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Alex Villanueva is a horrible human being

Published on 37 Comments on Alex Villanueva is a horrible human being

LA County Sheriff Alex Villanueva, who got elected by appealing to the Hispanic community and promising to represent them, has turned out to be an unbelievable piece of shit. His latest stunt is to open a criminal investigation of an LA Times reporter who obtained surveillance video that Villanueva didn't want her to have:

Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva announced Tuesday his department is targeting a Times journalist in a criminal leak investigation for her reporting on the department’s cover-up of an incident in which a deputy kneeled on the head of a handcuffed inmate for three minutes.

....The Times published a report last month that described how Sheriff’s Department officials worked to cover up the March 2021 incident because they feared it would paint the department in a “negative light.” The Times report was accompanied by surveillance video from a lock-up area of the San Fernando Courthouse that captured the deputy kneeling on the inmate’s head after handcuffing him.

Earlier this week, the newspaper and other outlets reported on a legal claim in which a department commander alleged that Villanueva participated in the cover-up, telling underlings, “We do not need bad media at this time.”

....In the wake of the reports on the commander’s claims, Villanueva summoned the media to the Hall of Justice downtown and revealed the criminal probe into how The Times obtained the video of the detention.

Reporting on official bad behavior is precisely what the press is supposed to do, and making use of leaked material is part of the job. But as near as I can tell, Villanueva's goals in life are to defend any and all bad behavior by his department and take revenge on anyone who points it out.

I don't even live in Los Angeles but I hope he gets crushed in the next election. He's a horrible human being with, as near as I can tell, no redeeming qualities.

37 thoughts on “Alex Villanueva is a horrible human being”

  2. Navin R. Jason

    OMG... It's almost as if police shouldn't be trusted and maybe we should spend decades and decades of trying to pass reforms? I guess if that doesn't work people could maybe try to withhold funding for the police departments that refuse to reform? Maybe there's a catchy phrase for that?

        1. AnotherKevin

          For anyone who has paid any attention over the past couple years, it is clear beyond dispute that "defund the police" has miniscule support even (indeed especially) among minority communities that are most victimized by police misconduct. Its just beyond stupid to suggest that we need to "try it" some more.

    2. Jasper_in_Boston

      And if large numbers of voters weren’t frightened by that catchy slogan, it might be part of a workable strategy. Sadly, in addition to being politically toxic, that catchy slogan is also factually wrong, in that the improved, effective policing all Americans deserve is likely to cost more, not less, money. Quality isn’t cheap.

  3. jte21

    We've known Villeneuva was a corrupt POS for years now. Why is he still sheriff? Why haven't the state or fed authorities rolled him up by now? Who does he have compromising pictures of with sheep or whatever?

    1. Laertes

      He got elected to a four-year term in 2018. So we've been stuck with him for years.

      He's pretty Trumpy (the job is all about his own glory, doesn't accept any limits on his authority, doesn't recognize any obligation or duty) but hasn't ever been caught in any outright criminal behavior. It may be that the state or fed authorities haven't yet rolled him up because he's never done anything for which they could properly roll him up.

      Really, this is on the voters of Los Angeles county. We elected him. It's our obligation to un-elect him this fall.

    1. ProgressOne

      Yes, like all whites are racists and all blacks are criminals. And all progressives are communists and all conservatives fascists.

      When Kevin calls this sheriff a "horrible human being", I am reminded that many liberals and progressives like that phrase. Pre-Trump days it was in common usage, and it set the tone for liberal intolerance. Somebody rejects key parts of the liberal agenda? A horrible human being. The phrase has fallen out of use, and now opponents are simply called racists, misogynists, and so on. No point bothering to call them a "horrible human being". It goes without saying.

      Yet, after Trump, I vote straight ticket Democrat. Liberal intolerance is not nearly as bad as the horrors of MAGA-world and cowardly Republican politicians.

      2. arghasnarg

        If you're tracking insult trends, I'd like to note that I call people who act sufficiently awfully as "piece of shit" or "shitweasel".

        Thank you for your attention to this matter.

        > Liberal intolerance

        Bite me.

        2. ProgressOne

          Yes, and Trumpers hate you for it, and they built a movement around lefty intolerance. Nothing motivates people more than being looked down on and being declared a "piece of shit" for their political views.

    2. jte21

      He ran originally appealing to Hispanics and progressives as being a new kind of cop, willing to clean up a corrupt force, implement reforms, etc. Once elected, however, he immediately ditched the mask and made it clear he was there to protect the status quo, fight transparency and reform, and basically block any oversight of his force by the media or government. He's pretty much in the running with that Arpaio asshole from Arizona as America's most corrupt sheriff.

  6. arghasnarg

    > an unbelievable piece of shit

    Unbelievable? Really?

    Pieces of shit like Villanueva are exactly what I expect in sheriffs, especially in LA.

    1. iamr4man

      I haven’t lived in LA since 1980, but Villanueva seems pretty much par for the course in LA Sheriffs. The guy who was in charge back when I lived there was Peter Pitchess and in those days Sheriffs had a reputation for being violent. They also had a reputation for covering up not too far different from what Villanueva is up to:
      “A Pitchess motion is a request made by the defense in a California criminal case, such as a DUI case or a resisting arrest case, to access a law enforcement officer's personnel information when the defendant alleges in an affidavit that the officer used excessive force or lied about the events surrounding the defendant's arrest. The information provided will include prior incidents of use of force, allegations of excessive force, citizen complaints, and information gathered during the officer's pre-employment background investigation. The motion's name comes from the case Pitchess v. Superior Court.”
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pitchess_motion
      Note that Pitchess tried to keep the defense from accessing the information and lost.

      1. Special Newb

        Oh yes, LA sheriffs have a long track record of shady cover ups. Mitrice Richardson is a pretty famous case for example.

  7. DFPaul

    I think it's pretty clear his goal is to get a gig on Fox as the Latino David Clarke, so it's worth running all his actions through that filter. Attack the press? Yep.

    1. Austin

      How else was he supposed to win? A good half our politicians run on nothing but lies during their campaigns, because they either believe in nothing/want the office just for the power or believe in stuff that would horrify their voters if they were honest about their beliefs.

  12. Dana Decker

    Villanueva has a lot of supporters because of his removal of homeless encampments. He's practically the only elected official in Los Angeles County that has expressed a negative view of the homeless. Don't underestimate his appeal.

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