Black Judge says Criminal Cops Lacked "courage to do what was right": Six White L.A. Deputies Sentenced to Prison in Conspiracy to Stop Inmate Abuse Probe

From [HERE] and [HERE] A federal judge Tuesday gave six white Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputies an earful in sentencing them to prison for obstructing a federal investigation into misconduct at the Men's Central Jail. All six were convicted of conspiracy and obstructing justice for conspiring to foil a federal probe into deputy violence against inmates in county jails.   

U.S. District Judge Percy Anderson said the deputies lacked "courage to do what was right" and that none of them showed "even the slightest remorse."

A jury on July 1 found the defendants, including two lieutenants, attempted to influence witnesses, threatened an FBI agent with arrest and concealed an FBI informant who should have been turned over to federal authorities. The conspiracy began in 2011 when sheriff's officers learned that a Black inmate was an FBI informant and was cooperating in the federal investigation of corruption and civil rights violations at the jail.  

"Blind obedience to a corrupt culture has serious consequences," Judge Anderson told them as he sentenced them to terms of 21 to 41 months.  

The case stems from July 2010, when the FBI began looking into alleged civil rights abuses committed by members of the sheriff’s department within Los Angeles county jails. As part of the investigation, the FBI interviewed prisoners, including Brown, who had been convicted and was awaiting transfer to state prison to serve a life term.

Prisoners had reported significant levels of civil rights abuses, but federal investigators had no way of verifying the reports because they had no access to either deputies or sheriff’s department documents.

Thirteen other deputies charged in the jailhouse corruption probe in February are awaiting trial.

Lt. Gregory Thompson, 54, (retired) who oversaw the sheriff's Operation Safe Jails Program, was sentenced to 37 months and fined $7,500.    

Lt. Stephen Leavins, 52, of the sheriff's Internal Criminal Investigations Bureau, was sentenced to 41 months.     Deputy Gerard Smith, 42, was sentenced to 21 months.

Deputy Mickey Manzo, 34, got 24 months.     

Sgt. Scott Craig, 50, of the Internal Criminal Investigations Bureau, was sentenced to 33 months.     

Sgt. Maricela Long, 46, also with Internal Criminal Investigations, was sentenced to 24 months.