3 Held in Beating of Deputy at Restaurant

Three men were charged Monday in the severe beating of an off-duty Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy who said he was attacked with fists, a glass and a car at a restaurant in Palmdale until his wife fired a shot in the air with his pistol.

Deputy Richard Leonard, 33, suffered broken ribs, a broken hand and face cuts during the assault early Sunday morning in the Denny’s restaurant at 130 Palmdale Boulevard, according to Sheriff’s Sgt. Ron Shreves.

Leonard was at home recuperating after being treated and released from Antelope Valley Hospital Medical Center, Shreves said.

Leonard’s assailants were identified as Stephen Sutton, 28, and two brothers--Mark Duran, 21 and Andrew Duran, 20--who were described as weighing over 300 pounds each. All three were charged with assault with a deadly weapon and conspiracy, authorities said. Sutton and Mark Duran were also charged with assaulting a peace officer and battery causing serious bodily injury.

The three are being held at the Antelope Valley sheriff’s station pending arraignment.

The incident took place nine hours after the suspects harassed Leonard verbally when he picked up his wife from her job at a nearby bar, authorities said. Sutton reportedly said Leonard had once arrested him, according to authorities.

When Mark Duran and Sutton saw Leonard at a restaurant table later, they hit him in the face with a glass and beat him into unconsciousness, Sheriff’s spokeswoman Linda Mesiah said.

Duran and Sutton assaulted Leonard again in the parking lot, encouraged by Andrew Duran, when the deputy came to and attempted to detain them, Mesiah said.

After Leonard managed to pass his pistol to his wife and she fired a shot into the air, the assailants got into a car and tried to run Leonard over, hitting him with the rear bumper, Mesiah said. They were arrested within an hour by deputies who traced the license plate number to a Palmdale apartment.