Former Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva was investigated for allegedly targeting and harassing women of color.
June 13, 2024 at 10:30 PM PDT
LOS ANGELES, Calif. — Former Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva filed a lawsuit against the county on Thursday over his being placed on a “do not rehire” list and allegedly being investigated for harassment without being given notice or an opportunity to respond, alleging in federal court.
Villanueva, who lost his 2022 reelection bid, was under investigation by the Oversight Board, which is looking into complaints of harassment and retaliation stemming from controversial comments the former sheriff made about Inspector General Max Huntsman, as well as allegations that he targeted and harassed women of color.
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County officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The lawsuit alleges civil rights violations, defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress, and alleges that the county proceeded with its investigation “without any notice or notification of any kind to Mr. Villanueva,” even though the allegations against him had already been determined to be unfounded.
Villanueva claims he was never given any answers about the allegations or informed of the results of the investigation. According to the 248-page complaint filed in federal court in Los Angeles, Villanueva learned that the investigation “had placed him on a ‘do not employ’ list, which will materially affect, limit or eliminate Mr. Villanueva’s employment opportunities with County Government and will directly and indirectly adversely affect Mr. Villanueva’s employment prospects generally.”
The lawsuit also names as defendants the county Board of Supervisors, the Sheriff’s Department, the Fairness Oversight Board, the Office of the Inspector General and Huntsman.
Villanueva argues the county’s actions are politically motivated and lack transparency and due process.
Villanueva’s lawyer, Carney Shegerian, said the lawsuit seeks to remove the “no rehire” notice from the former sheriff’s record and seeks $25 million in damages for defamation.
According to a Los Angeles Times article, Huntsman accused Villanueva of “dog whistling to the extremists he caters to” by repeatedly calling the inspector general by his foreign-sounding birth name, Max Gustav. Villanueva denies that using the name “Max Gustav” is discriminatory or harassing.
A few weeks later, Villanueva publicly accused Huntsman of being a Holocaust denier, without any evidence.
Around the same time, a judicial aide to County Supervisor Hilda Solis accused Villanueva of targeting and harassing women of color. Last fall, the county Fairness Oversight Board received complaints in both cases and recommended that Villanueva, who had already been fired from his job, be deemed ineligible for reemployment.
Not only did Villanueva lose his re-election bid for sheriff, he also lost the March 5 primary to incumbent District 4 County Supervisor Janice Hahn.
City News Service