Sixty-six probation officers have been put on administrative leave for internal affairs investigations into allegations of misconduct since the beginning of the year, the L.A. County Probation Department announced Monday.
Of those officers, more than half were put on leave for general misconduct, which includes a suspected use of excessive force, child endangerment or abuse, possession of contraband, and negligent supervision, the department added.
“We are releasing this information in the spirit of greater transparency and to assure our stakeholders — especially the families of youths in our juvenile facilities — that we will not tolerate anything that impedes our mission to provide a safe, nurturing and structured environment for those entrusted to our care,” chief Guillermo Viera Rosa said in a statement.
What we know so far
The people placed on leave were assigned to both adult and juvenile facilities, and some of the allegations of official misconduct were at county juvenile facilities.
Eighteen were put on leave for suspected sexual misconduct, and nine were for arrests unrelated to their employment, according to the department.
Another 39 were for general misconduct issues, including 14 officers related to youth-on-youth violence at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall. Those cases are being investigated by the California attorney general while the department’s Internal Affairs unit is restructured.
Viera Rosa said in a statement that the officers on leave represent a small minority of the department’s nearly 2,800 sworn staff.
“It is out of respect for the majority of our officers, who perform their duties each day with integrity,…
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