1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:03,400 Speaker 1: What's upsite Gang. I know it's Monday and you usually 2 00:00:03,400 --> 00:00:06,240 Speaker 1: expect an episode, but we're actually taking a little bit 3 00:00:06,280 --> 00:00:08,520 Speaker 1: longer of a break just to refresh going into the 4 00:00:08,640 --> 00:00:10,200 Speaker 1: end of the year. But we didn't want to leave 5 00:00:10,240 --> 00:00:14,240 Speaker 1: you hanging. We have uploaded the first episode of Sires 6 00:00:14,320 --> 00:00:19,000 Speaker 1: Castle's fantastic podcast, A Tradition of Violence, which is dealing 7 00:00:19,040 --> 00:00:21,360 Speaker 1: with the issue of deputy gangs in the l A. 8 00:00:21,480 --> 00:00:24,439 Speaker 1: Sheriff's Department. This was brought to national attention and something 9 00:00:24,440 --> 00:00:26,759 Speaker 1: we've talked about on the podcast before and I personally 10 00:00:26,760 --> 00:00:29,600 Speaker 1: believe without the work of Sires and her colleagues, this 11 00:00:29,640 --> 00:00:31,520 Speaker 1: would not have been an issue that would eventually have 12 00:00:31,600 --> 00:00:35,040 Speaker 1: led to the ouster of the l A Sheriff, Alex Villaneueva. 13 00:00:35,280 --> 00:00:39,040 Speaker 1: So this is a fantastic podcast. It's really really important 14 00:00:39,040 --> 00:00:42,320 Speaker 1: information just to understand what's at stake and the idea 15 00:00:42,360 --> 00:00:45,400 Speaker 1: of policing in our modern world. And if you like it, 16 00:00:45,920 --> 00:00:48,960 Speaker 1: we highly encourage you to go and subscribe to the 17 00:00:49,120 --> 00:00:51,360 Speaker 1: entire thing because it's fantastic and you don't want to 18 00:00:51,400 --> 00:00:55,960 Speaker 1: miss it. Enjoying this podcast can sains explicit language and 19 00:00:56,040 --> 00:01:03,320 Speaker 1: details acts of violence. Listener discretion is advised. There is 20 00:01:03,360 --> 00:01:07,760 Speaker 1: a longstanding urban legend in Los Angeles County the Sheriff's 21 00:01:07,800 --> 00:01:11,720 Speaker 1: Department is the biggest gang on the streets. I'm not 22 00:01:11,760 --> 00:01:15,280 Speaker 1: talking about a metaphor for a police violence. I'm talking 23 00:01:15,319 --> 00:01:20,039 Speaker 1: about a real gang. Members have matching tattoos. They get 24 00:01:20,040 --> 00:01:23,200 Speaker 1: together and have meetings about the different crimes that they 25 00:01:23,240 --> 00:01:27,640 Speaker 1: will get up to, stealing from people, brutally beating them, 26 00:01:27,680 --> 00:01:32,560 Speaker 1: and even killing them. But this gang is even worse. 27 00:01:33,240 --> 00:01:37,360 Speaker 1: They've got a badge, unlimited resources paid for by taxpayers, 28 00:01:37,760 --> 00:01:41,440 Speaker 1: and the blessing of the courts and local government. And 29 00:01:41,520 --> 00:01:46,080 Speaker 1: it's all true. My name is Serres Castle, and I'm 30 00:01:46,120 --> 00:01:48,880 Speaker 1: a local l a reporter. I grew up out here 31 00:01:49,280 --> 00:01:51,800 Speaker 1: and I've been curious about Deputy Gang since i was 32 00:01:51,840 --> 00:01:54,919 Speaker 1: a kid. I heard stories about them from my older brother, 33 00:01:55,360 --> 00:01:59,000 Speaker 1: teachers and kids at school. It never made sense to 34 00:01:59,040 --> 00:02:01,920 Speaker 1: me that the people with badges who warned me about 35 00:02:02,040 --> 00:02:06,200 Speaker 1: dangerous neighborhood gangs and went after people I knew for 36 00:02:06,320 --> 00:02:09,839 Speaker 1: just associating with them, we're actually part of their own 37 00:02:09,960 --> 00:02:15,239 Speaker 1: powerful criminal organization. A few journalists before me, like Sabrina 38 00:02:15,320 --> 00:02:20,160 Speaker 1: Steele and Marie O'Connor, Tina dont and my Allow uncovered 39 00:02:20,200 --> 00:02:24,200 Speaker 1: stories confirming that these gangs existed, but they only scratched 40 00:02:24,240 --> 00:02:28,160 Speaker 1: the surface. I thought about deputy gangs for years. I 41 00:02:28,200 --> 00:02:31,040 Speaker 1: wanted to know who they were, what exactly they got 42 00:02:31,120 --> 00:02:34,880 Speaker 1: up to, and that never went away. After George Floyd 43 00:02:34,960 --> 00:02:39,000 Speaker 1: was murdered on May, the world had a lot of 44 00:02:39,120 --> 00:02:42,880 Speaker 1: questions about police. While I was covering a protest in 45 00:02:42,960 --> 00:02:45,960 Speaker 1: response to his death, I was shot by a police 46 00:02:46,000 --> 00:02:49,280 Speaker 1: officer with a rubber bullet. Even though I was wearing 47 00:02:49,320 --> 00:02:52,639 Speaker 1: a press badge, carrying a bunch of equipment and yelling 48 00:02:52,680 --> 00:02:54,760 Speaker 1: out to the officers that I was a member of 49 00:02:54,800 --> 00:02:58,640 Speaker 1: the media. I watched a cop turn, make eye contact 50 00:02:58,680 --> 00:03:02,880 Speaker 1: with me and shoot me. The impact made me fall 51 00:03:02,919 --> 00:03:07,480 Speaker 1: into the street. Yeah, I was hurt pretty badly. I 52 00:03:07,560 --> 00:03:09,639 Speaker 1: was bruised up and my ankle was in a cast 53 00:03:09,680 --> 00:03:12,480 Speaker 1: for the next few months. The doctors told me to 54 00:03:12,520 --> 00:03:15,600 Speaker 1: stay on the couch, but I didn't feel right just 55 00:03:15,639 --> 00:03:18,600 Speaker 1: sitting still, so I decided to use the time to 56 00:03:18,680 --> 00:03:33,079 Speaker 1: finally investigate. And what I found deeply disturbed me. This 57 00:03:33,200 --> 00:03:36,400 Speaker 1: is a traditional violence, a history of deputy gangs in 58 00:03:36,440 --> 00:03:47,480 Speaker 1: the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. It's not hypo elice 59 00:03:47,520 --> 00:03:52,600 Speaker 1: when the gangs look a big block gang. E's not 60 00:03:52,800 --> 00:03:59,280 Speaker 1: say not, hippi Elice, when the gangs look a gang gang. 61 00:04:08,440 --> 00:04:11,720 Speaker 1: The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has at least twenty 62 00:04:11,840 --> 00:04:16,720 Speaker 1: gangs amongst its members. Officials at various government agencies from 63 00:04:16,760 --> 00:04:19,600 Speaker 1: the local level here in l A County all the 64 00:04:19,640 --> 00:04:23,120 Speaker 1: way up to the California state and federal agencies have 65 00:04:23,360 --> 00:04:25,920 Speaker 1: known about the presence of these gangs for at least 66 00:04:26,120 --> 00:04:30,560 Speaker 1: thirty years, and the first ever investigation was opened after 67 00:04:30,640 --> 00:04:34,080 Speaker 1: Knock l A published my fifteen part series laying it 68 00:04:34,160 --> 00:04:39,200 Speaker 1: all out in October. The l A County Sheriff's Department 69 00:04:39,320 --> 00:04:42,360 Speaker 1: is led by Sheriff Alex Vianueva. Here's one of his 70 00:04:42,520 --> 00:04:46,240 Speaker 1: campaign videos. While s Angela is my home and my community, 71 00:04:46,960 --> 00:04:49,480 Speaker 1: as your sheriff, I'll use my experience both with the 72 00:04:49,560 --> 00:04:52,280 Speaker 1: community and with the department to mend the relationships with 73 00:04:52,360 --> 00:04:56,400 Speaker 1: our immigrant communities, Increase resources for training our deputies, make 74 00:04:56,480 --> 00:04:59,200 Speaker 1: the sheriffs depart more effective, and make sure that every 75 00:04:59,279 --> 00:05:03,000 Speaker 1: person will saying just counting their life safely. I'm Alex Vigenueva. 76 00:05:03,080 --> 00:05:05,280 Speaker 1: In an election day, I hope I can count your book. 77 00:05:05,480 --> 00:05:08,719 Speaker 1: The Los Angeles County Share to reform, rebuild, and restore 78 00:05:08,720 --> 00:05:12,920 Speaker 1: our sheriffs. Alex Vienueva is about five ft seven with 79 00:05:13,040 --> 00:05:16,880 Speaker 1: heavily lighted blue eyes and shortly cropped gray hair. He's 80 00:05:16,960 --> 00:05:20,120 Speaker 1: usually wearing a gray suit with an official green Sheriff's 81 00:05:20,160 --> 00:05:22,600 Speaker 1: Department name tag. If there was such a thing as 82 00:05:22,680 --> 00:05:26,280 Speaker 1: a deputy gang, understanding the full knowledge what a gang means, 83 00:05:27,640 --> 00:05:30,920 Speaker 1: we'd fire playing a simple I've yet to find one. 84 00:05:31,440 --> 00:05:33,360 Speaker 1: In fact, if someone can find one, or a gang 85 00:05:33,440 --> 00:05:37,040 Speaker 1: member who wears Tannon Green, please let me know. And 86 00:05:37,279 --> 00:05:42,160 Speaker 1: they just don't exist. Viennueva was elected in after campaigning 87 00:05:42,240 --> 00:05:45,320 Speaker 1: as a progressive Democrat, but as the years have gone on, 88 00:05:45,800 --> 00:05:49,760 Speaker 1: he's overseen the resurrection of band deputy gang logos. He's 89 00:05:49,800 --> 00:05:55,680 Speaker 1: rehired deputies fired for violating department policy, defied subpoenas. This 90 00:05:55,800 --> 00:05:59,719 Speaker 1: stuff didn't start out of nowhere, Alex Viennueva wasn't made 91 00:05:59,760 --> 00:06:03,080 Speaker 1: in a vacuum. All of this is a symptom of 92 00:06:03,160 --> 00:06:05,800 Speaker 1: a larger problem with the culture of the l A. 93 00:06:05,920 --> 00:06:10,120 Speaker 1: Sheriff's Department. So what evidence we have says that they 94 00:06:10,279 --> 00:06:14,200 Speaker 1: founded the l A Sheriff's Department in eighteen fifty that's 95 00:06:14,279 --> 00:06:19,040 Speaker 1: Jessica Piko, a lawyer and writer. She researches sheriff accountability 96 00:06:19,320 --> 00:06:21,960 Speaker 1: and is currently working on a book about sheriff's And 97 00:06:22,040 --> 00:06:24,680 Speaker 1: so I want to caveat all the discussions about history 98 00:06:24,760 --> 00:06:28,480 Speaker 1: with this sort of broad brush, which is that everything 99 00:06:29,160 --> 00:06:34,080 Speaker 1: we have about the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department and most 100 00:06:34,160 --> 00:06:38,560 Speaker 1: other early police departments are written by law enforcement officers. 101 00:06:39,040 --> 00:06:43,040 Speaker 1: So either it's information from media of the time, which 102 00:06:43,560 --> 00:06:45,920 Speaker 1: I think people are now more aware of how law 103 00:06:45,960 --> 00:06:48,760 Speaker 1: enforcement excuse media, but it was the same then. So 104 00:06:48,839 --> 00:06:52,720 Speaker 1: it's either media at the time, it's either law enforcement 105 00:06:53,360 --> 00:06:57,760 Speaker 1: or law enforcement fans who go back and write these histories. 106 00:06:58,200 --> 00:07:01,120 Speaker 1: And then we have some contemporary accounts, but most of 107 00:07:01,160 --> 00:07:05,440 Speaker 1: those contemporary accounts are also written by law enforcement. You know, 108 00:07:05,520 --> 00:07:09,200 Speaker 1: the vast majority of these histories are written by white 109 00:07:09,320 --> 00:07:14,160 Speaker 1: Anglo settlers who moved to California to establish various forms 110 00:07:14,200 --> 00:07:16,760 Speaker 1: of government, and one of those forms of government was 111 00:07:17,160 --> 00:07:20,520 Speaker 1: the sheriff's department. The sheriff's department started out as a 112 00:07:20,600 --> 00:07:24,880 Speaker 1: group of white male landowners. The first l A sheriff's 113 00:07:24,960 --> 00:07:29,000 Speaker 1: department had Jeff Brell and then two deputies, so he 114 00:07:29,080 --> 00:07:32,960 Speaker 1: really didn't have a lot of people working for him. Now. Again, 115 00:07:33,120 --> 00:07:37,640 Speaker 1: as southern California's population began to grow, law enforcement sort 116 00:07:37,680 --> 00:07:40,200 Speaker 1: of grew with it. So the l A p D 117 00:07:40,400 --> 00:07:42,680 Speaker 1: and the l A Sheriff's Department with both grow immensely. 118 00:07:42,920 --> 00:07:45,400 Speaker 1: I think when you think about changes to the l A. 119 00:07:45,520 --> 00:07:50,160 Speaker 1: Sheriff's Department over sort of a long term, the two 120 00:07:50,280 --> 00:07:53,720 Speaker 1: things to think about. One the fact that a lot 121 00:07:53,880 --> 00:07:58,960 Speaker 1: of law enforcement activity was still being done by vigilantes 122 00:07:59,000 --> 00:08:02,680 Speaker 1: and vigilance committee, which in a sense they were like 123 00:08:03,280 --> 00:08:07,160 Speaker 1: parts of the Sheriff's department. Just this expanded posse system 124 00:08:07,200 --> 00:08:10,640 Speaker 1: in which folks volunteered their time, did some of the work, 125 00:08:10,880 --> 00:08:14,200 Speaker 1: and then would go back to whatever their regular job was. 126 00:08:14,680 --> 00:08:18,360 Speaker 1: Those vigilantes would often commit crimes against people of color 127 00:08:18,440 --> 00:08:21,920 Speaker 1: in the area. In October of eighteen seventy one, the 128 00:08:22,080 --> 00:08:25,840 Speaker 1: largest mass lynching in American history was carried out here 129 00:08:25,920 --> 00:08:30,280 Speaker 1: in l A against nineteen Chinese residents. Deputies stepped into 130 00:08:30,320 --> 00:08:34,959 Speaker 1: action after the crime happened. The Sheriff's department itself was 131 00:08:35,080 --> 00:08:39,560 Speaker 1: responsible for carrying out racist practices like renting out indigenous 132 00:08:39,640 --> 00:08:43,840 Speaker 1: people to landowners for labor. Despite all of this, many 133 00:08:43,960 --> 00:08:47,280 Speaker 1: people wanted to be part of the department. So Peter 134 00:08:47,360 --> 00:08:51,440 Speaker 1: Pitches was appointed basically by his predecessor to take over 135 00:08:51,520 --> 00:08:55,400 Speaker 1: the department, and until he became sheriff, the department was 136 00:08:55,480 --> 00:08:59,640 Speaker 1: really still very like quote unquote wild West. The sheriffs 137 00:08:59,679 --> 00:09:02,959 Speaker 1: are very proud of being wild West. Peter Pitches was 138 00:09:03,040 --> 00:09:06,760 Speaker 1: a former FBI agent. He joined the Sheriff's department under 139 00:09:06,840 --> 00:09:11,160 Speaker 1: Sheriff Eugene Biskuylouse and eventually became under sheriff the second 140 00:09:11,320 --> 00:09:14,440 Speaker 1: in command when Peter Pitches took over. This was also 141 00:09:14,480 --> 00:09:17,440 Speaker 1: at the same time as the sort of quote war 142 00:09:17,640 --> 00:09:20,240 Speaker 1: on crime ramped up, right, so we had a whole 143 00:09:21,280 --> 00:09:22,760 Speaker 1: you have to sort of also look at it at 144 00:09:22,800 --> 00:09:26,520 Speaker 1: this whole backdrop of all these things passed by L B. J. 145 00:09:26,800 --> 00:09:30,240 Speaker 1: And Nixon to give money to police departments to buy 146 00:09:30,360 --> 00:09:35,559 Speaker 1: military equipment, to equip people with uniforms and riot gear 147 00:09:36,240 --> 00:09:40,920 Speaker 1: and helicopters and all sorts of goodies that they would use. 148 00:09:41,040 --> 00:09:43,120 Speaker 1: And of course a lot of the impetus for this 149 00:09:43,640 --> 00:09:46,320 Speaker 1: and how it would culminate was because in the nineteen 150 00:09:46,440 --> 00:09:50,000 Speaker 1: sixties there were so many you know, there were lots 151 00:09:50,040 --> 00:09:53,800 Speaker 1: of street actions, so you know, especially in Los Angeles, 152 00:09:53,920 --> 00:09:57,000 Speaker 1: that was a time in which many groups of people 153 00:09:57,440 --> 00:10:02,079 Speaker 1: held various actions, so civil rights actions and gay and 154 00:10:02,160 --> 00:10:06,360 Speaker 1: lesbian actions and Latino actions. So there was this idea 155 00:10:06,559 --> 00:10:08,199 Speaker 1: that the l A Sheriff's part was also going to 156 00:10:08,280 --> 00:10:11,400 Speaker 1: service kind of like riot control. Because this was a 157 00:10:11,440 --> 00:10:15,280 Speaker 1: big problem, the department got bigger, the weapons got more powerful, 158 00:10:15,760 --> 00:10:19,439 Speaker 1: all on the dime of l A County residents. Deputies 159 00:10:19,559 --> 00:10:24,720 Speaker 1: became increasingly physically violent, sometimes ending in death. A local 160 00:10:24,800 --> 00:10:29,120 Speaker 1: journalist started to pay attention Reuben Salazar and it may 161 00:10:29,400 --> 00:10:46,319 Speaker 1: have just gotten him killed. Ruben Salazar was born in 162 00:10:46,440 --> 00:10:51,160 Speaker 1: Sioda Duarez, Mexico, and immigrated to El Paso as an infant. 163 00:10:51,400 --> 00:10:53,959 Speaker 1: I wanted to get a better sense of who Reuben was, 164 00:10:54,520 --> 00:10:56,559 Speaker 1: so I took a trip out to northeast l A 165 00:10:56,840 --> 00:11:00,880 Speaker 1: to meet Philip Rodriguez. Philip makes documentaries and he directed 166 00:11:00,880 --> 00:11:05,240 Speaker 1: a film looking into Ruben's life and his untimely mysterious death. 167 00:11:05,400 --> 00:11:10,280 Speaker 1: According to my sources, Reuben was raised by kind of 168 00:11:10,400 --> 00:11:19,200 Speaker 1: Mexican Northeniel people who ultimately harbored probably white supremacist ideas 169 00:11:19,240 --> 00:11:25,560 Speaker 1: about things and believe that whiteness and affiliation with whiteness 170 00:11:25,679 --> 00:11:30,160 Speaker 1: and imitation of whiteness was was the proper way to 171 00:11:30,200 --> 00:11:33,559 Speaker 1: go about things that would would lend what would make 172 00:11:33,600 --> 00:11:37,839 Speaker 1: your life easier. Certainly, um and um was maybe a 173 00:11:37,920 --> 00:11:43,559 Speaker 1: more respectable way to live and become an American. A 174 00:11:43,679 --> 00:11:47,000 Speaker 1: recent study from the Pure Research Center found that millions 175 00:11:47,040 --> 00:11:51,440 Speaker 1: of people who previously identified themselves as Hispanic change their 176 00:11:51,559 --> 00:11:55,800 Speaker 1: racial identity to white. Some researchers are concerned that some 177 00:11:56,040 --> 00:12:00,199 Speaker 1: people treat whiteness as the ideal and social baseline of 178 00:12:00,240 --> 00:12:06,400 Speaker 1: American life. His mother was strongly discouraged any affiliation of 179 00:12:06,480 --> 00:12:11,040 Speaker 1: Reuben from kind of Ruffians or maybe even dark skinned 180 00:12:11,400 --> 00:12:15,400 Speaker 1: indigenous kind of Mexicans, and suggesting and and and and 181 00:12:15,720 --> 00:12:22,600 Speaker 1: had him aspire to again being an assimilated, mainstream, get 182 00:12:22,640 --> 00:12:26,559 Speaker 1: along American boy. Ruben a medium bill guy with dark hair. 183 00:12:27,080 --> 00:12:30,360 Speaker 1: Once a high school at El Paso High started college 184 00:12:30,440 --> 00:12:33,599 Speaker 1: at the University of Texas at El Paso, which was 185 00:12:33,679 --> 00:12:37,360 Speaker 1: then called Texas Western College. He started writing for his 186 00:12:37,480 --> 00:12:41,680 Speaker 1: campus newspaper, The Prospector, but left school after his sophomore 187 00:12:41,760 --> 00:12:44,839 Speaker 1: year to work with his father. After two years, he 188 00:12:45,000 --> 00:12:47,599 Speaker 1: enlisted in the U. S. Army. He served in the 189 00:12:47,720 --> 00:12:51,559 Speaker 1: Korean War from nineteen fifty to nineteen fifty two, then 190 00:12:51,679 --> 00:12:55,079 Speaker 1: came home to Texas. He returned to school and the 191 00:12:55,200 --> 00:12:58,760 Speaker 1: Prospector as the managing editor, and landed a job at 192 00:12:58,800 --> 00:13:02,760 Speaker 1: the El Paso Herald Post. For one of his first assignments, 193 00:13:03,040 --> 00:13:06,360 Speaker 1: he pretended to be drunk and was arrested and ordered 194 00:13:06,400 --> 00:13:08,839 Speaker 1: a report on jail conditions. Because he's good at his 195 00:13:08,960 --> 00:13:12,559 Speaker 1: job and because he's passionate, he ends up at the 196 00:13:12,559 --> 00:13:14,559 Speaker 1: biggest newspaper on the West Coast at the time, Los 197 00:13:14,600 --> 00:13:18,920 Speaker 1: Angeles Times, and it becomes a reporter, and becomes a columnist, 198 00:13:19,600 --> 00:13:23,360 Speaker 1: and eventually ends up as the news director of the 199 00:13:23,440 --> 00:13:27,600 Speaker 1: fledgling channel thirty four k m e X Spanish language 200 00:13:28,280 --> 00:13:32,640 Speaker 1: flagship for what was to become Univision on TV network 201 00:13:33,040 --> 00:13:34,839 Speaker 1: in Los Angeles. And he was a columnist at the 202 00:13:34,840 --> 00:13:37,679 Speaker 1: Los Angeles Times. That's a great hustle. That's a great 203 00:13:38,120 --> 00:13:44,920 Speaker 1: platform from which to communicate news and uh and ideas too, 204 00:13:45,600 --> 00:13:48,400 Speaker 1: to two pieces of the l a PI that usually 205 00:13:48,480 --> 00:13:51,320 Speaker 1: don't meet up to have every little in comment. Even 206 00:13:51,400 --> 00:13:55,040 Speaker 1: to this day, the Spanish language Latino and the Los 207 00:13:55,080 --> 00:13:58,800 Speaker 1: Angeles Time reading non Latino are living in two different realities. 208 00:13:59,160 --> 00:14:03,439 Speaker 1: At some point amidst this kind of ideological shift that 209 00:14:03,480 --> 00:14:08,680 Speaker 1: occurs in his middle in his mid career, he starts 210 00:14:08,760 --> 00:14:12,520 Speaker 1: to move away from the assimilated idea of himself that 211 00:14:12,720 --> 00:14:17,160 Speaker 1: that that he that he had embraced, and and take 212 00:14:17,240 --> 00:14:21,960 Speaker 1: to the ideas that the young people had been pushing, 213 00:14:22,640 --> 00:14:27,480 Speaker 1: expousing of of of kind of Chicindo nationalism, and in 214 00:14:27,600 --> 00:14:31,480 Speaker 1: doing that becomes kind of intimate and becomes an ultimately 215 00:14:31,520 --> 00:14:37,760 Speaker 1: the chronicler of the Chicano Revolution rebellion that occurs in 216 00:14:37,840 --> 00:14:42,520 Speaker 1: that period. What was I think that the relationship with 217 00:14:42,560 --> 00:14:46,160 Speaker 1: the cops, It was rather fluid one uh. And I 218 00:14:46,240 --> 00:14:49,360 Speaker 1: think as he became more critical, or as he became 219 00:14:49,440 --> 00:14:54,600 Speaker 1: more uh fearless, and as his power grew um, I 220 00:14:54,720 --> 00:15:01,120 Speaker 1: think that he received pushback from law enforcement. Reuben developed 221 00:15:01,680 --> 00:15:05,920 Speaker 1: a wariness at the very least about cops and what 222 00:15:06,240 --> 00:15:11,600 Speaker 1: how cops interpret reality and how they and how complicit 223 00:15:12,080 --> 00:15:16,680 Speaker 1: the press would tend to be with cops. Reuben's friends 224 00:15:16,920 --> 00:15:20,000 Speaker 1: say that attitude made him a target for police violence. 225 00:15:20,520 --> 00:15:23,560 Speaker 1: Here's Philmontez, a friend of Reuben's and a member of 226 00:15:23,600 --> 00:15:26,400 Speaker 1: the U S Commission on Human Rights. Ruben said, I 227 00:15:26,480 --> 00:15:29,720 Speaker 1: have a problem with the l A p D. I said, 228 00:15:29,800 --> 00:15:32,280 Speaker 1: what's the problem? He says, Well, they came to see me, 229 00:15:32,400 --> 00:15:37,520 Speaker 1: and they said that Mexicans aren't ready for my kind 230 00:15:37,600 --> 00:15:41,280 Speaker 1: of reporting, and they want me to stop. Bill Drummond, 231 00:15:41,560 --> 00:15:44,280 Speaker 1: a former Los Angeles Times reporter. He had a right 232 00:15:44,320 --> 00:15:47,600 Speaker 1: to be alarmed, and that's part of the price you pay. 233 00:15:48,400 --> 00:15:51,120 Speaker 1: You know, when you stick your head out of the foxhole, 234 00:15:51,920 --> 00:15:55,800 Speaker 1: there's somebody that's going to take a shot at you verbally, certainly, 235 00:15:56,240 --> 00:15:59,080 Speaker 1: maybe they might even do it for real. Deputies started 236 00:15:59,120 --> 00:16:02,520 Speaker 1: to create their own systems of policing and rewarded other 237 00:16:02,600 --> 00:16:06,840 Speaker 1: deputies who went along with those violent tactics. I'm Roger Clark. 238 00:16:07,240 --> 00:16:09,880 Speaker 1: I'm a retired l A County sheriff. I did twenty 239 00:16:09,920 --> 00:16:12,000 Speaker 1: seven and a half years of service active service on 240 00:16:12,040 --> 00:16:15,920 Speaker 1: the department. I came on during the Peter J. Picchus era. 241 00:16:16,240 --> 00:16:19,080 Speaker 1: I came on after they completed my background December of 242 00:16:19,160 --> 00:16:22,360 Speaker 1: sixty six. Is there a culture of violence inside the 243 00:16:22,440 --> 00:16:25,400 Speaker 1: Sheriff's department? Well, these guys are violent, I mean, no 244 00:16:25,600 --> 00:16:29,160 Speaker 1: kill you. Roger started out in the county jail in 245 00:16:29,280 --> 00:16:33,560 Speaker 1: downtown l A. So my first night I had reported in, 246 00:16:33,840 --> 00:16:36,400 Speaker 1: they gave me my keys and my badge. You know, 247 00:16:36,560 --> 00:16:40,680 Speaker 1: I put on my uniform period a main control. Here's 248 00:16:40,680 --> 00:16:44,720 Speaker 1: your badge, Clark, here's you and I reported to a module. 249 00:16:45,080 --> 00:16:48,440 Speaker 1: Roger was there as relief for the deputies already working 250 00:16:48,560 --> 00:16:50,960 Speaker 1: on that floor. They can't leave and go to chow 251 00:16:51,160 --> 00:16:55,120 Speaker 1: unless they have somebody watching. These guys. They're asleep. We 252 00:16:55,240 --> 00:16:59,680 Speaker 1: did the count and we did uh breakfast that um, 253 00:16:59,760 --> 00:17:02,120 Speaker 1: I'm woke him out for court. The deputy in charge 254 00:17:02,200 --> 00:17:05,640 Speaker 1: of the module or unit told Roger to follow his lead. 255 00:17:05,960 --> 00:17:09,000 Speaker 1: So he says, uh, go in there and go sit 256 00:17:09,080 --> 00:17:12,080 Speaker 1: down and watch us. Watch me. My dad as a 257 00:17:12,119 --> 00:17:14,440 Speaker 1: captain on the department, he just you know, I was 258 00:17:14,600 --> 00:17:17,119 Speaker 1: a little life, you know, a new guy, and they 259 00:17:17,160 --> 00:17:19,760 Speaker 1: treated me a setch. I don't care, you know, as 260 00:17:19,760 --> 00:17:22,840 Speaker 1: happy as a claim. So so this goes on for 261 00:17:22,880 --> 00:17:25,360 Speaker 1: about two days and then uh, and I see these 262 00:17:25,440 --> 00:17:29,760 Speaker 1: guys show up, about four of them, and they and 263 00:17:30,280 --> 00:17:33,960 Speaker 1: Clark watched the module. We'll be back later, and they 264 00:17:34,040 --> 00:17:38,320 Speaker 1: disappeared to come back. This happened again and again. So 265 00:17:38,600 --> 00:17:41,320 Speaker 1: the about third night and they say come with us. 266 00:17:41,840 --> 00:17:45,080 Speaker 1: They get so I go to a day room and 267 00:17:45,160 --> 00:17:48,199 Speaker 1: they've got two guys braced against the wall and they 268 00:17:48,280 --> 00:17:51,360 Speaker 1: just beat the pool out of him, and uh, we're 269 00:17:51,440 --> 00:17:54,840 Speaker 1: walking back. I just stood there. I was stunned, but 270 00:17:54,960 --> 00:17:57,560 Speaker 1: I was convinced of two things. At that point. The 271 00:17:58,040 --> 00:18:01,119 Speaker 1: sergeant and the lieutenant at school knew this was going on, 272 00:18:01,760 --> 00:18:03,280 Speaker 1: and that this is the way they run the jail. 273 00:18:03,400 --> 00:18:05,040 Speaker 1: I mean just assumed it. Of course, this is the 274 00:18:05,080 --> 00:18:08,520 Speaker 1: way they run the jail. Roger was disgusted. So I 275 00:18:08,640 --> 00:18:10,680 Speaker 1: go back and they said, what do you what do 276 00:18:10,720 --> 00:18:12,320 Speaker 1: you think? I said, you know, I guess this is 277 00:18:12,400 --> 00:18:15,280 Speaker 1: my last day here. Why because I can't do this. 278 00:18:16,080 --> 00:18:18,040 Speaker 1: You know, I'm talking from this is the way you 279 00:18:18,080 --> 00:18:19,960 Speaker 1: guys run this place. I can't do it. I won't 280 00:18:20,000 --> 00:18:24,920 Speaker 1: do it. And there's a mumble mumble. Go home, tell 281 00:18:24,960 --> 00:18:26,880 Speaker 1: the wife. They're going to call me in the lieutenant's 282 00:18:26,920 --> 00:18:30,240 Speaker 1: office tomorrow tonight when I report for duty. Tell me 283 00:18:30,359 --> 00:18:32,280 Speaker 1: they can't use me, and thank me very much. And 284 00:18:32,400 --> 00:18:36,440 Speaker 1: I'm going back to the phone company. And you know 285 00:18:36,800 --> 00:18:40,119 Speaker 1: that is that was it. So I show up, they 286 00:18:40,200 --> 00:18:43,000 Speaker 1: give me my badge. No one says a word, not 287 00:18:43,200 --> 00:18:49,320 Speaker 1: a word, but word eventually got out. January, I report 288 00:18:49,400 --> 00:18:52,240 Speaker 1: to the academy. Across the front page of the l 289 00:18:52,320 --> 00:18:56,720 Speaker 1: A Times are all eleven of these guys, the entire shift, 290 00:18:57,320 --> 00:19:04,520 Speaker 1: almost They've all been arrested and fired. For cruelty to inmates. 291 00:19:06,119 --> 00:19:10,280 Speaker 1: So I'm sitting at the academy in my desk thinking, 292 00:19:11,040 --> 00:19:14,199 Speaker 1: waiting for the tap on my shoulder. Obviously they're going 293 00:19:14,280 --> 00:19:16,000 Speaker 1: to come and talk to me because I was on 294 00:19:16,080 --> 00:19:19,840 Speaker 1: the shift. Never said it, never touched me. And the 295 00:19:19,960 --> 00:19:24,080 Speaker 1: only conclusion is when they ask who does this, Clark 296 00:19:24,119 --> 00:19:27,080 Speaker 1: would not do it. And they never came to me 297 00:19:27,320 --> 00:19:32,159 Speaker 1: from then on, regardless of rank, regardless of where I 298 00:19:32,320 --> 00:19:35,240 Speaker 1: was or what I was doing, never allowed it. Never, 299 00:19:35,880 --> 00:19:37,560 Speaker 1: you know, and I should have at that point said 300 00:19:38,000 --> 00:19:40,359 Speaker 1: you're going to do this, I'm here. You've got to 301 00:19:40,400 --> 00:19:41,840 Speaker 1: do it through me, because you're not going to do 302 00:19:41,880 --> 00:19:45,119 Speaker 1: it while here. How did that incident affect you and 303 00:19:45,240 --> 00:19:50,680 Speaker 1: your outlook? Well, it's profound because the fact that they 304 00:19:51,280 --> 00:19:54,320 Speaker 1: did not try to recruit me or pressure me because 305 00:19:54,560 --> 00:19:57,960 Speaker 1: I was pretty blunt. I was twenty five years old, 306 00:19:58,240 --> 00:20:00,720 Speaker 1: you know, I wasn't a even the woods like a 307 00:20:00,760 --> 00:20:03,480 Speaker 1: lot of these guys. So I mean it was clear. 308 00:20:03,720 --> 00:20:06,760 Speaker 1: I mean they I didn't leave any wiggle room there. 309 00:20:06,800 --> 00:20:10,359 Speaker 1: I'm not going to do this. But I always assumed 310 00:20:10,400 --> 00:20:13,800 Speaker 1: it was an anomaly. Were those officers part of a 311 00:20:13,880 --> 00:20:17,720 Speaker 1: deputy gang, they were the beginnings. They didn't tattoo at least, well, 312 00:20:17,760 --> 00:20:20,000 Speaker 1: I don't know if they had a tattoo or not. 313 00:20:20,560 --> 00:20:22,920 Speaker 1: When I went to the academy, I was only aware 314 00:20:22,960 --> 00:20:25,960 Speaker 1: of one type of a problem, and that was in 315 00:20:26,080 --> 00:20:31,560 Speaker 1: East l A, a tattooed group called the Little Red Devils, 316 00:20:31,920 --> 00:20:36,400 Speaker 1: and they made a big deal of it in the academy. 317 00:20:37,240 --> 00:20:41,360 Speaker 1: To tell me and all the everybody else, the academy 318 00:20:41,440 --> 00:20:43,800 Speaker 1: was rigorous in oose days. I mean we started with seventy, 319 00:20:43,880 --> 00:20:46,960 Speaker 1: we ended with twenty. That in East l A there's 320 00:20:47,000 --> 00:20:51,320 Speaker 1: a problem. The sheriff does not sanction, it does not allow, 321 00:20:51,440 --> 00:20:54,960 Speaker 1: it is critical of it. And they are called the 322 00:20:55,000 --> 00:20:57,640 Speaker 1: Red Devils, and if you're smart, you'll not be part 323 00:20:57,680 --> 00:20:59,879 Speaker 1: of it. I mean that was I knew that right 324 00:21:00,000 --> 00:21:02,040 Speaker 1: from the time I was in the academy. The Red 325 00:21:02,119 --> 00:21:05,280 Speaker 1: Devils appeared to be the first ever gang inside the 326 00:21:05,440 --> 00:21:11,240 Speaker 1: l A County Sheriff's Department. On August the Deputy gang 327 00:21:11,320 --> 00:21:14,320 Speaker 1: took their tactics to the streets of East Los Angeles 328 00:21:14,840 --> 00:21:18,200 Speaker 1: in an incident that would change the relationship between l 329 00:21:18,240 --> 00:21:23,119 Speaker 1: A residents and the department forever. The Chicano Moratorium and 330 00:21:23,280 --> 00:21:39,199 Speaker 1: Ruben Salazar was there watching more after the break by 331 00:21:39,240 --> 00:21:42,520 Speaker 1: the mid nineteen seventies. The Vietnam War had been raging 332 00:21:42,640 --> 00:21:46,360 Speaker 1: for several years. Wealthy Americans could afford to not think 333 00:21:46,400 --> 00:21:49,800 Speaker 1: about it, but the draft was responsible for the decimation 334 00:21:50,080 --> 00:21:52,960 Speaker 1: of the population of young men in communities of color. 335 00:21:53,520 --> 00:21:56,800 Speaker 1: A study from cal State l A found that Latinos 336 00:21:56,840 --> 00:22:01,800 Speaker 1: made up twenty of US troops killed in Vietnam. Chicanos 337 00:22:01,840 --> 00:22:05,639 Speaker 1: in Los Angeles were one community seeing an astronomical loss. 338 00:22:06,800 --> 00:22:10,480 Speaker 1: Dr David Sanchez is a civil rights activist and founding 339 00:22:10,560 --> 00:22:15,240 Speaker 1: member of the Brown Berets Approach Chicano political organization. The 340 00:22:15,320 --> 00:22:19,159 Speaker 1: Brown Berets organized around many issues. One issue was the 341 00:22:19,720 --> 00:22:21,480 Speaker 1: war in Vietnam. We wanted to bring an end to 342 00:22:21,520 --> 00:22:23,479 Speaker 1: the war in Vietnam, and we did. We did bring 343 00:22:23,520 --> 00:22:26,280 Speaker 1: an end to the war in Vietnam by these demonstrations, 344 00:22:27,000 --> 00:22:30,600 Speaker 1: but also know it's because of police matality. We were 345 00:22:30,840 --> 00:22:34,520 Speaker 1: organizing demonstrating against the police mar chality in East Los 346 00:22:34,560 --> 00:22:37,720 Speaker 1: Angeles and other places. Doctor Sanchez was one of the 347 00:22:37,920 --> 00:22:42,080 Speaker 1: organizers of the Chicano Moratorium, a march through East l 348 00:22:42,119 --> 00:22:44,719 Speaker 1: A calling for an end to the war. We were 349 00:22:44,760 --> 00:22:49,719 Speaker 1: trying to organize a peaceful, peaceful march, at peaceful rally uh. 350 00:22:50,160 --> 00:22:55,480 Speaker 1: We were trying to organize a peaceful demonstration. About twenty 351 00:22:55,560 --> 00:22:58,560 Speaker 1: two tho people marched through East l A that day. 352 00:22:59,040 --> 00:23:02,600 Speaker 1: About seven some people stayed in Belvedere Park to listen 353 00:23:02,680 --> 00:23:06,800 Speaker 1: to speakers. Some witnesses say around this time, people left 354 00:23:06,840 --> 00:23:09,880 Speaker 1: a liquor store without paying for their stuff. The Sheriff's 355 00:23:09,880 --> 00:23:13,560 Speaker 1: deputies nearby responded and began making their way into the park. 356 00:23:14,119 --> 00:23:18,000 Speaker 1: Then the scene exploded. Most people tried to get away, 357 00:23:18,640 --> 00:23:23,000 Speaker 1: some fought back. Dr Sanchez was nearby watching and then 358 00:23:23,000 --> 00:23:25,560 Speaker 1: all of a sudden, the gangs got into a fight 359 00:23:25,680 --> 00:23:30,159 Speaker 1: with the sheriff. What happened was at the park, UH, 360 00:23:30,400 --> 00:23:36,159 Speaker 1: where we had our rally. It resulted in about uh 361 00:23:36,520 --> 00:23:38,240 Speaker 1: two thousand people going out in the middle of the 362 00:23:38,320 --> 00:23:41,440 Speaker 1: park and fighting with five policemen hand to hand combat, 363 00:23:42,160 --> 00:23:44,760 Speaker 1: fish to fist, and the police were hitting everywhere to 364 00:23:44,800 --> 00:23:47,800 Speaker 1: put times and people were throwing rocks and stones and 365 00:23:48,200 --> 00:23:51,240 Speaker 1: it was just a big, big physical fight. The deputies 366 00:23:51,280 --> 00:23:54,639 Speaker 1: brought in reinforcements from around the county into the East 367 00:23:54,800 --> 00:23:59,720 Speaker 1: l A area. Suddenly the community was under occupation. Deputies 368 00:23:59,800 --> 00:24:04,000 Speaker 1: made their way through the streets beating people. Fires erupted 369 00:24:04,040 --> 00:24:07,920 Speaker 1: from buildings, people were shot down in the street, then 370 00:24:08,000 --> 00:24:09,960 Speaker 1: the fire. After they finally broke up the fight in 371 00:24:10,000 --> 00:24:12,840 Speaker 1: the middle of the park, he went into the streets 372 00:24:12,920 --> 00:24:16,480 Speaker 1: and turned into riots. And there was talking about three 373 00:24:16,560 --> 00:24:20,480 Speaker 1: riots going on at one time, and uh I was 374 00:24:20,560 --> 00:24:22,880 Speaker 1: rooting self as are facing one of the riots. Reuben 375 00:24:23,119 --> 00:24:27,600 Speaker 1: was at the Chicano Moratorium with his km X colleague Guermasta, 376 00:24:28,320 --> 00:24:31,800 Speaker 1: who was getting very dangerous during the last walking down. 377 00:24:34,000 --> 00:24:37,800 Speaker 1: We're starting the left hand side street going down, and 378 00:24:38,000 --> 00:24:40,760 Speaker 1: he's someone that stays let's go back to the other inside. 379 00:24:42,040 --> 00:24:48,600 Speaker 1: He did it twice, he says, more than once. Somebody 380 00:24:48,960 --> 00:24:53,240 Speaker 1: is following us. Reuben and Guerma ducked into a bar 381 00:24:53,440 --> 00:24:56,120 Speaker 1: called the Silver Dollar to try to get away from 382 00:24:56,160 --> 00:24:59,520 Speaker 1: the melee outside. They pulled up some bar stools and 383 00:24:59,680 --> 00:25:03,920 Speaker 1: ordered beer. Outside, witnesses reports seeing a man in a 384 00:25:04,040 --> 00:25:08,240 Speaker 1: red vest talking to sheriff's deputies nearby. The man has 385 00:25:08,359 --> 00:25:12,680 Speaker 1: never been publicly identified. Philip Rodriguez interviewed the man for 386 00:25:12,840 --> 00:25:17,240 Speaker 1: his documentary on Reuben Salazar neighborhood dude. I think he 387 00:25:17,440 --> 00:25:21,840 Speaker 1: was a former cb UM World War Two. He had 388 00:25:21,880 --> 00:25:28,480 Speaker 1: some patriotic notions and the most kind of underdeveloped way 389 00:25:29,240 --> 00:25:33,119 Speaker 1: and um I cop ass kisser. I think he had 390 00:25:33,200 --> 00:25:40,639 Speaker 1: some alcohol issues, um abuse allegations, a bit of a record, 391 00:25:41,880 --> 00:25:46,600 Speaker 1: and he was, you know, like a lot of scoundrels, Uh, 392 00:25:48,400 --> 00:25:51,760 Speaker 1: trying to be helpful too to the guys with the 393 00:25:51,800 --> 00:25:59,920 Speaker 1: guns and misinformed them about suggest that they were three 394 00:26:00,800 --> 00:26:06,959 Speaker 1: men with rifles over their shoulder. Uh kind of marched 395 00:26:07,520 --> 00:26:13,240 Speaker 1: militantly into the Silver Dollar Bar and the cops followed 396 00:26:13,320 --> 00:26:19,280 Speaker 1: up on that allegation and then did what they did. 397 00:26:20,720 --> 00:26:24,280 Speaker 1: Why would you say something? People tell kinds of stories 398 00:26:24,320 --> 00:26:29,120 Speaker 1: to get attention, to feel important, to rectify and wash 399 00:26:29,160 --> 00:26:32,440 Speaker 1: away their own sins, their own personal shame. Why do 400 00:26:32,520 --> 00:26:37,240 Speaker 1: people grandstand? Maybe he was mad, maybe he had drunk 401 00:26:37,320 --> 00:26:42,440 Speaker 1: too much. Maybe I I can't I can't know why 402 00:26:42,520 --> 00:26:45,360 Speaker 1: he made an allegation, but it was completely false. Sergeants 403 00:26:45,440 --> 00:26:48,600 Speaker 1: Tom Wilson was standing nearby the Silver Dollar when a 404 00:26:48,680 --> 00:26:51,680 Speaker 1: deputy ran up to him and said three men had 405 00:26:51,800 --> 00:26:55,640 Speaker 1: just entered the bar with guns. Wilson and a group 406 00:26:55,720 --> 00:26:58,840 Speaker 1: of deputies started to make their way towards it as 407 00:26:58,880 --> 00:27:01,879 Speaker 1: a crowd of protests, ers and journalists gathered to watch. 408 00:27:03,040 --> 00:27:06,560 Speaker 1: Wilson was armed with a projectile gun loaded with a 409 00:27:06,680 --> 00:27:10,680 Speaker 1: Federal Flight Right projectile capable of punching through a wall 410 00:27:11,200 --> 00:27:17,520 Speaker 1: and explicitly labeled not to be used against crowds. Witnesses 411 00:27:17,640 --> 00:27:22,600 Speaker 1: did not hear a warning before Wilson fired. The canister 412 00:27:22,800 --> 00:27:27,600 Speaker 1: rocketed into the bar, spreading smoke everywhere. People poured out 413 00:27:27,640 --> 00:27:31,399 Speaker 1: of the back entrance. Garama made it outside and looked 414 00:27:31,440 --> 00:27:35,160 Speaker 1: around for Reuben. He never came out. He had been 415 00:27:35,240 --> 00:27:38,440 Speaker 1: hit in the head with the canister and was lying 416 00:27:38,600 --> 00:27:44,080 Speaker 1: dead on the bar floor. Ellie's Chicano community was devastated 417 00:27:44,160 --> 00:27:47,200 Speaker 1: by Reuben's death. The line for his wake was so 418 00:27:47,440 --> 00:27:50,119 Speaker 1: long it stretched throughout the streets of East l A. 419 00:27:51,200 --> 00:27:54,760 Speaker 1: People wanted to know why he had been killed. The 420 00:27:54,880 --> 00:27:58,320 Speaker 1: Los Angeles County Warner launched an inquest into the shooting. 421 00:27:59,119 --> 00:28:02,680 Speaker 1: An inquest is a fact finding court procedure that looks 422 00:28:02,720 --> 00:28:05,919 Speaker 1: and sounds a lot like a trial, but the verdict 423 00:28:06,080 --> 00:28:11,160 Speaker 1: is for the manner of death, natural, accidental suicide, or murder. 424 00:28:12,080 --> 00:28:15,800 Speaker 1: There might be a criminal prosecution, but it isn't guaranteed. 425 00:28:16,800 --> 00:28:20,720 Speaker 1: Dozens of people were called to testify, including Tom Wilson, 426 00:28:21,359 --> 00:28:24,439 Speaker 1: the sergeant who killed Reuben. I testified in the morning. 427 00:28:27,600 --> 00:28:32,240 Speaker 1: A man jumped up and started screaming, was a little 428 00:28:32,400 --> 00:28:36,359 Speaker 1: purdy and he had pointed directly at me like that. 429 00:28:37,040 --> 00:28:42,000 Speaker 1: Wilson almost shot another unarmed man with the same projectile 430 00:28:42,080 --> 00:28:46,760 Speaker 1: gun right there at the inquest looked like a forty five. 431 00:28:48,200 --> 00:28:50,880 Speaker 1: I had the tear gas gun and I loaded the 432 00:28:50,920 --> 00:28:53,160 Speaker 1: weapon because I figured if he was gonna shoot me, 433 00:28:53,240 --> 00:28:55,480 Speaker 1: I was gonna get him at least once. You know, 434 00:28:56,560 --> 00:28:58,840 Speaker 1: somebody hit him and turned him sideways, and I could 435 00:28:58,880 --> 00:29:01,160 Speaker 1: tell that he had a magazine rolled up instead of 436 00:29:01,240 --> 00:29:09,400 Speaker 1: a gun. That's how quick I usually react things. Wilson 437 00:29:09,520 --> 00:29:13,120 Speaker 1: testified that he did not know and was not concerned 438 00:29:13,280 --> 00:29:16,040 Speaker 1: about the type of projectile he fired into the bar. 439 00:29:17,400 --> 00:29:21,120 Speaker 1: The jury eventually returned with a split verdict between murder 440 00:29:21,440 --> 00:29:27,320 Speaker 1: and accidental. No charges were ever filed against Wilson. Salazar's 441 00:29:27,360 --> 00:29:31,120 Speaker 1: family eventually settled a legal claim against l A County 442 00:29:31,360 --> 00:29:36,160 Speaker 1: for seven hundred thousand dollars about five point three million 443 00:29:36,240 --> 00:29:41,480 Speaker 1: dollars today, which was paid for by taxpayers. Wilson and 444 00:29:41,560 --> 00:29:45,360 Speaker 1: the Sheriff's department were off the hook. Sheriff Pitches said 445 00:29:45,840 --> 00:29:49,280 Speaker 1: there was absolutely no misconduct on the part of deputies 446 00:29:49,320 --> 00:29:53,760 Speaker 1: involved or the procedures they followed. Deputy is working at 447 00:29:53,760 --> 00:29:56,920 Speaker 1: the East Los Angeles station appeared to take pride in 448 00:29:57,280 --> 00:30:00,800 Speaker 1: terror they inflicted on the community during the chicon A Moratorium. 449 00:30:01,120 --> 00:30:04,760 Speaker 1: They created the so called Fort Apache logo to commemorate 450 00:30:04,880 --> 00:30:07,840 Speaker 1: that day, and you can see it on pins, hats 451 00:30:08,000 --> 00:30:10,560 Speaker 1: and other swag deputies rock in the streets of East 452 00:30:10,720 --> 00:30:13,720 Speaker 1: l A today. The logo is named after a nineteen 453 00:30:13,800 --> 00:30:17,320 Speaker 1: forty eight john Ford Western centered on a remote U. S. 454 00:30:17,400 --> 00:30:22,200 Speaker 1: Cavalry outpost surrounded by enemies whom the white officers regard 455 00:30:22,280 --> 00:30:26,280 Speaker 1: as dangerous savages, and that is said to be the 456 00:30:26,360 --> 00:30:29,520 Speaker 1: attitude harvard by many deputies working at the East Los 457 00:30:29,560 --> 00:30:34,240 Speaker 1: Angeles station. The image shows a nineteen seventies style police 458 00:30:34,440 --> 00:30:38,240 Speaker 1: riot helmet over a boot. It sits inside a circle 459 00:30:38,320 --> 00:30:43,840 Speaker 1: of mottels that say cemprea and los bantolones, which translates 460 00:30:43,920 --> 00:30:47,400 Speaker 1: to always a kick in the ass. The other motto, 461 00:30:47,840 --> 00:30:51,200 Speaker 1: low Profile, is a tongue in cheek reference to shaff 462 00:30:51,240 --> 00:30:55,080 Speaker 1: pitches his instructions to the deputies at the Chicono Moratorium. 463 00:30:55,400 --> 00:30:59,200 Speaker 1: The logo was banned by Sheriff Jim McDonald in because 464 00:30:59,240 --> 00:31:02,120 Speaker 1: he found it to be disrespectful to the East l 465 00:31:02,160 --> 00:31:08,160 Speaker 1: A community. Current Sheriff Alex Bianueva revived the logo shortly 466 00:31:08,240 --> 00:31:13,200 Speaker 1: after he took office in but declined to comment on why. 467 00:31:14,160 --> 00:31:16,880 Speaker 1: At one point he kept a model of the logo 468 00:31:17,080 --> 00:31:21,000 Speaker 1: in his office. He worked at the East Los Angeles 469 00:31:21,080 --> 00:31:24,600 Speaker 1: station earlier in his career and even met his wife there. 470 00:31:26,440 --> 00:31:29,840 Speaker 1: The Little Red Devils and the Fort Apache logo were 471 00:31:29,920 --> 00:31:33,880 Speaker 1: cemented into l A s de Lore. Deputies with tattoos 472 00:31:34,080 --> 00:31:37,880 Speaker 1: were celebrated by the department and went on to choice positions. 473 00:31:38,320 --> 00:31:41,720 Speaker 1: Other stations wanted to form their own gangs too. Here's 474 00:31:41,760 --> 00:31:45,360 Speaker 1: retired Lieutenant Roger Clark. I did not consider that the 475 00:31:45,480 --> 00:31:50,840 Speaker 1: department was under was going through this metamorphosis and that 476 00:31:51,400 --> 00:31:58,600 Speaker 1: was spreading so wildly. But once it took off, um, 477 00:32:00,240 --> 00:32:04,520 Speaker 1: every station you want to do one upsmanship and that's it. 478 00:32:04,680 --> 00:32:07,560 Speaker 1: You know, we're tougher than you guys. You know, let's 479 00:32:07,560 --> 00:32:11,920 Speaker 1: just got awful. Roger Clark was right, and a lot 480 00:32:12,000 --> 00:32:14,600 Speaker 1: of those deputies got away with it. I know a 481 00:32:14,640 --> 00:32:17,040 Speaker 1: lot of cops that have gotten away with out and 482 00:32:17,080 --> 00:32:20,800 Speaker 1: out murder that are in their retirement right now, drawing 483 00:32:20,840 --> 00:32:26,760 Speaker 1: their retirement checks and living in Idaho and Arizona. Left. 484 00:32:27,200 --> 00:32:30,520 Speaker 1: That's David Lynn. He's an intriguing guy with a resume 485 00:32:30,680 --> 00:32:33,960 Speaker 1: out of a superhero movie. He's a former marine tank 486 00:32:34,040 --> 00:32:37,240 Speaker 1: commander who served in the Vietnam War. He worked for 487 00:32:37,320 --> 00:32:41,280 Speaker 1: the United Nations as a homicide investigator looking into death 488 00:32:41,320 --> 00:32:45,640 Speaker 1: squad murders. He went undercover in apartheid South Africa to 489 00:32:45,800 --> 00:32:49,640 Speaker 1: document horrific working and living conditions of black South Africans. 490 00:32:50,200 --> 00:32:53,000 Speaker 1: He was in Iraq during the first US invasion in 491 00:32:53,120 --> 00:32:56,080 Speaker 1: March of two thousand and three. He worked in Unicas 492 00:32:56,160 --> 00:32:59,480 Speaker 1: refugee camps in darfour. I met up with David and 493 00:32:59,560 --> 00:33:03,000 Speaker 1: Baja California, Mexico, where he had been living for the 494 00:33:03,040 --> 00:33:06,360 Speaker 1: past few years. The day before we met was actually 495 00:33:06,480 --> 00:33:09,600 Speaker 1: his last day there. He was moving to Ukraine to 496 00:33:09,720 --> 00:33:13,960 Speaker 1: volunteer with humanitarian efforts against the Russian invasion. He says 497 00:33:14,040 --> 00:33:16,960 Speaker 1: that no matter where he goes, there is brutal state 498 00:33:17,120 --> 00:33:19,760 Speaker 1: violence against citizens. It was all the same thing. Well, 499 00:33:19,840 --> 00:33:24,560 Speaker 1: you go to Iraq or South Africa, I had a 500 00:33:24,640 --> 00:33:27,600 Speaker 1: right here in my hometown in Los Angeles, South Central 501 00:33:27,600 --> 00:33:29,440 Speaker 1: I don't need to travel the world to see this 502 00:33:29,600 --> 00:33:31,600 Speaker 1: kind of stuff and documented it's right here in my 503 00:33:31,720 --> 00:33:38,280 Speaker 1: home state. So I became a private investigator and made 504 00:33:38,320 --> 00:33:43,160 Speaker 1: a career out of documenting police misconduct. Police abuse cases 505 00:33:43,280 --> 00:33:46,479 Speaker 1: and doing criminal defense as well. In the nineteen eighties, 506 00:33:46,760 --> 00:33:49,160 Speaker 1: David was living in l a and working for an 507 00:33:49,280 --> 00:33:53,880 Speaker 1: organization of attorneys called the Police Misconduct Lawyers Preferral Service 508 00:33:54,600 --> 00:33:58,640 Speaker 1: or p m l r S. It's no longer around today, 509 00:33:59,040 --> 00:34:02,320 Speaker 1: but the group was find several big civil rights cases 510 00:34:02,480 --> 00:34:06,479 Speaker 1: in the nineteen eighties and nineties. Carol Watson was one 511 00:34:06,520 --> 00:34:09,640 Speaker 1: of the lawyers there. At the time. P m l 512 00:34:09,760 --> 00:34:12,880 Speaker 1: r S was run by a civil rights attorney named Humanus. 513 00:34:13,760 --> 00:34:20,160 Speaker 1: Humanus was an amazing individual. He basically trained a cadre 514 00:34:20,719 --> 00:34:26,879 Speaker 1: of civil rights lawyers. He took on cases that were 515 00:34:27,280 --> 00:34:31,600 Speaker 1: impossible and just kept at it and at it. He 516 00:34:32,440 --> 00:34:34,800 Speaker 1: or for the a c l U for a while. 517 00:34:36,280 --> 00:34:40,440 Speaker 1: Uh he took a couple of a case to the 518 00:34:40,560 --> 00:34:44,960 Speaker 1: Supreme Court. He has numerous cases that he won an 519 00:34:44,960 --> 00:34:49,800 Speaker 1: appeal that are now still precedent and important cases in 520 00:34:50,080 --> 00:34:53,800 Speaker 1: civil rights litigation. Back in the nineteen eighties, it was 521 00:34:54,000 --> 00:34:57,600 Speaker 1: really hard to find someone to represent police misconduct cases. 522 00:34:58,080 --> 00:35:02,239 Speaker 1: Juries in those days didn't believe that the police did 523 00:35:02,320 --> 00:35:09,560 Speaker 1: anything wrong. The police are the most adept perjurors that exists. 524 00:35:10,560 --> 00:35:13,440 Speaker 1: They come into court and they look like boy scouts 525 00:35:13,520 --> 00:35:15,640 Speaker 1: and they look you right in the eye and lie 526 00:35:15,680 --> 00:35:20,040 Speaker 1: to you. I think there is a huge amount of corruption, 527 00:35:20,840 --> 00:35:26,120 Speaker 1: not in the form of bribe taking, but a culture 528 00:35:26,160 --> 00:35:33,040 Speaker 1: of violence and thuggery. The lack of oversight by the 529 00:35:33,239 --> 00:35:41,400 Speaker 1: sheriff for generations has been drastic to the community. I 530 00:35:41,480 --> 00:35:44,720 Speaker 1: think there is a culture of violence and the gang problem, 531 00:35:45,600 --> 00:35:49,000 Speaker 1: the deputy gang problem is a big part of it. 532 00:35:49,880 --> 00:35:53,000 Speaker 1: After Carol started working with you, p M l r 533 00:35:53,239 --> 00:35:56,320 Speaker 1: S started to grow. More people began to call the 534 00:35:56,440 --> 00:35:59,520 Speaker 1: office looking for help, and more attorneys wanted to lend 535 00:35:59,560 --> 00:36:03,440 Speaker 1: a hand. Carol hired an executive director for the organization, 536 00:36:03,960 --> 00:36:06,080 Speaker 1: David Lynn. When I took the job, it was just 537 00:36:06,440 --> 00:36:10,520 Speaker 1: in a box. There was no staffing. There was just 538 00:36:10,600 --> 00:36:13,480 Speaker 1: a box of files and names of attorneys and that 539 00:36:13,600 --> 00:36:18,200 Speaker 1: was it. I started separating it by department and by 540 00:36:18,400 --> 00:36:22,840 Speaker 1: type of complaint, and to see which departments had the 541 00:36:22,880 --> 00:36:25,799 Speaker 1: biggest problems, and of course the Star's department. Carol got 542 00:36:25,880 --> 00:36:28,880 Speaker 1: a huge tip about the Sheriff's department from the inside. 543 00:36:29,280 --> 00:36:35,600 Speaker 1: There was insider in the county who took Hugh and 544 00:36:35,800 --> 00:36:42,520 Speaker 1: me to lunch and told us that he had information 545 00:36:43,880 --> 00:36:49,080 Speaker 1: about the Vikings and that he had seen their tattoo 546 00:36:49,320 --> 00:36:52,880 Speaker 1: and he told us where it was, and that was 547 00:36:53,000 --> 00:36:56,399 Speaker 1: the first we heard about the Vikings. What's going through 548 00:36:56,440 --> 00:36:59,320 Speaker 1: your hat while you're sitting at this lunch here in 549 00:36:59,400 --> 00:37:04,520 Speaker 1: this pretty shocked I had never heard this before. Shocked 550 00:37:04,560 --> 00:37:10,680 Speaker 1: in one way that they would be as organized as 551 00:37:10,800 --> 00:37:18,680 Speaker 1: affiliating themselves with a gang, but not surprised that the 552 00:37:18,840 --> 00:37:26,200 Speaker 1: person who was the source for our source um was 553 00:37:26,280 --> 00:37:30,760 Speaker 1: a violent person and involved with other violent people. Carol 554 00:37:30,800 --> 00:37:33,440 Speaker 1: didn't know it yet, but she and the team at 555 00:37:33,520 --> 00:37:36,360 Speaker 1: p mL r S were about to begin a year's 556 00:37:36,440 --> 00:37:39,960 Speaker 1: long fight against the gang. At that point, no one 557 00:37:40,120 --> 00:37:43,279 Speaker 1: knew about them except for other people inside of the 558 00:37:43,360 --> 00:37:48,239 Speaker 1: Sheriff's department who were the Vikings. There were primarily let's 559 00:37:48,280 --> 00:37:55,440 Speaker 1: say white. They were a lot of them veterans, a 560 00:37:55,520 --> 00:37:58,600 Speaker 1: lot of them Vietnam veterans, a lot of them Marines, 561 00:38:00,680 --> 00:38:04,600 Speaker 1: a few token minority deputies. So they can't nobody could 562 00:38:04,640 --> 00:38:08,279 Speaker 1: say that there were racist. How does someone become a 563 00:38:08,360 --> 00:38:12,560 Speaker 1: member of the Vikings. It's proved yourself and then you 564 00:38:12,640 --> 00:38:14,920 Speaker 1: gotta kill somebody, and you gotta kill somebody of your 565 00:38:14,920 --> 00:38:19,160 Speaker 1: own race, if human minority, a Viking of color may 566 00:38:19,239 --> 00:38:22,040 Speaker 1: have killed someone to prove themselves worthy of a tattoo. 567 00:38:22,760 --> 00:38:26,520 Speaker 1: In the early morning of March eighth, before sunrise, twenty 568 00:38:26,600 --> 00:38:29,439 Speaker 1: one year old Hung Pyo Lee was driving his white 569 00:38:29,520 --> 00:38:33,040 Speaker 1: Audie through the Compton area. Hung Pio was about to 570 00:38:33,160 --> 00:38:36,600 Speaker 1: start auto mechanic classes and an l A Area trade school, 571 00:38:37,040 --> 00:38:39,600 Speaker 1: and was balancing that with the fifty to sixty hour 572 00:38:39,680 --> 00:38:43,000 Speaker 1: work week at his parents liquor store in Anaheim. Some 573 00:38:43,320 --> 00:38:45,799 Speaker 1: l A Sheriff's deputies claimed that they saw Hung Pyo 574 00:38:45,960 --> 00:38:48,960 Speaker 1: run a stop sign as he drove. They got behind 575 00:38:49,120 --> 00:38:52,520 Speaker 1: him and started to pursue his car. Hung Pio stayed 576 00:38:52,560 --> 00:38:55,600 Speaker 1: on surface streets and never got above forty five miles 577 00:38:55,680 --> 00:39:03,319 Speaker 1: per hour. Yeah, it was a slow pursuit. Um, they said. 578 00:39:03,400 --> 00:39:06,600 Speaker 1: He like, I can't remember California stopped or something, you know, 579 00:39:06,760 --> 00:39:10,279 Speaker 1: didn't come to He says, something petting and he didn't 580 00:39:10,320 --> 00:39:13,880 Speaker 1: pull over because, um, he had a hash pipe in 581 00:39:13,920 --> 00:39:15,719 Speaker 1: the car. So he's scared to death, so he just 582 00:39:15,840 --> 00:39:18,879 Speaker 1: kept driving. Didn't know what to do. Two officers from 583 00:39:18,920 --> 00:39:22,200 Speaker 1: the Long Beach Police Department joined in the pursuit. Hung 584 00:39:22,320 --> 00:39:24,360 Speaker 1: Peyo came to a stop in a rail yard in 585 00:39:24,440 --> 00:39:27,960 Speaker 1: Long Beach and he wound up in a dead end 586 00:39:28,080 --> 00:39:31,160 Speaker 1: industrial area, turned in and it was another dead end. 587 00:39:31,200 --> 00:39:38,000 Speaker 1: He was trapped, so uh four deputy cars and the 588 00:39:38,120 --> 00:39:42,440 Speaker 1: Long Beach PD car and they all lined up like 589 00:39:42,560 --> 00:39:51,160 Speaker 1: a firing squad and tour Vikings Deputies Robert Peppini, Daniel McLeod, 590 00:39:51,560 --> 00:39:55,880 Speaker 1: Brian Lee, and Sergeant Paul Tanaka, who would eventually become 591 00:39:56,040 --> 00:40:00,160 Speaker 1: number two in the department, stopped their patrol vehicles out 592 00:40:00,239 --> 00:40:04,719 Speaker 1: fifteen ft behind Hong Pyo's car. Chapman claims to have 593 00:40:04,840 --> 00:40:09,000 Speaker 1: approached and ordered him to surrender. Ben out of nowhere, 594 00:40:09,719 --> 00:40:13,919 Speaker 1: all the deputies opened fire. Hong Pyo was hitting nine 595 00:40:14,160 --> 00:40:18,040 Speaker 1: times in the back only shot once, which means he 596 00:40:18,160 --> 00:40:20,279 Speaker 1: knew what was wrong, but he wanted to be part 597 00:40:20,320 --> 00:40:22,800 Speaker 1: of it, so he shot once. But they claimed that 598 00:40:23,840 --> 00:40:26,640 Speaker 1: he was backing up into them, so they opened up 599 00:40:26,680 --> 00:40:30,000 Speaker 1: on him to protect themselves. But we proved where his 600 00:40:30,120 --> 00:40:34,000 Speaker 1: car wound up. It wound up forward. It wasn't backing up. 601 00:40:34,080 --> 00:40:38,799 Speaker 1: He was calling forward and nine to the back. Yeah. 602 00:40:39,040 --> 00:40:42,600 Speaker 1: When we saw that, it's just as a Long Beach 603 00:40:43,400 --> 00:40:47,240 Speaker 1: training officer, who wouldn't it and said to his partner 604 00:40:47,320 --> 00:40:52,360 Speaker 1: and his trainee, we just wished us a execution, and 605 00:40:53,480 --> 00:40:56,000 Speaker 1: that's what it was. So we sued him like we 606 00:40:56,080 --> 00:40:59,480 Speaker 1: always do, and they settled like they always knew. Settlements 607 00:40:59,600 --> 00:41:02,960 Speaker 1: are proved by the Los Angeles Board of Supervisors and 608 00:41:03,160 --> 00:41:06,920 Speaker 1: historically come out of the county's general fund. And Tanaka 609 00:41:07,160 --> 00:41:10,480 Speaker 1: got promoted by the sheriffs department always does. It's just 610 00:41:10,600 --> 00:41:13,279 Speaker 1: business as usual. And his kid, who was guilty of 611 00:41:13,360 --> 00:41:17,560 Speaker 1: having a Hashike penness car paid the ultimate press for advance. 612 00:41:17,680 --> 00:41:20,759 Speaker 1: The Vikings two Vikings and then Tanaka became one, so 613 00:41:21,120 --> 00:41:25,120 Speaker 1: technically three Vikings involved. After Hong Kyo's death, the l 614 00:41:25,160 --> 00:41:29,320 Speaker 1: A County District Attorney Ira Rehiner decided the deputies acted 615 00:41:29,400 --> 00:41:32,960 Speaker 1: in self defense. Two years later, in April of nineteen, 616 00:41:33,840 --> 00:41:37,520 Speaker 1: Lee's family accepted a nine hundred and ninety nine thousand, 617 00:41:37,840 --> 00:41:41,839 Speaker 1: nine hundred and ninety nine dollars settlement that didn't come 618 00:41:41,920 --> 00:41:44,920 Speaker 1: from the Sheriff's department, though that was paid for by 619 00:41:45,120 --> 00:41:49,759 Speaker 1: l A County taxpayers. Lee's father, Sunk Lee, set at 620 00:41:49,800 --> 00:41:53,319 Speaker 1: a press conference, I hope now my son's name has 621 00:41:53,360 --> 00:41:56,440 Speaker 1: been cleared. Now it's time to take care of the 622 00:41:56,520 --> 00:42:15,239 Speaker 1: rest of the family. More. After the break, white supremacist 623 00:42:15,320 --> 00:42:18,279 Speaker 1: displays were becoming more frequent inside of the l A 624 00:42:18,360 --> 00:42:22,680 Speaker 1: County Sheriff's department, several operated inside of the jails in 625 00:42:24,040 --> 00:42:27,319 Speaker 1: a criminal defense attorney and member of the p MLRS 626 00:42:27,400 --> 00:42:30,040 Speaker 1: decided to take them on with the help of David 627 00:42:30,120 --> 00:42:35,319 Speaker 1: Lynn George Denny God bless him incredible, incredible human being 628 00:42:35,440 --> 00:42:39,279 Speaker 1: and lawyer. Former You never know when you met him 629 00:42:39,280 --> 00:42:41,000 Speaker 1: and lord her name, but yeah, he was one of 630 00:42:41,080 --> 00:42:44,000 Speaker 1: those guys. But so he knew all the ins and 631 00:42:44,040 --> 00:42:46,759 Speaker 1: how he knew how everything works, and he was good by. 632 00:42:48,080 --> 00:42:51,560 Speaker 1: George had uncovered deputies burning crosses in the style of 633 00:42:51,600 --> 00:42:56,680 Speaker 1: the Ku Klux Klan inside of the Downtown Men's Central Jail. Later, 634 00:42:57,200 --> 00:42:59,600 Speaker 1: he was contacted by the family of a young man 635 00:43:00,000 --> 00:43:02,960 Speaker 1: who had been horribly beaten by deputies gang banging for 636 00:43:03,040 --> 00:43:08,839 Speaker 1: the Wayside Whitey's Gang. On December two, one year old 637 00:43:08,880 --> 00:43:12,520 Speaker 1: Clyde L. Crawford was incarcerated at the Wayside Honor Rancho 638 00:43:13,320 --> 00:43:16,960 Speaker 1: or the Pitch's Detention Center as it's known today. He 639 00:43:17,080 --> 00:43:20,719 Speaker 1: had a pretty idyllic childhood. His parents were preachers who 640 00:43:20,840 --> 00:43:23,719 Speaker 1: raised him and his siblings in West Covina, a fast 641 00:43:23,760 --> 00:43:27,040 Speaker 1: growing suburb in the nineteen seventies. When he was a kid, 642 00:43:27,360 --> 00:43:30,200 Speaker 1: he wanted to be a police officer. He took criminal 643 00:43:30,320 --> 00:43:33,800 Speaker 1: justice classes in college, even though his uncle, who was 644 00:43:33,880 --> 00:43:36,359 Speaker 1: a policeman, told him that it was not a good 645 00:43:36,440 --> 00:43:40,040 Speaker 1: working environment for black men. After he was pulled over 646 00:43:40,160 --> 00:43:43,200 Speaker 1: by a cop as a teenager, his relationship with the 647 00:43:43,239 --> 00:43:47,000 Speaker 1: police shifted and started off thirty years worth of negative 648 00:43:47,040 --> 00:43:51,160 Speaker 1: interactions with the police. This incident at the Honor Ranch, though, 649 00:43:51,480 --> 00:43:55,480 Speaker 1: would change his life forever. I spoke to Clyde l 650 00:43:55,560 --> 00:43:58,359 Speaker 1: about the incident a few months ago in a local park. 651 00:43:58,680 --> 00:44:00,880 Speaker 1: They put me on a place back then. It was 652 00:44:00,960 --> 00:44:05,360 Speaker 1: called the Honor Ranch, and you can there was a 653 00:44:05,440 --> 00:44:11,239 Speaker 1: place where lord custody immates would be. He got into 654 00:44:11,280 --> 00:44:14,440 Speaker 1: an argument with another inmate who was white. The man 655 00:44:14,600 --> 00:44:18,160 Speaker 1: didn't pay Clyde for some cigarettes he sold him. Then 656 00:44:18,400 --> 00:44:22,480 Speaker 1: a fight started. So he stands up and swings and 657 00:44:22,560 --> 00:44:24,520 Speaker 1: I got the better of my head. Him flies and 658 00:44:24,960 --> 00:44:29,560 Speaker 1: he felled. When he fell, he was shaking and he's 659 00:44:29,640 --> 00:44:32,799 Speaker 1: bouncing around, and I'll run over to him. I didn't 660 00:44:32,840 --> 00:44:35,200 Speaker 1: mean to hurt the guy, that man, but so I'm 661 00:44:35,239 --> 00:44:38,840 Speaker 1: trying to get him stable, you know. And when that happened, 662 00:44:39,320 --> 00:44:43,440 Speaker 1: the officer passed by, and the officer seeing everyone around him, 663 00:44:44,400 --> 00:44:46,600 Speaker 1: and he looked, and he looked, and he hits the button. 664 00:44:46,719 --> 00:44:49,880 Speaker 1: He says, everyone on your box, on your box. So 665 00:44:50,400 --> 00:44:52,840 Speaker 1: they finally the guy comes to and will sitting in 666 00:44:52,920 --> 00:44:56,319 Speaker 1: our bombs waiting and so now they're investigating. They bring 667 00:44:56,400 --> 00:44:59,120 Speaker 1: about four officers and they're all walking around talking to 668 00:44:59,239 --> 00:45:01,600 Speaker 1: him and we on. So when I came up to 669 00:45:01,719 --> 00:45:05,000 Speaker 1: my box, they I said, yeah, you stand up, put 670 00:45:05,000 --> 00:45:08,320 Speaker 1: them behind your back. So someone had told him it 671 00:45:08,480 --> 00:45:11,520 Speaker 1: was me, right, so I thought, oh my goodness. So 672 00:45:11,680 --> 00:45:13,920 Speaker 1: I put my hands behind my back and hand Customer 673 00:45:14,640 --> 00:45:18,719 Speaker 1: Clyde was escorted by an officer, not unusual in County jail, 674 00:45:19,200 --> 00:45:22,080 Speaker 1: but something was off. He tells me to walk to 675 00:45:22,200 --> 00:45:26,520 Speaker 1: the back door, and uh, I monked to the back door, 676 00:45:26,880 --> 00:45:30,440 Speaker 1: and I thought maybe I was going that's the wrong 677 00:45:30,520 --> 00:45:32,719 Speaker 1: way to walk. First of all, I never did you know. 678 00:45:32,840 --> 00:45:35,520 Speaker 1: I'm nervous about that one from the very beginning, because 679 00:45:36,080 --> 00:45:40,520 Speaker 1: step the way to wherever you're going. Uh see the sergeant, 680 00:45:41,080 --> 00:45:43,120 Speaker 1: the whole wherever you're going, it's out the front door, 681 00:45:43,600 --> 00:45:47,799 Speaker 1: the back doors. You know, there's no where nowhere, really 682 00:45:47,840 --> 00:45:51,400 Speaker 1: no way to get to the places. They still happened 683 00:45:51,480 --> 00:45:53,879 Speaker 1: taking me so kind of like pushes me against the wall, 684 00:45:54,040 --> 00:45:57,320 Speaker 1: and I remember he pushes me in my head heads 685 00:45:57,960 --> 00:46:00,800 Speaker 1: and he says, I'm gonna teach about beating up in 686 00:46:00,840 --> 00:46:05,160 Speaker 1: white guys. Then he was brutally beaten. Remember he takes 687 00:46:05,239 --> 00:46:08,920 Speaker 1: me he hits my face against the window. Man. Then 688 00:46:09,160 --> 00:46:12,000 Speaker 1: I'm like, oh man, when the world's going on? And 689 00:46:12,080 --> 00:46:15,200 Speaker 1: he takes the handcuffs, and I remember he took the 690 00:46:15,280 --> 00:46:17,480 Speaker 1: handcuff and he grabbed my arm and he pushed it 691 00:46:17,560 --> 00:46:20,880 Speaker 1: up the highest he can push it, and and I'm like, 692 00:46:20,960 --> 00:46:22,840 Speaker 1: what are you doing? What are you doing? Now? I 693 00:46:22,920 --> 00:46:26,520 Speaker 1: remember two more officers calm and they run about of 694 00:46:26,560 --> 00:46:31,880 Speaker 1: the corner and they have white officers and they they 695 00:46:32,160 --> 00:46:35,520 Speaker 1: don't say nothing. They just come pulled their flashlights out. 696 00:46:36,000 --> 00:46:39,760 Speaker 1: And one hit me in the shoulder first, I remember, 697 00:46:39,960 --> 00:46:42,000 Speaker 1: and the other one hit me in the back of 698 00:46:42,080 --> 00:46:45,000 Speaker 1: the leg. And I knew I was going down because 699 00:46:45,040 --> 00:46:46,640 Speaker 1: the other one swinging at me and then he hit me. 700 00:46:46,800 --> 00:46:50,800 Speaker 1: I'll got the ball. And while while I'm like on 701 00:46:50,880 --> 00:46:55,279 Speaker 1: the ground, I see a couple more running around the corners. Yeah. 702 00:46:56,239 --> 00:46:59,120 Speaker 1: They they they had their minds made up. They had 703 00:46:59,200 --> 00:47:04,640 Speaker 1: no idea, uh where happened. They didn't here. And I 704 00:47:04,800 --> 00:47:09,480 Speaker 1: remember hearing wayside white these and I didn't understand, what's that? Man? 705 00:47:09,600 --> 00:47:14,319 Speaker 1: At that time, and he understand who he he must 706 00:47:14,400 --> 00:47:16,800 Speaker 1: not know about the wayside why these it was a 707 00:47:16,840 --> 00:47:20,520 Speaker 1: little things they were saying. And they said it more 708 00:47:20,600 --> 00:47:24,200 Speaker 1: than a dozen times. And I was like, there was 709 00:47:24,239 --> 00:47:26,920 Speaker 1: a black guy standing there, and there was probably three 710 00:47:27,000 --> 00:47:30,640 Speaker 1: more came so thinks the total I think eight and 711 00:47:30,800 --> 00:47:33,000 Speaker 1: the black guys. But the black guy he didn't jump in. 712 00:47:33,040 --> 00:47:35,640 Speaker 1: There was another white guy. He didn't do nothing. And 713 00:47:36,200 --> 00:47:37,919 Speaker 1: they were just standing there. I looked at the black 714 00:47:37,960 --> 00:47:41,080 Speaker 1: guy and asking the help, you know, black officer, and 715 00:47:41,160 --> 00:47:44,520 Speaker 1: he shook his head and you know done like shugged 716 00:47:44,560 --> 00:47:48,880 Speaker 1: this old shoulders and and they just took me. And 717 00:47:49,239 --> 00:47:53,120 Speaker 1: if you said why King video, I think it was 718 00:47:53,200 --> 00:47:57,080 Speaker 1: way worse. I mean, I've never seen um guys can't 719 00:47:57,120 --> 00:48:01,399 Speaker 1: say they wrote my jaw, uh engine, my braves really 720 00:48:01,480 --> 00:48:04,160 Speaker 1: messed up all the cards in my face. The officers 721 00:48:04,280 --> 00:48:07,960 Speaker 1: continued to humiliate and punish Clyde. And I'm yelling and 722 00:48:08,040 --> 00:48:10,800 Speaker 1: screaming on my life and I can see in bays 723 00:48:10,840 --> 00:48:13,799 Speaker 1: out the wind in the windows, and some of those 724 00:48:13,880 --> 00:48:17,120 Speaker 1: n bays were yelling, uh, they don't go, but they 725 00:48:17,160 --> 00:48:21,320 Speaker 1: couldn't do too my stock and they're yelling trying to 726 00:48:21,360 --> 00:48:23,600 Speaker 1: get you know, trying to help the best way they can. 727 00:48:23,719 --> 00:48:29,040 Speaker 1: They couldn't do much. So I remember feeling my legs snap. 728 00:48:29,400 --> 00:48:33,040 Speaker 1: I'm really breathing bad. But they tell me they stand up. 729 00:48:33,120 --> 00:48:35,320 Speaker 1: I still have the handcuffs on, and he told me 730 00:48:35,400 --> 00:48:38,239 Speaker 1: to hop up this hill. So I stood up. When 731 00:48:38,239 --> 00:48:41,839 Speaker 1: I felt. Man, I'm like, something's wrong. Should you better 732 00:48:41,920 --> 00:48:44,120 Speaker 1: get up? I'm like, my legs broke. He said, I 733 00:48:44,160 --> 00:48:48,640 Speaker 1: don't care. So I'm like hunt and he hits me again. 734 00:48:49,120 --> 00:48:51,360 Speaker 1: So I'm hopping up the hill on one leg and 735 00:48:51,680 --> 00:48:55,800 Speaker 1: I can't make it. I think maybe chin hops and 736 00:48:55,880 --> 00:48:58,560 Speaker 1: I'm like, I can't do it and I fall. You know, 737 00:48:58,680 --> 00:49:01,960 Speaker 1: I'm inside, you know, I'm telling them I can't do this. Man. 738 00:49:02,600 --> 00:49:05,319 Speaker 1: I thought they're going to kill him now. I thought 739 00:49:05,360 --> 00:49:09,200 Speaker 1: that was my last game. Once inside a treatment area, 740 00:49:09,560 --> 00:49:12,560 Speaker 1: the officers left Clyde laying in a gurney underneath the 741 00:49:12,640 --> 00:49:15,759 Speaker 1: row of pay phones. He took a chance, reached up 742 00:49:15,880 --> 00:49:19,080 Speaker 1: and called his parents. He told them where he was, 743 00:49:19,680 --> 00:49:23,400 Speaker 1: and they came the following morning. The family hired attorney 744 00:49:23,480 --> 00:49:27,400 Speaker 1: George V. Denny the Third and investigator David Lynn. Clyde's 745 00:49:27,480 --> 00:49:30,800 Speaker 1: case never made it to trial. That's usually what happens 746 00:49:30,840 --> 00:49:34,160 Speaker 1: with deputy gang cases. The lawyers like settled because they 747 00:49:34,200 --> 00:49:36,879 Speaker 1: don't have to go to the trial and it's kind 748 00:49:36,920 --> 00:49:39,000 Speaker 1: of easy money. They threw a million dollars at you, 749 00:49:39,160 --> 00:49:42,279 Speaker 1: and the clients are thinking, and this sappens a lot. 750 00:49:42,400 --> 00:49:47,160 Speaker 1: The lawyers sometimes talk the clients into taking a settlement 751 00:49:47,200 --> 00:49:50,960 Speaker 1: when they don't want to, and it's it's just all 752 00:49:51,040 --> 00:49:54,719 Speaker 1: part of the game that's played with these lawsuits. And 753 00:49:55,000 --> 00:49:57,439 Speaker 1: the reason why on the sheriff side, the county side 754 00:49:57,480 --> 00:50:00,040 Speaker 1: where they settled them, is because they do not I 755 00:50:00,040 --> 00:50:02,400 Speaker 1: want to go to trial. They do not. These deputies 756 00:50:04,640 --> 00:50:07,400 Speaker 1: sworn in on the witness stand in front of juries 757 00:50:07,480 --> 00:50:14,279 Speaker 1: and the press and everybody else, um lying or exposing 758 00:50:14,360 --> 00:50:17,040 Speaker 1: extra what they did so to avoid all of that 759 00:50:17,160 --> 00:50:19,200 Speaker 1: and getting all this on the record and all this 760 00:50:19,320 --> 00:50:22,680 Speaker 1: evidence in on the record today. So and it just 761 00:50:22,800 --> 00:50:26,759 Speaker 1: goes away and everybody goes away, and next day there's 762 00:50:26,760 --> 00:50:29,960 Speaker 1: another one and there's another million dollar, two million dollars, 763 00:50:30,800 --> 00:50:36,600 Speaker 1: thirteen million dollars settlement, you know, just and then supervisors 764 00:50:36,800 --> 00:50:40,160 Speaker 1: keep signing the checks and the deputies keep doing their thing. 765 00:50:40,320 --> 00:50:44,920 Speaker 1: And I don't know what other word to use except 766 00:50:45,000 --> 00:50:49,440 Speaker 1: that it's institutionalized Clyde settled for just sixty dollars and 767 00:50:49,560 --> 00:50:53,160 Speaker 1: signed an affidavid, saying he wouldn't pursue any action on 768 00:50:53,280 --> 00:50:57,239 Speaker 1: residual injuries. He says he settled because his dad was 769 00:50:57,360 --> 00:51:01,440 Speaker 1: gravely ill with colon cancer, and with insurance the family 770 00:51:01,600 --> 00:51:05,760 Speaker 1: would lose their home. He never considered that over thirty 771 00:51:05,880 --> 00:51:10,480 Speaker 1: years later, he'd still suffer from splitting headaches and a 772 00:51:10,600 --> 00:51:14,160 Speaker 1: never ending aching pain in his leg, which makes it 773 00:51:14,320 --> 00:51:18,200 Speaker 1: incredibly difficult to find work. He didn't know how long 774 00:51:18,320 --> 00:51:22,360 Speaker 1: this experience would reverberate inside of him. Well, I made mistakes, 775 00:51:22,400 --> 00:51:25,480 Speaker 1: but I think we all do. And to be so 776 00:51:25,719 --> 00:51:30,040 Speaker 1: cool to people, you know, they don't know what they 777 00:51:30,120 --> 00:51:35,839 Speaker 1: do literally the inside, and they wonder why people are 778 00:51:35,960 --> 00:51:40,439 Speaker 1: bea looking us him. I don't like him. They don't 779 00:51:40,480 --> 00:51:45,320 Speaker 1: like us. You know, it's like, uh, why did the 780 00:51:45,480 --> 00:51:47,719 Speaker 1: Why take the bad if you're gonna do something wrong 781 00:51:47,840 --> 00:51:50,080 Speaker 1: with it, make room for those who want to do 782 00:51:50,160 --> 00:51:53,680 Speaker 1: the right thing, you know. And it's so corrupt and 783 00:51:53,760 --> 00:51:56,680 Speaker 1: it's so everything's hit and he covered up so far 784 00:51:56,719 --> 00:52:01,040 Speaker 1: as till you know that would he killed he They 785 00:52:01,080 --> 00:52:04,239 Speaker 1: weren't even kid you know, conty care. It was a 786 00:52:04,360 --> 00:52:10,880 Speaker 1: joke to all the I have in following into it. 787 00:52:12,200 --> 00:52:19,360 Speaker 1: Thirty years later, I'm still going to compared for above it. 788 00:52:20,040 --> 00:52:23,919 Speaker 1: But the deputy gangs were just getting started. Next week, 789 00:52:24,719 --> 00:52:29,120 Speaker 1: Robert takes his leg rolls up his sleep brights to 790 00:52:29,200 --> 00:52:32,680 Speaker 1: the tattoo. So that was the one and only time 791 00:52:32,719 --> 00:52:34,200 Speaker 1: I thought I was going to throw up in my 792 00:52:34,440 --> 00:52:48,000 Speaker 1: entire career. The rise of the Linwood Vikings. I used 793 00:52:48,000 --> 00:52:51,359 Speaker 1: to below. Did the whole hood fuck the police. I'm 794 00:52:51,440 --> 00:52:54,040 Speaker 1: a fucking other trophy. Better keep a pistol in the 795 00:52:54,120 --> 00:52:57,399 Speaker 1: field with the ship, keep a automatic weapon nine golf ship. 796 00:52:57,680 --> 00:53:02,239 Speaker 1: But you've been listening to a tradition of violence. The 797 00:53:02,400 --> 00:53:05,200 Speaker 1: history of Deputy Gangs in the Los Angeles County Sheriff's 798 00:53:05,200 --> 00:53:09,279 Speaker 1: Department posted an executive produced by series Castle, music by 799 00:53:09,400 --> 00:53:12,360 Speaker 1: Yellow Hill and Steels. For breaking news and updates and 800 00:53:12,440 --> 00:53:15,760 Speaker 1: deputy gangs, follow at LA s D Gangs on social 801 00:53:15,840 --> 00:53:19,280 Speaker 1: media the support series's reporting, and for exclusive bonus content, 802 00:53:19,440 --> 00:53:21,560 Speaker 1: subscribe to the l s D Gangs Patrio