4 more LA County probation officers placed on leave over juvenile hall violence

The Los Angeles County Probation Department put four more probation officers on administrative leave following an internal review of additional incidents of youth-on-youth violence at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall, the department announced Friday, April 26.

The agency previously removed eight other officers from the juvenile hall in January for standing by during — and potentially orchestrating — fights between youth. Critics have alleged those incidents were tantamount to “gladiator fight clubs.”

Probation Chief Guillermo Viera Rosa, in a statement, said he is rooting out staff members “perpetrating a culture of violence, drugs, or abuse in County juvenile institutions.”

“While these incidents involve a small number of our staff, they violate our core values and undermine our ability to do our duty to provide a safe and nurturing environment for the rehabilitation of the youth placed in our care,” Viera Rosa said. “My commitment to dig deeper into potential wrongdoing, to take immediate action, and to publicly disclose my actions should make it clear that we will not tolerate anything that creates or contributes to a culture of violence in our juvenile facilities.”

Viera Rosa did not release any details about the violent incidents that led to the discipline.

The California Department of Justice is investigating all 12 officers, according to Viera Rosa. The Probation Department referred the cases to an outside agency “to ensure a fair, independent and thorough investigation while the Probation Department restructures and professionalizes its Internal Affairs Unit,” officials said.

A recording of the first-known incident in December, obtained by the Los Angeles Times, showed multiple youth consecutively entering a day room in Los Padrinos and then attacking a 17-year-old, one at a time, before sitting down to eat their meals. At least four officers stood by during the assaults, while two others halfheartedly attempted to break up the fights. Officers could be seen laughing and even shaking hands with the attackers at various points.

Eight officers were placed on leave Jan.4 as a result.

In a statement earlier this month, Viera Rosa said the video should make it “abundantly clear why I felt compelled to take swift action once this incident was brought to my attention.”

“We will not tolerate misconduct like that depicted in the video, nor will we tolerate a lack of urgent response, if and when these incidents happen,” he said.

Eduardo Mundo, chair of the county Probation Oversight Commission and a former supervising probation officer, said he recently learned the department did not regularly review surveillance footage after fights unless officers reported a physical intervention.

The department now may be digging into older incidents in light of the recent scandal, he said.

“If that’s what is happening, I assure you there is going to be more to come,” Mundo said.