![]() ![]() County settled a lawsuit brought by Taylor’s family for $7 million. ![]() Aldama said he was one of as many as 20 deputies selected to get the same tattoo after “working hard” by making arrests and answering calls. The letters “CPT,” for Compton, appear on the helmet. And instead of being prosecuted, what happened? There were inking parties and celebrations.”Īldama admitted under oath to having a tattoo on his calf depicting a skull with a rifle and a military-style helmet emerging from flames. “This was nothing more than a sport kill and an attempt to getting into this gang. Donta Taylor would still be alive,” Sweeney said. Deputies said Taylor had a handgun, but no weapon was found. Several months after Lockett’s arrest and three weeks after charges were dropped, Aldama and Orrego shot at and killed Donta Taylor, 31, during a foot chase. Instead, he says, they served a search warrant on her home in retaliation. “They did nothing,” Lockett’s attorney John Sweeney said during a hearing this week. In August, prosecutors dropped charges because of insufficient evidence and after a witness testified that she was mistaken when she identified him, according to a district attorney’s office spokeswoman.Īfter the arrest, Lockett’s mother filed a complaint to the Sheriff’s Department. Lockett was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and other gun charges and spent eight months in jail. He alleged that one of the deputies rammed the end of a police baton into his eye socket, which caused permanent damage, and that he was kicked in the back of the head. Even so, he says, Aldama punched him in the head five times while using the N-word. They chased him until they found him hiding in a backyard, where Lockett says he surrendered. The deputies, Samuel Aldama and Mizrain Orrego, radioed that Lockett had a gun, which he says was a lie. He sued in 2018.ĭeputies that day pulled up to Lockett outside his godmother’s home and jumped out of their car with their guns drawn because they said he matched the description of a shooting suspect. Lockett alleges he was targeted by deputies “chasing ink” when he was beaten and falsely arrested for attempted murder in 2016, his attorneys said. County attorneys have argued that Gonzalez’s testimony about the Executioners was nothing more than speculation and conjecture, as he’s not in the group and has no personal knowledge about it. “Once we do, counsel will review and we can respond appropriately,” a spokesman said. ![]() The Sheriff’s Department said in a statement that it had not yet received the transcript of Gonzalez’s testimony. “He doesn’t have one, nor does he plan on getting one.” “Deputy Vega does not have one single tattoo on his body, much less a deputy gang tattoo,” his attorney Adam Marangell said. Their attorneys said Wednesday that those allegations are false. In his deposition, Gonzalez identified Miguel Vega, the Compton station deputy who killed 18-year-old Andres Guardado in a shooting in June that sparked weeks of protests, and his partner, Chris Hernandez, as prospective members of the Executioners. Following The Times’ reporting, Compton officials issued formal requests to the state and federal attorney generals to investigate allegations of pervasive civil rights violations. The Sheriff’s Department said the FBI is now involved in an investigation of the Executioners. “The testimony also establishes that the command staff at the station knew about it and not only did not stop it but it encouraged the behavior and placed its members in positions of authority where they could help other members.” “Accepting the deputy’s testimony, there is evidence that the clique existed in Compton and that it routinely violated the rights of suspects,” Magistrate Judge Patrick J. ![]() The judge hearing the case cited the evidence when tentatively deciding to advance the case for trial. Gonzalez’s statements were introduced in an excessive-force lawsuit filed against the Sheriff’s Department by Sheldon Lockett. The Sheriff’s Department has been aware of the groups for decades but has struggled to crack down, despite repeated internal and independent investigations and instances i n which members are accused of misconduct. ![]()
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