The Region : Ex-CHP Officer Admits Taking Bribes

A former California Highway Patrol officer pleaded guilty to destroying arrest reports of drunk-driving cases in exchange for as much as $2,000 in bribes. Under an agreement with the district attorney’s office, Louis Cordova, who could have faced four years in prison, will be sentenced to no more than two years, and additional counts of bribery and conspiracy to obstruct justice will be dismissed. Cordova’s co-defendant, Gilbert Michael Martinez, a paralegal, pleaded guilty to soliciting bribes, and faces a maximum sentence of 16 months. Cordova, who served five years with the CHP, was responsible for presenting the patrol’s arrest reports to deputy city attorneys at the downtown Los Angeles traffic court building.