulz a life preserver, which he rejected.

A witness also reported seeing Schulz treading water in the lake near several alligators, one of which appeared to have bitten him on the arm.

He then emerged from the lake into a gated community, walked between houses and picked up a pair of garden shears. Deputies arrived on the scene as he was throwing a brick at the window of a vehicle.

Judd said the deputies repeatedly backed away from Schulz as they tried to get him to drop the shears. They then twice tased Schulz who attempted to enter the patrol car.

“He was trying to get to our rifle and or shotgun and we shot him. Now, quite frankly, his conduct was outrageous. It was bizarre,” Judd said.

“The fact that he was bitten by an alligator significantly and still continued his rampage is shocking.”

Judd used the press conference to warn others who may consider threatening deputies.

“Let me make this abundantly clear: You’re not going to shoot at our deputies, you’re not going to point guns at our deputies, you are not going to point garden sheers at our deputies, you’re not going to break into the car and try to get their rifles, you’re not going to assault feloniously our deputies — you’re just not going to do that. And if you do, we’re going to shoot you — just enough so you don’t want to do that ever again or can’t do that ever again,” he said.