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Malibu surfside news | February 7, 2019 | 9
LA County Sheriff highlights department trends
Department’s
handling of Malibuarea
shootings
briefly addressed
Lauren Coughlin, Editor
Concerns on the lack
of information the Los
Angeles County Sheriff’s
Department provided to
the public regarding the
string of shootings near
Malibu Creek State Park
between 2016-2018 occupied
a mere seconds’
worth of time during an almost
hour-long State of the
Department session led by
newly elected Sheriff Alex
Villanueva on Wednesday,
Jan. 30.
Following a press inquiry
on the matter, Villanueva
acknowledged that
the department is looking
into the department’s handling
of the Malibu-area
incidents.
“We are the subject of
a lawsuit on the matter,
so it’d be inappropriate to
comment, but we are addressing
it, yes,” he said.
The lawsuit Villanueva
referenced was filed on behalf
of Erica Wu, the widow
of Tristan Beaudette,
who was shot and killed
last June while camping at
Malibu Creek State Park.
The $90 million lawsuit
claims that LASD as well
as California State Parks
officials were aware of
shootings and “negligently
failed to care and provide
a safe space for Beaudette
and his children, instead
causing his death,” according
to The Los Angeles
Times.
After the widely publicized
shooting, which occurred
while former Sheriff
Jim McDonnell was in
office, LASD confirmed
on June 29, 2018, that seven
additional shootings occurred
in the area between
November 2016 and June
2018, but said there was no
evidence to suggest a connection
to the Beaudette
murder at that time.
Anthony Rauda, 42,
was arrested by LA County
Sheriff’s Department
officials on Oct. 10, 2018,
near Mulholland Highway
and Las Virgenes Road on
suspicion of committing
eight burglaries between
October 2016 and October
2018. He was not immediately
declared to be
responsible for the murder
of Beaudette, nor the
string of area shootings.
He was in possession of
a rifle when he was arrested,
and officials said
they would conduct testing
on the gun to identify
“There is a need for transparency and
accountability in order to regain the public’s trust
in this organization.”
Alex Villanueva — Los Angeles County Sheriff
any connection to the area
shootings.
On Jan. 7, 2019, Rauda
was charged with one
count of murder, 10 counts
of attempted murder and
five counts of second-degree
burglary.
In other business
Villanueva provided a
snapshot of LASD staffing
levels, budget fluctuations,
violence in county jails
and more.
Of the latter, Villanueva
noted that there was a disparity
between the number
of inmate assaults on staff
and the use of force by
staff, with a 204-percent
increase in inmate assaults
on staff between 2013 and
2018, and a 99-percent
increase in staff’s use of
force in the same time period.
The sheriff said he
believed policy changes
on use of force within the
jail system were partially
to blame.
“Someone thought it
was a good idea to tell the
deputies not to [use force]
... [and we] ended up with
a higher level of force,”
said Villanueva. “ ... This
backfired massively. This
was a social experiment
that people weren’t paying
attention to, and this trend
cannot continue.”
In 2018, 577 assaults on
staff were reported, with
gassings (throwing feces
or some other bodily fluid)
and bodily force being the
most commonly reported
types of assaults.
Deputies, meanwhile,
used force in 349 instances
in 2018, according to the
data Villanueva shared.
These trends also are occurring
in a time in which
LASD has fewer inmates
in custody, but a larger
population identified as
having mental health problems,
Villanueva stated.
Inmate-on-inmate assaults,
too, increased over the past
five years, according to the
data, with 2,763 incidents
in 2013 and 3,632 in 2018.
“We’re in worse shape
now than we were in 2013
and, at a minimum, I want
to get back to where we
were at [in 2013],” Villanueva
said.
Villanueva also reflected
on what he called the
“Trump effect,” noting
that there was a decreased
number of reported rapes
in predominantly Latina
populations of Pico Rivera,
East Los Angeles
and Century between 2017
and 2018, with a 13-percent
overall decrease from
2015 to 2018. Meanwhile,
he said, there was an 8-percent
countywide increase
in the number of reported
rapes from 2015 to 2018.
“People do not report being
victimized for fear that
it’s going to lead to a deportation
— if not of themselves,
of a loved one,” he
said, citing the statistics
as the reason why county
law enforcement needed to
separate itself from federal
immigration matters.
In terms of LASD staffing,
Villanueva showed
data regarding 2018
“staffing shortages,” with
753,756 injured-on-duty
hours and 258,452 relievedof-duty
hours. Those hours,
he noted, accounted for a
combined $17.31 million
in personnel costs in 2018,
with $11.41 million of that
attributed to relieved-ofduty
hours.
Villanueva said he believed
morale had a direct
correlation to workers’
compensation claims.
“When people are happy
and their morale is high
in an organization, they’ll
hop to work on one foot if
they have to,” he said.
Villaneuva also continued
to stand by his rehiring
of Deputy Sheriff Caren
Carl Mandoyan, who was
fired in 2016 following
accusations of domestic
abuse. The decision has
drawn criticism and a formal
reprimanding from the
Los Angeles County Board
of Supervisors.
Looking forward, the
sheriff — who ran on a
platform of “reform, rebuild
and restore” — said
separating fact from fiction
was the first step in righting
the ship.
“There is a need for
transparency and accountability
in order to regain the
public’s trust in this organization,”
Villanueva said.
fema
From Page 7
minded in a Jan. 28 press
release.
While money received
from FEMA for repairs to
a home because of damage
caused by November’s
wildfires is tax free
and the grants do not have
to be repaid, survivors
are reminded to use their
funds wisely and solely
for recovery.
When a grant is awarded,
FEMA sends a letter
listing examples of approved
uses that include
home repair, rental assistance
for a different
place to live temporarily,
repair or replacement of
a fire-damaged essential
vehicle, medical care
for a fire-related injury
or other disaster-related
expenses.
Disaster grants should
not be used for regular living
expenses, such as utility
bills, food, medical or
dental expenses not related
to the wildfires, travel, entertainment,
or any other
discretionary expenses not
disaster-related.
“It’s important that individuals
who suffered
damages spend the money
according to their specific
grant,” said FEMA Federal
Coordinating Officer David
G. Samaniego.
FEMA advises survivors
to read the letter carefully,
as it explains ways
the grant money should
be used. Recipients should
keep receipts from all purchases
to show how funds
were spent.
Survivors with questions
regarding their grant
or application should visit
DisasterAssistance.gov or
call the FEMA Helpline at
(800) 621-3362.
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