2 O.C. Deputies Accused of Threat to Hang Prisoner

The Los Angeles County district attorney’s office is investigating allegations that two off-duty Orange County sheriff’s deputies and a Maywood policeman beat up and threatened to hang a Maywood jail inmate who they mistakenly thought had assaulted police.

Lt. David Lara, a supervisor in the district attorney’s special investigations division, said Wednesday that he is looking into the March 23 incident which involved a Huntington Park man in custody for traffic warrants. A decision whether to file criminal charges against the officers will be made soon, he added.

Lara, whose unit investigates complaints involving the conduct of police and government officials, declined to comment on specifics of the alleged attack, except to say it was a “serious” matter.

Under investigation are deputies Ivan Budiselich and John Rice, and former Maywood Officer Michael Elliott, who left the suburban police force in South Los Angeles County during the investigation. Rice and Budiselich have been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the case.

None of them could be reached for comment Wednesday, and Elliott’s attorney, Paul J. Geragos, declined to discuss the allegations.

Rice, Budiselich and Elliott, who reportedly are friends, came under investigation in October, 1988, after they were involved in a brawl at the Whisky a Go Go in Hollywood, a popular rock club on the Sunset Strip. Four club employees were injured in the fight, but none of the officers, who were off-duty, were charged with any offenses. Elliott was an Orange County deputy at the time.

The Los Angeles district attorney’s office now is investigating whether Elliott and the deputies barged into the Maywood City Jail cell of Marino D. Martillo, 30, of Huntington Park about 2 a.m. on March 23 and beat him without justification.

Under state law, peace officers are authorized to use as much force as necessary to control a violent or potentially violent situation. But police can face assault and excessive-force charges for attacking citizens without adequate provocation.

While dressed in civilian clothes, the officers allegedly rousted Martillo and other inmates from their sleep and said that they were members of the district attorney’s office who wanted to question a prisoner wearing a red T-shirt, investigators said.

Martillo, who said he has no prior criminal record, came forward, and the officers told the young man’s cellmate to bury his head under a pillow, according to Martillo’s attorney, Mario F. Vazquez.

In an interview Wednesday, Martillo alleged that he was then choked, kicked and beaten for about five minutes. One officer, he said, pinned him to his bunk and said that if he didn’t stop harassing and complaining about officers, they would “hang me and make it look like a suicide.”

Martillo, the father of three daughters, said the attack continued until a Maywood dispatcher, who doubles as a jailer, entered the cell area and told the officers to get out because she feared that she would get into trouble.

“Why did this happen? It shouldn’t have happened to me. I could have been killed,” Martillo said. “What would they have told my wife? That they made a mistake? This shouldn’t happen to anyone. You are guilty until proven innocent. No one is above the law. I don’t care how long they have been on the force.”

Although it does not excuse their actions, Vazquez said, Elliott and the others reportedly were looking for an inmate in another cell who had resisted arrest and had struck officers during a scuffle at a Maywood mini-market. That prisoner, Vazquez contends, also was wearing a red T-shirt when booked into jail.

Martillo, who says he suffered bruises, blurred vision and hearing loss from the alleged attack, has filed a claim for an unspecified amount in damages against Elliott and the city of Maywood. His lawyer said he is preparing a separate claim against Rice, Budiselich and Orange County.

“Since the beating, I can’t sleep at nights now and every time I see a cop, I get nervous,” Martillo said. “I am still paying for it and my family is still paying for it.”

In addition to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s inquiry, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department is conducting an internal affairs investigation to determine whether Rice and Budiselich should be disciplined.

Lt. Richard J. Olson, a sheriff’s spokesman, said the deputies were placed on administrative leave after the district attorney notified his department about the case.

Maywood Police Chief Ted Heidke said his officers conducted their own investigation after Martillo filed a complaint, but Heidke declined to discuss their conclusions because the district attorney’s inquiry is pending. He said only that Elliott is no longer a Maywood officer.

Elliott joined the Maywood force last year after he was fired from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department over the escape of five prisoners from Orange County Jail on Nov. 20, 1988. He was assigned to supervise a roof exercise area from which the prisoners fled.

In September, 1989, his firing was rescinded and Elliott was allowed to resign voluntarily with $8,000 in back pay to settle an accusation of unfairness during his disciplinary hearings.

Also, the American Civil Liberties Union had named Elliott as a defendant in a now-settled lawsuit alleging the use of excessive force at the jail. ACLU attorneys also have complained about Rice’s conduct. None of the brutality allegations has been sustained, however.

Times staff writer Tina Griego contributed to this story.