Deputies’ Use of Force to Be Re-Examined

Sheriff Sherman Block ordered top department officials Wednesday to determine whether deputies are using too much force and whether their violent confrontations with some members of the public are unnecessarily costing the county millions of dollars in legal awards and settlements.

Block’s directive to the Executive Planning Council, which formulates department policy, came in response to a Times story three days ago reporting that excessive-force lawsuits against the department have nearly doubled in recent years.

Block, while not admitting that deputies have used excessive force, said, “The article raised important issues and it would be frivolous to reject it out of hand as baloney.”

The review, which begins today, will include an examination of the 151 excessive-force lawsuits filed against the department last year, and will ask whether “our system is adequate to ensure that we have a true picture of what people are doing,” Block said after a regularly scheduled media briefing.

“It could result in formal policy changes . . . a need for better communications . . . or indicate some training need (for deputies),” Block said. “It is a significant move, but I can’t anticipate what will result from it.”

In launching the review, Block, who faces two challengers in his bid for reelection on Tuesday, stunned sheriff’s deputy advocates, including Richard Shinee, attorney for the Assn. for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs.

“We believe that 99% of the time the deputies operate consistently with the training they are provided and the laws that govern their conduct,” Shinee said. “If the Times article has shaken the department’s faith in their training, that is an issue for them to decide.”

Bob Feliciano, a forensic consultant who evaluates practices and procedures in law enforcement, said he was “astonished” by the directive, which he called a wise move.

“It amazes me that a man with so much power took so long to do what is reasonable,” said Feliciano, a former sheriff’s sergeant who ran against Block in 1982. “Deputies are out there running amok. But the administration of the department is responsible for deputies who, according to Block, are doing a good job.”

Sheriff’s Detective Rolan Biscailuz, who is running against Block this year, praised Block’s decision. “I’m a firm believer that these procedures have to be reviewed,” he said. “That would have been my intention also.”

A study by The Times revealed that over a three-year period ending in September, 1989, excessive-force cases cost the county $8.5 million in major settlements and jury awards, including a $1.75-million settlement last year.

Court records showed that some deputies were named repeatedly in lawsuits. In addition, half the deputies involved in major cases had been sued in the past for alleged brutality. One training officer was sued 10 times in 10 years.

The story brought a mixed reaction from county supervisors.

Supervisor Mike Antonovich defended the department, saying excessive-force cases are “the exception and not the rule.” However, Supervisor Kenneth Hahn, through a spokeswoman, said, “I’m very concerned and am looking into it.”

Block argued that the increasing number of excessive-force lawsuits is not a reliable indicator of problems in the department.

“We discipline a lot of people every year for everything from bad driving habits to excessive use of force,” he said. “I don’t want to give the impression that somehow these incidents are ignored . . . or that we don’t care about them or do anything about them.”

The sheriff noted that in 1989 the department discharged 23 deputies and disciplined as many as 1,000--excluding 26 deputies suspended for allegedly skimming money in drug raids. He said he did not know how many of the firings were for excessive force.

Block also said his 7,000-officer department has established training programs in recent years to improve communication skills of deputies and avoid violent confrontations in the field.

The sheriff said the internal review will determine whether the department needs a comprehensive system that would track excessive-force complaints and lawsuits against deputies and flag those with a pattern of brutality complaints.

Some California law enforcement agencies, including police departments in San Francisco and Oakland, have experimented with computer programs that warn administrators when repeated complaints are filed against an officer. The Miami-Dade Police Department in Florida not only tracks complaints and lawsuits, but also requires officers to file reports when they use even minimal force in making arrests.

In an unrelated development Wednesday, three of the 10 sheriff’s deputies indicted on allegations of skimming money seized in drug arrests were granted Civil Service hearings on their suspensions by the department. The hearings are to be scheduled after the criminal proceedings end.

Lawyers for deputies John C. Dickenson, Terrell H. Amers and Macario M. Duran contended that the suspensions were improper under Civil Service procedures because they were based on a federal indictment rather than a formal departmental misconduct charge.

“It seems to me it violates the presumption of innocence,” said Cecil Marr, Dickenson’s attorney. Suspensions without pay “are really devastating emotionally and financially.”

Six other indicted deputies were given a two-week continuance. Union attorney Shinee said he needed the delay because he had been unable to confer with criminal lawyers for the six deputies. A 10th officer, Sgt. Robert Sobel, has resigned from the department and pleaded guilty to stealing drug money. He is reported to be cooperating with prosecutors.

Times staff writer Scott Harris contributed to this story.