Public Master LA Sheriff Says He "Won’t Enforce New Mask Mandate" the Way his Cops Brutally Enforced the COVID Curfew on Christopher Bailey, a Black Man/Essential Worker Struck 64X after Traffic Stop

From [HERE] Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva is pushing back against a new requirement to wear masks in indoor public spaces regardless of vaccination status that is set to take effect Saturday night. The country’s most populous county is instituting the new mask mandate amid a surge in cases but Villanueva says the move contradicts guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Forcing the vaccinated and those who already contracted Covid-19 to wear masks indoors is not backed by science,” Villanueva wrote in a statement posted on his department’s website. Although Villanueva recognizes that the county’s Department of Public Health “has authority” to issue the order, “the underfunded/defunded Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department will not expend our limited resources and instead ask for voluntary compliance.”

The mandate comes after weeks of public health officials urging people to wear masks indoors s the highly contagious Delta variant is making COVID-19 cases soar across the state. But it’s unclear whether people will be willing to put on masks again, particularly with Villanueva making it clear there will be little, if any enforcement. The L.A. County Department of Public Health could issue citations to businesses that don’t comply but a spokeswoman said “education and information sharing” would be the main strategy. “Our community will not be able to enforce our way out of this pandemic,” the spokeswoman, Natalie Jimenez, said.

Los Angeles County has been recording an average of more than 1,000 new COVID-19 cases each day over the past week. And on Friday there was another big jump with more than 1,900 new COVID-19 cases. Hospitalizations are also increasing although the vast majority of patients are unvaccinated. With the new mandate, “vaccinated people are being asked to make a sacrifice to help slow coronavirus spread among the unvaccinated,” notes the Los Angeles Times. Around 52 percent of L.A. County residents are fully vaccinated and around 60 percent have gotten at least one shot. L.A. County also isn’t alone in urging people to wear masks indoors.

LAST MONTH A VIDEO SURFACED OF EVENTS THAT TOOK PLACE AFTER AT LEAST 8 LA COUNTY eight deputies brutally beat Christopher Bailey. IT shows Bailey being lifted into an ambulance, with someone heard saying "He doesn't even look human." ACCORDING TO A RECENTLY FILED LAWSUIT COPS PULLED HIM OVER last year during the covid curfew. AS AN ESSENTIAL WORKER he was on his way home from work, a private company that sorts mail for the U.S. Postal Service, COPS CLAIM HE STRADDLED THE LANE ON AN EMPTY ROAD AT 2AM. They say Bailey did everything he was asked to do, but the police report says he resisted arrest. [MORE]

"while LAID defenselessly on the ground He sustained 64 to 86 total body and face hits. He was pummeled in the face approximately 35 to 44 times," THE COMPLAINT STATES: The complaint states:

Shortly after pulling Mr. Bailey over, and without warning, Deputies Walker and Groves proceeded to violently drag Mr. Bailey, who was completely unarmed, out of his vehicle, and, without warning, proceeded to assault and batter Plaintiff by acts which included, but were not limited to, repeatedly and severely punching Plaintiff multiple times in his face, and thereafter employing unreasonable neck restraint procedures against Mr. Bailey, which included, but were not limited to, Deputy Groves' application of a choke hold against Plaintiff while Deputy Walker was in the process of punching him.

While Deputies Walker and Groves were in the process of beating Mr. Bailey they were soon joined by Deputies Luis Cano, Jackson Hill, Joshua Parga, and Matthew Seno, who, alongside Deputies Walker and Groves, proceeded to assault and batter Mr. Bailey continuously and in a protracted fashion over a period of several minutes, by acts which included, but were not limited to, repeatedly and continuously punching Mr. Bailey's face, abdomen, and upper back with closed fists, repeatedly kicking and inflicting knee strikes against Mr. Bailey while he lay defenseless on the ground, and repeatedly tasing Mr. Bailey, and repeatedly employing unreasonable restraint maneuvers against Mr. Bailey. Despite the fact that Mr. Bailey was immediately knocked to the ground, completely unarmed, and not striking, kicking, or assaulting any deputy in any manner, this protracted assault and battery inflicted by the simultaneous efforts of Deputies Kevin Walker, Shawn Groves, Luis Cano, Jackson Hill, Josua Parga, and Matthew Seno against Mr. Bailey lasted for a period of several minutes, during which time Mr. Bailey lay defenseless and on the ground, at times pleading for his life.

Throughout the entire course of the protracted beating described herein, Mr. Bailey remained completely unarmed, with nothing in hands, and nothing in his pockets. At no time during the course of these events did Mr. Bailey strike or attempt to inflict any injury against any deputy with any part of his body, or in any manner whatsoever. Almost immediately after being dragged out of his vehicle, Mr. Bailey lay defenseless on the ground, and remained passive and defenseless during the protracted and continuous beating described herein.

As a result of the severe and sustained beating inflicted by Defendant Deputies Kevin Walker, Shawn Groves, Luis Cano, Jackson Hill, Josua Parga, and Matthew Seno (hereinafter "Defendant Deputies"), Plaintiff Christopher Bailey (hereinafter "Plaintiff') suffered many serious physical injuries, including permanent and irreparable facial and eye injuries, permanent vision loss, and has been forced to undergo multiple facial reconstruction surgeries.[MORE]

Villanueva’s combative statement against the new mandate comes at a time when the sheriff who was elected by winning over liberal, progressive voters has taken a marked turn to the right. The Los Angeles Times detailed this shift in a recent profile:

Villanueva has appeared on Fox News to dismiss the notion of widespread police brutality, and in regular social media broadcasts, he has taken on a Trump-like demeanor, calling his critics trolls and out-of-touch elites. His news conferences have featured conservative politicians and personalities. He’s reveled in publicly rebuking local elected Democrats, including the mayor of Los Angeles, for what he sees as their inept handling of the city’s homelessness crisis, and he eagerly joined the campaign to kick the county’s ultra-progressive district attorney out of office.

And, in a move that is more NRA than ACLU, Villanueva has made it a mission to dramatically increase the number of people in Los Angeles County permitted to carry concealed guns.

It all has left the county’s Democratic Party machine, which helped put Villanueva in office, awash in feelings of betrayal and buyer’s remorse that culminated last month with a demand that the sheriff resign. And, as a reelection bid looms, Villanueva’s jag to the right has people puzzling over whether the maneuvers are part of a deliberate plan to win over a new base of voters or just the undisciplined scattershot of a man without a vision.