Free Republic

Notorious Cardinal Mahony ResurfacesThe retired prelate who covered up abuse has resumed his left-wing lectures.Cardinal Roger Mahony, the retired archbishop of Los Angeles, is notorious for his role in the Church’s abuse scandal. In 2013, he was “removed from all public duties by his successor, Archbishop José H. Gomez, as the church complied with a court order to release thousands of pages of internal documents that show how the cardinal shielded priests who sexually abused children,” reported the New York Times. “The documents, released as part of a record $660 million settlement in 2007 with the victims of abuse, are...

A last minute appeal has put-off the deadline for ex Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca to surrender to begin serving a federal prison sentence. Late Monday the 9th Circuit Court agreed to hear Baca's appeal of a U.S. District Court judge's denial of bail during the appeal of Baca's corruption conviction. Baca will be allowed to remain free until the 9th Circuit agrees to hear the appeal or declines to take up the matter, which would lead to a new prison surrender date. Former undersheriff Paul Tanaka, who began serving a five year prison sentence earlier this year, was...

Former Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca was sentenced Friday to 3 years in prison for orchestrating a scheme to interfere with a Federal grand jury investigation of inmate abuse in County jails. Baca showed no reaction as U.S. District Court Judge Percy Anderson announced the sentence. Anderson said were it not for Baca's Alzheimer's disease diagnosis and decades of public service, Baca would have received the same sentence as former under sheriff Paul Tanaka -- 5 years.

A federal judge has ruled defense lawyers for Lee Baca will not be allowed to call an Alzheimer’s expert to testify at the former L.A. County Sheriff’s upcoming corruption retrial. U.S. District Court Judge Percy Anderson granted in a written ruling the prosecutors’ motion to exclude the testimony of Dr. James Spar, who defense lawyers said would tell jurors it was possible Baca was suffering from the early effects of Alzheimer’s disease during one relevant event. “Evidence linking defendant’s current diagnosis to the charges is entirely speculative and inadmissible, is the product of unreliable methodology, artificially limited facts, and bare...

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A mistrial was declared in the corruption trial of ex-Sheriff Lee Baca after jurors said they were hopelessly deadlocked. Baca, 74, was facing trial for conspiracy and obstruction of justice for allegedly interfering with an FBI investigation into civil rights abuses and corruption in the Los Angeles County jails.

Former Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca withdrew a guilty plea Monday and chose to go to trial on a charge of lying to federal authorities in an effort to thwart an FBI investigation into abuses at the jails he ran. The decision was made at a hearing after last-minute negotiations between defense attorneys and prosecutors on a new plea agreement. Baca, 74, who is suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, had pleaded guilty to lying to federal authorities under a deal that called for no more than six months in prison. But a federal judge rejected that sentence last month as...

Retired Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca will plead guilty in a downtown courtroom Wednesday to a single charge of making false statements, marking a dramatic turn in the ongoing federal investigation into corruption in the Sheriff's Department. In a plea agreement filed in federal court Wednesday morning, 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.

Baca Will No Longer Turn Over Low-Level Offenders To Immigration December 5, 2012 Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca said Wednesday he will no longer honor requests from federal authorities to detain suspected illegal immigrants arrested for low-level crimes, a reversal from his previous support of the controversial Secure Communities program. Until recently, Baca has been adamant about complying with the federal requests, arguing that they were mandatory. He was the most outspoken opponent of a bill called the Trust Act, which would have required California law enforcement to disregard the requests in many cases. A Baca spokesman said the...

Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca said he supports the idea of allowing illegal immigrants to have driver's licenses as long as they have been in the United States for a number of years without committing other crimes. Baca's comments Thursday come as Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck has also expressed support for driver's license for illegal immigrants. Baca said such licenses should only be issued after illegal immigrants fill out comprehensive applications, similar to those for citizenship. The sheriff also said the licenses should be up for renewal annually, and be noticeably different than those issued to citizens....

Today’s Homeland Security hearing investigating the issue of radicalization of American Muslims was decried by the leftist media as a supreme attack on the civil rights of Muslim Americans. The most serious drama that came out of the hearing today, however, was provided by Sheriff Leroy Baca of Los Angeles County who took issue with Congressman Chip Craavack‘s concerns regarding Baca’s unequivocal support for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). Sheriff Baca exhibited marked defensiveness toward CAIR when it was suggested by Congressman Craavack that CAIR might be using him to advance a pro-terrorism agenda. The exchange between Congressman Cravaack...

The only law enforcement official to testify at today’s congressional hearing on Muslim radicalization is tight with an Islamic group that raises money for Hamas and was a co-conspirator in a federal terror-finance trial. Predictably, Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca advocated on behalf of Muslims at the highly-publicized hearing, conducted by the House Committee on Homeland Security. Not surprising considering Baca, elected to run the nation’s largest sheriff’s department, regularly attends fundraisers for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) to meet the goals of his agency’s Muslim Community Affairs Division. First elected in 1999, Baca joined forces with...

Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca said Friday his deputies’ marijuana enforcement would not change even if Proposition 19, which would legalize the drug in California, passes Nov. 2. “Proposition 19 is not going to pass, even if it passes,” Baca said in a news conference Friday at sheriff's headquarters in Monterey Park. Baca, whose department polices three-fourths of the county, was bolstered Friday by an announcement from the Obama administration that federal officials would continue to “vigorously enforce” marijuana laws in California, even if state voters pass the measure. Baca said the proposition was superseded by federal law and...

Los Angeles, CA (AP) -- A Republican congressman has questioned Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca's relationship with an Islamic nonprofit during a hearing in Washington. Indiana Rep. Mark Souder asked Baca why he attended fundraisers for the Council on American-Islamic Relations during a subcommittee hearing on local law enforcement and homeland security on Wednesday.

Arguing that the short-term pain of increased taxes is worth the long-term gain of permanent budget reform, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger picked up some major Los Angeles endorsements for a raft of ballot propositions designed to rescue state finances. "One of the most important things on issues is to get local political leaders, law enforcement leaders and business leaders to support us," Schwarzenegger said at a news conference staged at the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Sheriff Lee Baca and Chamber President Gary Toebben announced their support for the six measures on the May 19 special election...

- This is not the first time that Lee Baca, the sheriff who opened the jail door for Paris Hilton, has had his judgment questioned. He's been accused of using his authority to benefit friends and supporters. Since taking office he's accepted thousands of dollars worth of freebie meals, sports tickets and trips. Now Baca is facing accusations of favoritism after making the decision that allowed Hilton to leave jail Thursday to serve out her sentence at her West Hollywood home. After ordering Hilton back to her cell Friday, Superior Court Judge Michael T. Sauer said he "at no time...

LOS ANGELES - The county Sheriff's Department is in the process of distributing new identification cards to 5,000 volunteers after the head of a "Homeland Security Support Unit" created and distributed unauthorized ID cards bearing Sheriff Leroy Baca's signature. Media reports about the actions of Gary Nalbandian, a reserve deputy who issued the laminated cards to members of the group, prompted a county investigation. As a result, county supervisors on Tuesday directed a revision of the County Badge Ordinance, which includes policies for identification cards. The Homeland Security Support Unit, according to a county report discussed Tuesday, is designed to...

On paper, Gary Nalbandian would appear to be an influential figure in Southern California law enforcement. He has served as director of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Homeland Security Support Unit, the Riverside County Sheriff's Executive Council and the Bureau of Justice for the San Bernardino County district attorney's office. But Nalbandian is not a professional cop. The only paid law enforcement position he has held is as a volunteer reserve deputy with the Los Angeles County sheriff — salary, $1 a year. His real job is running a tire store in Glendora. He is, however, a major political fundraiser...

Where is Reverend Al Sharpton's apology? "Black leader" and former presidential candidate Al Sharpton recently capped off a busy week by demanding apologies from Mexican President Vicente Fox and Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca. Fox, in defending Mexican illegals working in America, said such workers take jobs that "even blacks" refuse to do. Enter Sharpton. He demanded an apology, arguing Fox's words "confirm the stereotype that blacks are the lowest peons in the workforce of this country." Although Fox promptly "clarified" his remarks and told Sharpton that he "regretted any hurt feelings," Sharpton remains unappeased. "If I step on...

LOS ANGELES - The police chief and sheriff of Los Angeles could be candidates to become the next secretary of homeland security, outgoing secretary Tom Ridge says  but both men say they're not interested in the job. Ridge praised Police Chief William Bratton and Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca, saying they understand how to protect large cities from terrorism. "These two are doing this for their entire careers, so it's no surprise that their names are being publicly mentioned and maybe even privately discussed," Ridge said Wednesday at a news conference to announce $282 million in homeland-security money for...

LOS ANGELES -- The police chief and sheriff of Los Angeles could be candidates to become the next secretary of homeland security, outgoing secretary Tom Ridge says -- but both men say they're not interested in the job. Ridge praised Police Chief William Bratton and Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca, saying they understand how to protect large cities from terrorism. "These two are doing this for their entire careers, so it's no surprise that their names are being publicly mentioned and maybe even privately discussed," Ridge said Wednesday at a news conference to announce $282 million in homeland-security money...