Local News in Brief : Ex-Captain Pleads Guilty
The former commander of the Lomita sheriff’s station has applied for disability retirement and has been convicted on a misdemeanor charge after his October arrest at a Long Beach adult theater.
Capt. Charles Emerson, 48, pleaded guilty Friday in Long Beach Municipal Court to a reduced charge of disturbing the peace. He was placed on probation for one year and was ordered to pay $380 in fines. The court dropped a lewd conduct charge that was filed after Emerson’s arrest at the Front Door Theater on Atlantic Avenue.
Emerson, who commanded the Lomita station from 1981 to 1984, was placed on paid leave after the incident. That status was discontinued recently when he applied for disability retirement, according to Assistant Sheriff Jerry Harper. Emerson is collecting sick pay that he accumulated during his 26-year career with the Sheriff’s Department, Harper said.
At the time of the incident, Emerson headed the sheriff’s bureau that oversees labor disputes.
A hearing board is expected to rule by March on his retirement application.
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