By Joel Rubin, Cindy Chang and Harriet Ryan.
Retired Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca was due to plead guilty today in a downtown courtroom to a single charge of making false statements, marking a dramatic turn in the ongoing federal investigation into corruption in the Sheriff’s Dept.
In a plea agreement filed in federal court this morning, Mr. Baca admitted to lying twice about his involvement in hiding an inmate from FBI agents who were investigating brutality and corruption by sheriff’s deputies in the county jails.
In fact, Mr. Baca ordered the inmate to be isolated, putting his second-in-command, Undersheriff Paul Tanaka, in charge of executing the plan, the agreement said.
Mr. Baca also admitted that he lied when he said that he was unaware that his subordinates planned to approach an FBI special agent at her home. In a meeting the day before that meeting, Mr. Baca directed the subordinates to approach the agent, stating that they should “do everything but put handcuffs” on her, the agreement said.
As part of the plea deal with Mr. Baca, prosecutors have agreed not to seek a prison sentence of more than six months, said Eileen Decker, U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, at a news conference this morning.
Mr. Baca’s guilty plea “demonstrates that the illegal behavior in the Sheriff’s Depr. went to the very top of this organization,” Ms. Decker said. “More importantly, it illustrates that those who foster and then try to hide a corrupt culture will be held accountable.”
Mr. Tanaka is scheduled to stand trial in March for his alleged role in obstructing the federal investigation into the jails. In related cases, a retired sheriff’s captain has pleaded guilty to lying under oath, and six other lower-ranking officials have been convicted of obstructing justice.
Mr. Baca’s plea agreement does not require him to testify against Mr. Tanaka or anyone else, Ms. Decker said, but she declined to discuss the Tanaka case further.
Mr. Baca appeared in court this morning for an arraignment on the felony charge. Wearing a brown suit with a sheriff’s star on the lapel, Mr. Baca said little other than to answer questions from the judge.
“You know what the government is claiming you did in this case?” U.S. Magistrate Judge Patrick J. Walsh asked.
“Yes,” Mr. Baca responded.
After the hearing, Mr. Baca referred media queries to his attorney.
“He definitely feels bad,” Mr. Zweibeck said about his client. Asked what Mr. Baca specifically feels badly about, the attorney said: “He feels bad about a lot of things.”
Mr. Zweibeck said that federal sentencing guidelines specify up to six months in prison for making a false statement, but that Mr. Baca could also be sentenced to probation and not serve any time behind bars.
“He is ready for whatever outcome is deemed appropriate by the court,” Mr. Zweibeck said.
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