Los Angeles, CA – The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors (BOS) voted (4-1), August 2, to finalize the placement of a measure on the November 8, 2022 ballot, which, if approved, would amend the county charter to give the board the power to remove a sheriff for serious violations of the law.

After years of organizing, Black and Chicano groups like BLM-LA and Centro CSO, and civil rights groups like the ACLU, NLG, HERE Local 11, along with Black and Latino families of victims of sheriff's deputy violence successfully pushed the Board of Supervisors to support the amendment, paving the way towards community control of the police.

For decades, the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department has killed, jailed and brutalized Black and Chicano people with impunity. With the formation and organizing of the Check the Sheriff Coalition and support of over 100 community and labor groups the LA County Board of Supervisors finally voted to put it on the ballot.

The history of the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department is marred by violence and corruption that continues to this day. Multiple news reports and studies have confirmed the existence of “deputy gangs'' within the ranks and management of the LASD that promote harassment, killings and brutality within the department, in the jails, and in neighborhoods that deputies patrol, especially in Black and Chicano communities. Despite these reports, current Sheriff Alex Villanueva has refused to meaningfully address deputy violence, going as far as to defy lawful subpoenas issued by county oversight authorities.

In response, Black, Chicano, community, civil rights groups and Black and Latino families impacted by deputy violence formed the Check the Sheriff coalition, which published a list of demands for sheriff accountability, including this charter amendment.

“For over a decade, I’ve been fighting for an ounce of justice for my son who was beaten to death by sheriff’s deputies,” says Helen Jones, mother of John Horton, who was killed by sheriff deputies in the LA jails in 2009. “Family after family, the sheriff’s department has brutally stolen our children’s lives. Enough is enough. We must hold the sheriff accountable once and for all.”

The measure, if passed, would amend the charter to grant the Board of Supervisors the authority to remove the sheriff for cause by a four-fifths vote, after providing the sheriff an opportunity to be heard. The ballot language specifically defines cause to include violations of law related to a sheriff’s duties, flagrant or repeated neglect of duties, misappropriation of funds, willful falsification of documents, or obstructing an investigation.

LA County residents now have the opportunity to vote for some meaningful changes to local laws. It is a major step forward to hold the LA Sheriff accountable

Carlos Montes is a member of Centro CSO.

#LosAngelesCA #PeoplesStruggles #ChicanoLatino #PoliceBrutality #CentroCSO #CheckTheSheriffCTS

Los Angeles, CA – On February 7, families who lost sons to Los Angeles Sheriff's killings spoke out to support the demand to strengthen civilian oversight of the LA Sheriff’s Department (LASD) at a press conference held in front of the Hall of Justice. At the event, the Check the Sheriff (CTS) coalition announced a sign-on letter by over 70 organizations calling on the LA Board of Supervisors (BOS) to move forward with an LA County charter amendment to strengthen the Civilian Oversight Commission and with the power to remove a sitting Sheriff for violation of the law.

The Check the Sheriff Coalition, led by Black Lives Matter, ACLU-SOCAL, National Lawyers Guild and Centro CSO, were able to unite over 70 multi-racial unions, community groups, religious, non-profit and socialist organizations to call on the Board of Supervisors to take action. The CTS is calling on the Board of Supervisors to place a ballot measure in the June 2022 primary elections with a charter amendment to make the Board of Supervisors permanent, strengthen its oversight of the LASD, and have the power to remove a Sheriff.

The CTS and Centro CSO is asking people to call in to the LA County Board of Supervisors and demand action by moving forward with a charter amendment. Call 888-807-2111 or 213-974-1471, or email aaboffice@bos.lacounty.gov

A recent press releases from the CTS stated, “Los Angeles County has reached a crisis point yet again under Sheriff Villanueva. But the Board of Supervisors has yet to implement policies and structures necessary to protect against Villanueva’s repeated violations of the law and complete obstruction of oversight, his misuse of county funds to pursue his personal political agenda, his secret police unit and politically-motivated investigations intended to intimidate and harass oversight officials, the unchecked scourge of deputy gang violence that he has enabled, and the dramatic increase in deputy shootings and record-level deaths in the jails under his watch.”

Speakers at the press conference included UNITE HERE Local 11 organizer Pastor Bridie Roberts, who denounced the LASD in the killing of Andres Guardado; Stepahnie Luna (aunt of Anthony Vargas), Chiguita Twyman (sister of Ryan Twyman), Leah Garcia (mother of Paul Rea), Jamie Kizzee (cousin of Dijon Kizzee) and Emily Ordaz (daughter of David Ordaz Jr.). All the family members were killed by the LASD.

The movement for LASD accountability and community control of police is growing with more families and organizations uniting with the Check the Sheriff coalition. To get involved, contact Centro CSO at 323-943-2030, CentroCSO@gmail or @CentroCSO on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and TikTok.

Carlos Montes is a Centro CSO organizer.

#LosAngelesCA #ChicanoLatino #LosAngles #CheckTheSheriffCTS #AndresGuardado