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Thursday, September 22, 2022

 

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Inspector General Huntsman Under Investigation by A.G.

Bonta Says Office Will Consider Whether Crime Was Committed in Tip-Off on Search Warrants

 

By a MetNews Staff Writer

 

Los Angeles County Inspector General Max Huntsman is under investigation by the Office of California Attorney General in connection with possibly having committed a crime in causing County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl to having been tipped off that sheriff’s deputies would raid her home the next morning pursuant to a search warrant.

At 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Attorney General Rob Bonta announced in a press release that his office is taking over an investigation launched by Sheriff Alex Villanueva into possible theft of public funds and bribery in connection with the awarding of a no-bid contract to Peace Over Violence, a non-profit corporation headed by Patricia Giggans. Kuehl is on its board; appointed Giggans to the Sheriff Department’s Civilian Oversight Commission; and has received political contributions from Giggans.

The press release says that at the request of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (“LASD”), the state Department of Justice (“DOJ”) “will assume responsibility for any and all investigations of whether any individuals committed a crime by allegedly giving advance warning to Los Angeles County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl and Patricia Giggans…regarding search warrants executed against them by LASD.”

Kuehl told reporters on Sept. 14, while the search was being conducted:

“I heard from county counsel last night that she got a tip from Max [Huntsman] that this search would happen this morning. But I had gotten a call from the L.A. Times last week with the same information and nothing happened, so I thought it was just bogus.”

Dawyn R. Harrison is the acting county counsel.

 

MAX HUNTSMAN

County Inspector General

 

Letter to Bonta

Villanueva said in a Sept. 14 letter to Bonta (misspelling Giggan’s name):

“I do not have to explain the alleged criminal, administrative, and ethical laws which were broken by Mr. Huntsman and the currently unidentified person(s) employed by County Counsel. We are confident phone records will soon reveal any text messages received by Ms. Kuehl and Ms. Giggans, which illegally alerted them to the search warrant, as well as the intent behind their actions.

“Consequently, we request that you open an investigation as to potential violations of felony Penal Code §§ 148, 168, 182 and Government Code § 25303 regarding interference into a criminal investigation and advise us when the matter has been opened.

“The illegal acts committed by Mr. Huntsman and County Counsel have potentially comprised the integrity of this criminal investigation including, but not limited to, the concealment or destruction of evidence.”

The sheriff noted:

“When the search warrant was served on the residence of Patricia “Patti” Giggins, the detectives were met at the door by Ms. Giggins and her attorney. It was obvious both were already aware of the search warrant and were waiting for detectives to arrive.”

Code Sections

It was not clear how the code sections cited by Villanueva apply to Huntsman.

Penal Code §148(a)(1) provides: “Every person who willfully…obstructs any…peace officer…in the discharge or attempt to discharge any duty of his or her office or employment, when no other punishment is prescribed, shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by imprisonment in a county jail not to exceed one year, or by both that fine and imprisonment.”

However, numerous cases have held that under §148, the onbstruction must have occurred while the officer was “engaged in the performance of his or her duties.”

Penal Code §168(a) proscribes willful disclosure of “the fact of the warrant prior to execution for the purpose of preventing the search or seizure of property or the arrest of any person” but applies only to a “district attorney, clerk, judge, or peace officer.” Huntman would not appear to come under any of those categories.

Penal Code §182 is the conspiracy statute. Villanueva did not explain with whom he thought Huntsman had conspired.

Under Government Code §25303, “[t]he board of supervisors shall supervise the official conduct of all county officers.” Huntsman is not a member of the board.

Antagonostic Relationship

Huntsman has locked horns with Villanueva, who has, from the start of his tenure as sheriff, resisted oversight, including that from the Board of Supervisors. The inspector general has asserted that at least 41 deputies are gang members; Villanueva has denied it.

The sheriff has publicly alleged that Huntsman is a Holocaust denier. Huntsman responded in a letter to the Board of Supervisors:

“The allegation comes from a man devoid of honesty and honor. So perhaps it goes without saying that such a claim is meaningless from him.”

He said he had never made the statements Villanueva attributed to him.

Huntsman was appointed to his watchdog post by the Board of Supervisors in 2013 after he served for 20 years as a Los Angeles County deputy district attorney. He was, at the time, assistant head deputy of the Public Integrity Division.

His law degree is from Yale.

 

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