Deputy Shootings Climb at Station

Shootings by Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies in the department’s Century Station are increasing dramatically after several years of declines, according to a report released Monday.

Merrick Bobb, an attorney who oversees reforms in the Sheriff’s Department for the Board of Supervisors, said the trend is “a matter of grave concern” in part because most violent crime in the area has not increased. Bobb, who issues semiannual reports on the department, also said in his latest that the shootings and other uses of force pose potentially high liability risks to the county.

Deputies in the Century Station accounted for seven, or 41%, of the 17 shootings in the Sheriff’s Department in the first six months of this year. That number reverses a downward trend for the Century area, Bobb reported. Sheriff’s officials would not say whether any of the shootings or uses of force were fatal.

In 1997 and in 1998, deputies shot 25 people in the area. Since then, however, the numbers have dropped. Last year, deputies from the Century Station shot four suspects. Century deputies patrol a 32-square-mile area that includes Lynwood and surrounding neighborhood. The station is in the department’s Region 2, which includes Lynwood, Carson, Compton, Lennox and Lomita--areas that have some of the highest crime rates in the county. That region is responsible for 70% of all deputy shootings in the first half of 2001.

A deputy can lawfully use deadly force if there is probable cause to believe that the suspect poses a threat of death or serious physical harm to the deputy or others.

Bobb’s report is his second consecutive analysis to raise serious questions about issues in the Sheriff’s Department. A recent look at the death of inmate Kevin Evans challenged the department’s handling of Evans and its investigation of the death. Supervisors were troubled by that report’s conclusions and have pressed Sheriff Lee Baca to respond in writing.

What makes the latest findings about the increase in recent deputy shootings potentially of concern is that they take place against stable crime statistics. Bobb found, for instance, that while homicide rates have increased slightly from the previous two years, both rape and aggravated assaults are declining.

Chief Michael Nagaoka, who oversees Region 2, said there was a rise in gang crime in Lynwood at the beginning of the year, which could have been a factor in the spike in deputy shootings. He also said that most of the shootings occurred when deputies were confronted by suspects with weapons.

As a result, Nagaoka said, none of the shootings have been determined to be excessive or out of department policy, although two are still under review.

When he began to see the increase in shootings by deputies in the first few months of the year, Nagaoka said, he set up a committee to examine each case. Additional training was given to deputies at Century, he said.

Aside from shootings, Century deputies also were found to have substantially increased their use of force this year. In the first six months, deputies reported 28 uses of force, which can range from a firm grip on a suspect to the use of batons.

In the first half of this year, Century deputies were responsible for three uses of force that led to serious injuries--either hospitalization or death. That is more serious injuries in non-shooting cases than in the three previous years combined.

Capt. Eric Smith, who took command of the Century Station in June, said he will consider Bobb’s report as he considers “a course of action” for the station.

“Everything he [Bobb] brought up . . . is something I plan to look at,” Smith said. “No question about it.”

But Smith said he considers the force data to be “historical” information because it occurred before he arrived at the station. Still, he said he will examine it to determine how to proceed.

In an interview, Bobb said he is concerned that “for whatever reason, there seems to be a message at Century that attention is not being paid as carefully to this.”

In his last report to the supervisors on the topic, Bobb was cautious about the uses of force in Century but praised the station--and particularly Smith’s predecessor, Ken Brazile, for declining shooting rates.

Bobb’s report also reiterated his recent criticism over the department’s handling of the Evans case. In that episode, Evans was classified as dangerous and placed in restraints at the county jail. While restrained, he fell unconscious and died. No deputies have been disciplined for Evans’ death.

It is that type of case, along with many others, that could be investigated by the sheriff’s new Office of Independent Review. Bobb said this group of outside lawyers will help ensure that internal investigations are conducted in a fair, thorough and reasonable manner.

The office, headed by former federal prosecutor Mike Gennaco, was created by Baca in an attempt to bolster the credibility of internal investigations by subjecting them to additional review and to review by non-deputies. The office is investigating the Evans case.