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r to Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. George Gascn likely delayed announcing the decision not to file criminal charges in a high-profile excessive force case because of its potential.

impact effect

about the case of then-Sheriff Alex Villanueva

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election bid, according to a lawsuit filed late Friday.

Assistant. Assistant

Chief Deputy Dist. Atty. Amy Pentz alleged in the lawsuit that prosecutors completed

the

The decision not to charge Deputy Doug Johnson, who was caught on video sitting on an inmate’s head in the San Fernando courthouse lockup. August 3, 2022. But prosecutors did not make that decision public until six weeks later.

Pentz said Diana Teran, who oversees the district attorney’s department that handles prosecutions of police officers, “wanted the decline to be postponed until after the election of the sheriffs because Sheriff Villanueva had made public statements about the [Johnson] case,” her lawsuit states. The lawsuit does not explain why Villanueva’s public comments were an issue.

Fearing bad publicity, LASD covered up case of deputy kneeling on inmate’s head

Both Gascn and his chief of staff, Joseph Iniguez, were present at the meeting and approved of their decision, the lawsuit said.

The Johnson case was one in a series of controversies that marked Villanueva’s tenure as sheriff. The department was accused of covering up the March 2021 incident, fearing the video’s release

would have led to bad press because it would cast a ‘negative light’ on it

the department due to agreements with

footage video

of the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer.

The video clearly shows inmate Enzo Escalante hitting Johnson first. But then a fight ensues, which ends with Johnson kneeling on Escalante’s head for several minutes. Villanueva and others declined to file assault charges against Escalante to suppress the incident, according to an internal report and several other sheriff’s department officials.

It was not until October 2021 that the public prosecutor’s office was informed of the case

;,

Villanueva is said to have seen the video almost seven months earlier.

Three top sheriff’s officials sued Villanueva, accusing him of orchestrating a cover-up in the case. Villanueva has denied any wrongdoing and one of those lawsuits has since been dismissed. In the consequences

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Following the allegations, Villanueva announced that a Times reporter was the subject of a criminal investigation into the video’s leak, but quickly withdrew after facing immediate and widespread outrage.

Villanueva previously claimed, without evidence, that Gascn delayed announcements to avoid charging deputies in shootings and excessive force cases to harm the sheriff’s investigation.

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election chances. However, most polls showed Villanueva losing, and he was handily defeated by current Sheriff Robert Luna last November.

Still, the lawsuit raises serious ethical questions. Villanueva and Gascn are political enemies, as the former sheriff vociferously supported both failed efforts to recall the district attorney from office.

An earlier Times investigation also corroborated some of Villanueva’s claims. Documents obtained by The Times show that a prosecutor initially concluded in June 2022 that Johnson had not committed a crime. The same document confirms Pentz’s claim in the lawsuit that Gascn signed the decision not to press charges.

on

Oct. 3. Such decisions are not final without the approval of the public prosecutor.

Has LA County District Attorney George Gascn lived up to his promises on police accountability?

Neither Teran nor the district attorney’s office responded to requests for comment.

Villanueva, who is now challenging Janice Hahn for her seat on the

Los Angeles County

The Supervisory Board reported this in a tweet

on platform X, formerly known as Twitter,

that the ‘false narrative’ against him falls apart. He doesn’t work out.

“Isn’t withholding information from voters to influence the sheriff’s election a crime?” he asked.

In the lawsuit, Pentz says she is a “whistleblower” and claims she has been removed from her position as second in command of the Justice Systems Integrity Division. She said the move was punishment for pushing back on Teran’s decision in the Johnson case and for being tested in a Civil Service Commission hearing that questioned the legality of Gascn’s decision to hire several public defenders to fill crucial positions in to fill the office of the public prosecutor.

Pentz also claimed that her supervisor, Alan Yochelson, was angry about Teran’s decision, according to the lawsuit.

Chief Deputy Alan Yochelson told prosecutors that Diana Teran wanted to “wait” before releasing the [Johnson] Dismissal of the case in an attempt to influence the outcome of the election against Sheriff Alex Villanueva,” the lawsuit states. “Yochelson told the plaintiff, ‘This is total nonsense!’ Yochelson went on to say that he thought the drop should be lifted, but they don’t want to give Villanueva good news so close to the election.

Yochelson declined to comment.

The lawsuit is part of a growing number of retaliation claims filed against Gascn by plaintiffs who say they were demoted or punished for speaking out against decisions he made or policies he implemented. Gascn has denied any wrongdoing, but he lost the only case taken to court so far, costing the province $1.5 million.

Gascn loses retaliation case, grim omen for LA County district attorney

Deputy Dist. Atty. Eric Siddall, the former vice president of the union representing prosecutors and one of nine people who challenged Gascn in the 2024 primaries, confirmed that Pentz had previously filed a complaint with the union about Teran’s alleged behavior. Siddall said he has long been concerned about the allegations.

While he does not believe the Johnson case would have had any “material impact” on Villanueva’s long-term chances for re-election, Siddall described the alleged conduct as “unethical conduct at best, potential violations of the law at worst.”

“The Johnson case in particular was a case that was used to bash Villanueva… if we say nothing criminal is done, then Villanueva is the sole beneficiary of that outcome,” he said.