KTLA News: "Undersheriff Sherman Block denies pattern of brutal activity by deputies" (1979)

Under Sheriff Sherman Block appeared before the board of supervisors today. He presented the board with a written reply to citizens complaints about some arrest practices. He said, "We live in a violent times in a violent community." Block told the supervisors, "Homicides have risen from a thousand in 1975 to a projected 1,800 this year." Block was urged to make public disciplinary actions taken against deputies. He also rejected the suggestion that a civilian review board might be the answer. I submit that the sheriff as the only elected law enforcement head in the community uh submits himself every four years to the ultimate review board, the people of this county uh who go in and cast their ballots. >> Morning. >> You Davis, would you give us your your address, please? >> Is it Under Sheriff Sherman Block told the supervisors the department would not tolerate any deputy who showed a pattern of using excessive force or any other illegal means of carrying out his duty. He said the department did have to and it would not tolerate it. Stan Chambers reporting from the Hall of Administration for News at 10. in the four different states. >> We are living in times when the people in the community are unable to get along. Uh the country held in San Diego. It was impossible for him to do so last week and we welcome him today. Good morning. Would you join us please? that and and the sheriff is different than the police chief of the city that he is an elected official. However, I would I would suggest that it might several of the community leaders who had accused the department of using unnecessary force and made the accusations before the board last month also appeared today. on the rise of violence. I think that that was an erroneous response to say because we live in a violent society than officers have to be violent. Officers have more responsibility than the average citizens to this community. They carry guns, they can kill, they have the power to take our lives. We do not have that power legally. >> Uh track for the uh supervisor sheriff story. Block was urged to make public and disciplinary actions taken. Pick up. Several of the community leaders who had accused the department of using unnecessary force and made the accusation before the board last month also appeared today. able to uh contact by regular mail. >> See, one of the problems uh a letter issued to the public which is a reply. public in the on page 13 on this 14page report submitted to you. >> We understand your point and we would advise you that probably it's not within the power of the board of supervisors. >> Yes. >> Shouted profanities at the deputies, tried to incite the crowd which had gathered to watch the events, challenged a deputy to a fight and so forth. >> Mr. Shabbaram, I'm glad that you raised that point. The sheriff's department has said on page 13, as Mr. Vasquez quoted, quote, "We have fully investigated each situation." In other words, the situation that you're referring to, and each allegation in an honest, insightful attempt to find the truth, Mr. Shabbaram, we know the members of the committee and from the crowd and they come before you who have, as Mr. Han pointed out in a in a former meeting with uh with uh uh Johnny Cochran, the board has a supervisory role. >> Are you going to accept that or are you going to carry it a step further? Did you finish? >> Testify and uh if they're on the list, they will be afraid that they will not get their job. And we want an open government and we want you to uh be decided. The sheriff has submitted to the board of supervisors uh a response to the specific allegations. So I am not prepared to deal further with those specifics. Uh I am prepared however to uh discuss uh procedures and some of the uh general factors that I think must be considered if any valid evaluation is to be made of this uh overall uh discussion uh which alleges a a growing conflict uh between uh the community uh and law enforcement. specifically in this case the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. I think it is important uh statistic uh that might appear to be a a large number. 12,000 negative contacts within the community because in the almost 25 years that I have been in a department, I have encountered few people who were pleased about being arrested. Uh, add to the 112,000 arrests the fact that we process through the county jail in excess of 225,000 people a year go through the booking process. On any given day, we have 10,000 people in custody within our county jail system. Add to that the confrontations that occur in responding to uh disputes, family disputes, highly emotional uh conflict situations. Uh I think that you will see that the figure of 269 which uh measures out to perhaps one complaint for about each 450 arrests. uh is not a an indication at any degree uh that the department engages in any pattern of of brutal activity. I think we must also recognize that within the last two years in the area uh policed by the sheriff murder has increased 25%. Uh forcible rape has increased 20%. Armed robbery has gone up 16%. Uh aggravated assault has gone up by approximately 10%. The point being that there is an everinccreasing level of violence in our community and I think it is unrealistic to expect that with the growing violence in the community that there would be any lessening of violent confrontations between the men and women who are working the streets in law enforcement and violence-prone individuals within the community. We are sending these men and women into the community to do a job. Uh they are trained uh they are expected to do the best they can to get along with the people in the community. Unfortunately, for the calendar year 1978, uh there were 269 allegations of use of force, excessive force registered with the department by citizens uh in the community. During that same period of 1978, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department affected more than 112,000 arrests and and I sincerely question uh the scope of this concern. As far as civilian review boards, we talk about a civilian review board uh comprised of representative elements within that they are uh either voting a vote of confidence or no confidence in the total operation of the sheriff's department and the sheriff based upon those experiences that they have hit had those things that they read about in the media those things that are discussed in uh wherever people get together I think it is >> disclosure of the actions now you you say last year let me ask you this there were six 269 complaints against officers right >> 26 >> okay how many of those complaints led to disciplinary action against officers how many how many officers were disciplined either by verbal by suspension by termination, by loss of pay. What what disciplinary action was taken as a result of these 269 complaints? >> And the nature of comp uh discipline uh running the gamut from reprimand to uh discharge uh would be about 10%. >> Okay. Now could is it possible for you to share that the discipline? I I mean I you know just to follow up I you know you have an internal policy >> has put forth very much in the abstract. Let's take a look at these alternatives that the sheriff's report three pages of citizens names who have actually filed complaints against the sheriff's department in the year of 1979 just in the year of 1979. There are other agencies in the city as well as Kappa such as the Greater Watch Justice Center, the Center for Law and Justice over in East LA, the ACLU that have about the same amount of complaints that are filed against the sheriff's department. And I would also like to add that if the board would like for us to bring these victims forth, we have the capabilities of doing that. If this board, the Los Angeles city councilman David Cunningham, one of the cases, >> wait, the big question is, were these complaints investigated? Were they filed? And were they investigated? And were they told the result by the sheriff? >> When they were when the complaints are filed at the Coalition Against Police Abuse, they're also referred to the uh sheriff's department to file a complaint that will have an official significance as well. Uh case in point, one of the one of the cases here that I have before me is uh Elton Satder White who was viciously beating, his whole face rearranged by the sheriff's department. The sheriff's file charges on this young man of assault and battery on the police officer to cover >> not of just the incidents that have taken play on place on the streets, but as uh block officer block said or under sheriff block said is that when these officers are committing certain crimes in the street, they take them off the street. Well, 99% of those officers go into the county jails. So, while the incidents are taken off the street, they're taken into the county jails. And from our witnesses, we have many people who know of atrocities in the county jails themselves who are afraid to say anything about them for fear of repercussion within the department. A violent attitude or disrespectful attitude or an attitude of walking into a jungle with savage beasts is a reflection of the things that we're talking about in the thing of the >> you appear to be reading from demands that deputy sheriff's violence and unlawfulness be curved. Remember you ordered a full investigation. How can a full investigation be made when not one single witness was interviewed? >> And this is >> comment. Yes. >> And according to the rest of report, this is the same Mr. Vasquez who the sheriff's department. Sheriff's Department has not talked to one single solitary civilian witness to that incident, including the four members eyewitnesses who are mentioned in the report themselves. Thomas Laera, Henry Vasquez, Felix Vasquez, Irene Vasquez. Well, the four people that you mentioned are the ones that are those who have alleged these uh >> the the question is is the board going to accept this report as being as stated a fully investigated report when the citizens of this community are telling you the truth and Sheriff Black can come up and contradict us if he knows something that we don't know. The sheriff's department has told you they fully investigated and they've concluded that Mr. Vasquez swore at the officers. They've concluded based on their full investigation in an honest attempt to find the truth that Mr. Vasquez attempted to site a a a riot with the crowd. How many people in that crowd have the sheriff interviewed? The truth is not one. Not one. Not only those four people, but not one person >> in the boardroom that if they're on a list, all of a sudden they'll be yanked off that list. It will bring fear to the community that there's not the possibilities of criticizing and [Music]