Lawyer to Seek Contempt Citation Against Carona
A prominent civil rights lawyer said Monday he will ask a federal judge this week to find Orange County Sheriff Mike Carona in contempt of court for failing to prevent mistreatment of inmates in the county’s jail system.
Attorney Richard P. Herman accused sheriff’s deputies of beating jail inmates and of violating a landmark court order that governs how much time inmates must be given to exercise and eat meals.
Herman’s announcement comes just two weeks after the county agreed to pay $650,000 to settle a suit brought by the family of a man who died in custody four years ago. It was the county’s largest settlement for a jail beating case.
Sheriff’s Department spokesman Jon Fleischman said he could not comment on Herman’s allegations without seeing them. But he said Carona has done much to improve jail conditions.
“This sheriff has been very proactive in making sure that we have the best-run jails in America,” Fleischman said.
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