"Google LASD Gangs"

#GoogleLASDGangs

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Standing near a memorial for her son, at the site where he was killed in 2019, Leah Rea is still distraught. “She acts like she’s better than us when she drives by.” Leah is telling me about LA County Sheriff’s Deputy Jessica Santos, who was present on the night that Paul Rea was killed here by police. Years after Paul’s death, Leah and her family say that Santos continues to mock the family when she drives by their home. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department patrols more than 42 cities, with stations scattered across them. As Cerise Castle has reported for Knock LA, each station has a legacy of officers haunting their communities to earn badges in the deputy gang ranks. Both of Leah’s two daughters have had direct experiences with sheriff’s deputies since their brother was killed. The oldest, Jaylene Rea, was arrested then later picked up by ACLU attorney Andres Kwon back in 2019, just months after the shooting. Paul’s sister was held overnight without any charges, and without being given a reason for her detainment. She alleges that officers deleted videos and photos she had taken of the deputies on her phone. The Rea family is the only family with a case against the sheriff’s department. They are alleging harassment from the department as retaliation for speaking up about Paul Rea’s murder. The DA at the time has not reached a settlement with the family. The Rea family was one of the consistent punching bags of former sheriff Alex Villanueva, who in his weekly Instagram Live broadcasts routinely used the way the family protested and expressed their rage as a bad example of how to address the issue of police violence.

Last year, journalist Cerise Castle authored an investigation into gangs within the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. She detailed the long history of these gangs and how prevalent they still are in Los Angeles, in an investigative series published by Knock LA.

"There are at least 18 gangs within the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department," according to the investigation, and they are allegedly tied to the deaths of at least 19 people, all of whom were men of color. Castle's reporting includes a database of names of deputies reportedly involved in these gangs. The department did not speak to the journalism outlet for the series.

This week, the civilian oversight board charged with keeping tabs on the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) announced it's launching an investigation into the prevalence of deputy gangs within the department.

The announcement of the committee's investigation comes roughly a year after Knock LA published Castle's investigation.