The Region - News from Jan. 1, 1985

Former Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Kenneth Lawrence, 27, convicted Dec. 18 of raping a convicted prostitute in the Criminal Courts Building, was sued by the woman for unspecified general and punitive damages. The county and the Sheriff’s Department were also named as defendants in the Los Angeles Superior Court civil assault and battery suit on grounds that officials negligently hired Lawrence knowing that he had a propensity for violence. Lawrence, who was fired last May after he was accused of accosting the woman while moving her from a court holding cell, will be sentenced Jan. 15.