Peace officer for state Senate is fired over drug use

SACRAMENTO -- State Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg said Friday he has fired a Capitol peace officer after learning that tests found cocaine in the officer’s system when he was involved in a fatal shooting in front of his home in 2012.

Gerardo Lopez was a 15-year veteran employee of the sergeant-at-arms office, providing internal security to the Senate.

Steinberg’s office released a statement that said he was briefed by the Senate’s sergeant-at-arms “about the details of an ongoing investigation concerning a law enforcement officer employed in the Senate.”

“During that briefing, the Senate president pro tem was informed for the first time that a toxicology report referenced in court documents showed the presence of illegal substances in the employee’s bloodstream,” the statement said. “The employee, when questioned, confirmed the presence of illegal substances, notwithstanding the disputed circumstances under which they were consumed.”

“While the facts in the case will be determined by the court, the presence of an illegal substance fall well below the standards expected of a law enforcement officer in the Senate,” the statement said.

“At the Senate president pro tem’s direction, the employee’s service in the Senate has been terminated, effective immediately.”

The Sacramento Bee reported that Lopez was involved in a shootout in front of his house that left one man dead and three people injured.

Lopez is a “named victim in the case. He is not facing any charges,” according to Shelly Orio, a spokeswoman for the Sacramento County district attorney’s office. “Our legal and ethical obligations do not allow us to comment further on the facts of the case as it is an ongoing prosecution.”

patrick.mcgreevy@latimes.com