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With 17,694 employees, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, officially the County of Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, is the nation's largest Sheriff's Department. The Department's three main responsibilities entail providing patrol services for 153 unincorporated communities of Los Angeles County, California and 42 cities, providing courthouse security for the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, and the housing and transportation of inmates within the county jail system. In addition, the Department contracts with the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority and Metrolink, provides law enforcement services to ten community colleges, patrols over 177 county parks, golf courses, special event venues, two major lakes, 16 hospitals, and over 300 county facilities; and provides services, such as crime laboratories, homicide investigations, and academy training, to smaller law enforcement agencies within the county.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's transit division alone is the second largest transit police force in the world, aside from the New York City Police Department. This is through policing contracts of the Metro trains and buses of the Los Angeles Metro and Metrolink. Furthermore, with policing contracts with nine campuses of the Los Angeles Community College and Lancaster Community College District, the LASD is the largest community policing agency in the United States.

The Sheriff's Department's headquarters are located in downtown Los Angeles at the Los Angeles County Hall of Justice.

Personnel
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department is the largest sheriff's department and the fourth largest local policing agency in the United States. There are approximately 17,926 employees; over 9,972 sworn deputies and 7,954 non sworn members, (professional staff). There are an additional 4,200 civilian volunteers, 791 reserve deputies and 400 explorers. On December 1, 2014, Jim McDonnell took the oath of office and was sworn in as the 32nd Los Angeles County Sheriff.

LASD deputies provided law enforcement services to over three million residents in an area of 3171 sqmi of the 4,083 square miles on the county, both in the unincorporated County land and within the 42 contract cities.

Organization
The following are the LASD Divisions:
 * Sheriff's Headquarters
 * Undersheriff
 * Sheriff's Information Bureau
 * Legal Advisory Unit
 * Constitutional Policy Advisors
 * Community Outreach
 * Strategic Communications
 * Chief of Staff
 * Legislative Unit
 * Audit and Accountability Bureau
 * Professional Standards & Training Division
 * Advocacy Unit
 * Internal Affairs Bureau
 * Internal Criminal Investigations Bureau
 * Risk Management Bureau
 * Training Bureau
 * Administrative & Professional Standards - includes:
 * Administrative Services Division - includes:
 * Contract Law Enforcement Bureau
 * Facilities Planning Bureau
 * Facilities Services Bureau
 * Financial Programs
 * Fiscal Administration
 * Personnel Command
 * Personnel Administration Bureau
 * Psychological Services Bureau
 * Bureau of Labor Relations & Compliance
 * Technology & Support Division
 * Communications & Fleet Management Bureau
 * Data Systems Bureau
 * Records & Identification Bureau
 * Scientific Services Bureau
 * Custody Operations - includes;
 * Custody Services Division General Population
 * Inmate Reception Center
 * Men's Central Jail
 * Population Management Bureau
 * North County Correctional Facility
 * Pitchess Detention Center East Facility (Fire Camps)
 * Pitchess Detention Center North Facility
 * Pitchess Detention Center South Facility
 * Custody Services Division Specialized Programs
 * Century Regional Detention Facility
 * Food Services
 * Education Based Incarceration / Inmate Services Bureau
 * Medical Services Bureau
 * Twin Towers Correctional Facility
 * Mira Loma Detention Facility
 * Custody Services Administration Command
 * Custody Support Services
 * Custody Compliance & Sustainability
 * Custody Training & Standards Bureau
 * Countywide Operations - include:
 * Countywide Operations Division
 * Community Colleges Bureau
 * Community Partnerships Bureau
 * County Services Bureau
 * Parks Bureau (mostly created with the merger with Los Angeles County Office of Public Safety in 2010)
 * Court Services Division - Provides security and support services to the Superior Court in the County of Los Angeles. This includes staffing bailiffs, operating courthouse lock-ups, and serving and enforcing civil and criminal process. Court Services provides these services for 48 courthouse locations throughout Los Angeles County, which include the following:
 * Civil Management Bureau
 * Court Services Central
 * Court Services East
 * Court Services West
 * Court Services Transportation Bureau
 * Special Operations Division
 * Aero Bureau
 * Special Enforcement Bureau - Special Enforcement Detail (SWAT), Canine Services Detail, and Emergency Services Detail (coordinates and participates in mountain search and rescue, underwater search and rescue, and swift water and flood rescue operations)
 * Emergency Operations Bureau which includes:
 * Industrial Relations Detail - maintains liaison between the business and labor communities. The Detail also trains patrol personnel in the handling of labor disputes and picket lines.
 * Arson Explosives Detail
 * Hazardous Material Detail
 * Transit Services Bureau
 * Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority
 * MetroLink
 * Patrol Operations are divided amongst as follows:
 * North Patrol Division - Lancaster, Malibu/Lost Hills, Palmdale, Santa Clarita Valley, and West Hollywood.
 * South Patrol Division - Carson, Cerritos, Lakewood, Lomita, Norwalk, and Pico Rivera.
 * East Patrol Division - Altadena, Crescenta Valley, Industry, San Dimas, Temple, and Walnut/Diamond Bar.
 * Central Patrol Division - Avalon, Century, Compton, Marina Del Rey, and South Los Angeles.
 * Detective Division - Contains the following; Homicide Bureau, Commercial Crimes Bureau, Major Crimes Bureau, Narcotics Bureau, Special Victims Bureau, and the Taskforce For Regional Autotheft Prevention (T.R.A.P.)

Academy
The Biscaluz Center in Monterey Park, which included the Sheriff's Academy—closed for 30 years—was recently renovated, expanded, and Sheriff's Academy activities moved back there in 2014. Reserves may use either STARS Center or College of the Canyons (Santa Clarita) for academy training. Academy training is 22 weeks long.

Many law enforcement agencies throughout Los Angeles County utilize STARS Center and deputy sheriff trainees graduating as deputy sheriffs also undergo detention-specific training. There are separate academy curricula for Deputy Sheriffs, Custody Assistants, Security Officers, and Security Assistants.

County jail system
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department operates the largest jail system in the world. The Los Angeles County Jail provides short-term incarceration services for all of the County (including cities like Los Angeles, Glendale, Burbank, and Long Beach which have their own police departments). The Men's Central Jail (MCJ) and Twin Towers Correctional Facility (TTCF) are located in a dense cluster northeast of Union Station that is next to the station's rail yard. The North County Correctional Facility (NCCF) is the largest of the four jail facilities located at the Pitchess Detention Center in Castaic, California. The L.A. County women's jail, called the Century Regional Detention Facility or the Lynwood Jail, is located in Lynwood, California.

Controversy
The Los Angeles County Jail incarcerates about 200,000 individuals each year, and with such large numbers, the jail has faced numerous problems with its facilities. In May 2013, the Men's Central Jail and the Twin Towers Correctional Facility (taken together) ranked as one of the ten worst prisons in the United States, based on reporting in Mother Jones magazine.

One of such issues is visitation controversy, exemplified by a recent event in the Men's Central Jail. 23-year-old male Gabriel Carillo was severely beaten and pepper sprayed by a deputy in Los Angeles' Men's Central Jail on Saturday, February 26, 2012. Carillo was there with his girlfriend, Grace Torres, to visit his younger brother. Both Torres and Carillo brought their cell phones into the jail and were caught having the phones on them. Torres, out of fear of being fired from her job where she must remain on call, hid her cell phone in her boot and snuck it into the visitor's lobby despite signs prohibiting doing so, while Carillo forgot to remove his cellphone from his pocket. The deputies confiscated both phones shortly after, handcuffed Carillo, and took both Carillo and Torres into the break room, where Carillo was assaulted.

Following the controversy, Los Angeles County Sheriff, Lee Baca, announced that the Men's Central Jail could be closed. The closure of Men's Central Jail can be made possible if 3,000 low-risk, nonviolent offenders are placed into community-based supervision and education program aimed at reducing the numbers of repeat offenders. Construction of a new jail has been proposed to replace the Men's Central Jail.

Another challenge that the Los Angeles County Jail faces is violence within the jail community. Many researchers assert that the violence seen in jails is in part due to males wanting to maintain a position of superiority. Because those who appear to be weak tend to become victims of sexual violence in jail, some men attempt to demonstrate to others that they are too strong to be taken advantage of. This level of heightened masculinity is also called hypermasculinity, and has the potential to manifest itself in the form of violence in a prison setting. Although men prove their masculinity in order to prevent sexual assault, some may also commit sexual assault on others as a mechanism for appearing dominant and masculine. As a result, sexual violence in prison has become a self-propagating spiral.

Related to this issue is Los Angeles County Jail's K6G unit, which is intended to be a separate unit for gay-identified men and transgender women. Although it has been shown that this unit is successful through its lower rates of sexual violence, the creation and systematics of this unit have sparked controversy. In order to be admitted into the K6G unit, inmates must prove that they are gay. However, those who identify inmates as homosexual individuals eligible for the K6G unit rely on stereotypes constructed by society about gay men. This procedure prevents homosexual men who are not open about their sexuality, particularly those of color, from coming out as gay for fear of abuse if they do so. Finally, serious health concerns have begun to arise with the issue of mass incarceration in the Los Angeles County Jails. Several organizations and scholars have analyzed random samples of prisoners with illnesses and the healthcare that they receive while incarcerated. Although it is generally assumed that many prisoners have antisocial personality disorder, The American Public Health Association claims that some of these prisoners suffer from a variety of other disorders. They also state that more than 30% of their sample have a severe mental disorder or a substance use disorder. The detainees that were diagnosed with severe mental disorders or substance use were often in jail because they had committed nonviolent crimes. An issue that arises with the incarceration of individuals with mental disorders is that they must be tested for competency before they can be put on trial, which can leave inmates in jail for longer than necessary.

Richard Lamb and Robert W. Grant conducted a similar study of 101 women that are imprisoned in the Los Angeles County Jail system. In this study, they concluded that 70% of them had traumatizing experiences of physical violence, 40% of these women were involved in prostitution, and 84% of the women with children were incapable of taking care of them. In addition, there were more mentally ill men in jail than there were women. In a study of male inmates, there appeared to have been issues of the "criminalization" of those whom were mentally ill.

An issue that resides in these studies is that there is uncertainty when trying to determine if these prisoners receive any beneficial treatment. In response to this issue, Dr. Terry Kupers mentions that when considering the large proportion of prisoners with significant mental illness, few of these Los Angeles County Jail inmates receive adequate mental health treatment. However, mental illnesses have been and are currently being studied in the Los Angeles County Jail. For instance, several researchers studied Bipolar I disorder, and found that a way to decrease the number of inmates with Bipolar 1 disorder is by having them participate in longer psychiatric hospital stays.

One solution to this issue could be opt-out screening and vaccinations for STIs and other infectious diseases, which has the potential to improve health conditions in jail and in surrounding communities. This can be accomplished by providing health care that many inmates, especially impoverished blacks and Latinos, would not receive otherwise. In addition, the implementation of this action would decrease the spreading of diseases from the jail to home communities. Using opt-out screenings and vaccinations can be used as a mechanism to reach out to inner city community health issues as well as provide a new area for research in the effectiveness in vaccinations and screenings.

While health has been one of the primary concerns within the Los Angeles County Jail, the Los Angeles County Jail system also has a bad reputation of targeting minorities for its prisons. Victor Rios argues that a new era of mass incarceration has resulted in the development of a youth control complex. This complex resulted from a network of racialized criminalization, and the punishment arrived from institutions of authority that patrolled and incapacitated Black and Latino youth. Rios concludes that it’s not policing but the harsh policing of inner cities that marks young people from their early years, effectively stigmatizing them through negative credentials before they have an opportunity to acquire the more positive forms demanded for participation in mainstream society.

Achievements


The LASD has gained an international reputation for its efforts in developing and integrating the latest law enforcement technologies, especially nonlethal weapons. Because many developers, especially those developing technologies for the U.S. Department of Defense, have little idea of the needs of domestic law enforcement, the LASD provides experts to assist in the development and implementation of technologies that will be of service to law enforcement when fully mature. In the late 1990s, the LASD successfully implemented a county-wide sound recorder/meter system, ShotStopper, to detect loud noises.

When dispatch has a call from a citizen reporting possible gunfire near their residence, these sound towers can pinpoint within about 25 to 30 ft where the shots were coming from and record the sound for investigative purposes, and at the same time, relay the GPS info to HQ and deputies on the street. The system has been up and running for several years and has been responsible for numerous felony arrests.

Currently, the LASD is working with the FAA and local government officials to deploy their remote control aerial surveillance drone system. This would allow the Sheriff's Department to have real time imagery from the streets of Los Angeles to combat street violence and record crimes in progress, not to mention searching for missing hikers, "patrolling" behind the surf zones of the beaches and looking for lost children. The drones are not intended to replace police helicopters, but in specific incidents could be better, cheaper and quieter to use.

Starting in 2009, LASD began leasing electric-powered Mini Cooper cars for $10 a month each. In exchange, Mini Cooper's parent company, BMW, requested feedback about the cars. One of the cars is currently being used at the Sheriff Substation at Universal City.

The LASD hired the first female deputy sheriff in the United States in 1912. Margaret Q. Adams remained a deputy in the evidence department at the Los Angeles Courthouse for 35 years, until her retirement in 1947.

Special Weapons Teams
The Special Enforcement Bureau (SEB) is the LASD's equivalent of a SWAT team, which was originally a creation of the nearby Los Angeles Police Department during the 1960s. LASD SEB and LAPD SWAT have helped the United States Department of Defense in the past by training United States Army Rangers, United States Army Special Forces, and other military units on policing skills prior to being deployed overseas. Law enforcement agencies from across the nation and around the world often look to the LASD SEB and LAPD SWAT teams for training and advice, often sending experienced officers to train under both departments.

In 1992, after the Rodney King riots in Los Angeles, both the LAPD SWAT and LASD SEB teams decided to work on tactics that would rescue people from dangerous crowds, and at the same time provide a way to eliminate a threat, such as a gunman, without being noticed by a hostile crowd. In the first example, the idea was to have SWAT ride in one of the city's Air Rescue helicopter units with LAFD and LASD paramedics to enter a scene, using SWAT as a threat to ground opposition while LAFD paramedics could safely drop in and pick up an injured person. In the second example, sharpshooters could be used at high altitudes in LASD air units to look for any potential threats on the ground, and at the same time neutralize any would-be killers.

Air Rescue Program
The LASD Air Rescue program is used for many emergencies in L.A. County, most notably the wildfire-prone Angeles National Forest. Persons trapped in inaccessible areas are usually found and rescued by LASD Air Rescue. The LASD has multiple Sea King helicopters for this program.

Towards the middle of 2012, LASD's Air Rescue 5 began replacing Sikorsky H-3 Sea Kings with 3 Eurocopter AS332 Super Pumas as primary rescue helicopters.

In addition to having a fleet of three Sikorsky Sea Kings, the LASD also utilizes 14 Eurocopter AS-350 AStar helicopters and 3 Hughes/Schweizer 300 series S-300C helicopters.

The Sky Knight Helicopter Program is an airborne law enforcement program in Lakewood, California which began in 1966. The unit operates using non-sworn pilots, employed by the city of Lakewood, partnered with a sworn deputy sheriff from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, Lakewood station. The unit currently operates three Schweizer 300C helicopters, based at Long Beach airport and flies about 1,800 hours per year. Today, the Sky Knight program is completely integrated within the sheriff's tactical operations. Five other cities (Artesia, Bellflower, Hawaiian Gardens, Paramount and Cerritos) contract with Lakewood to participate in the Sky Knight program. These five cities also contract with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department for police services.

Cities
The LASD has entered into contracts with the numerous cities to serve as their police department/law enforcement agency. Forty-two (42) of the eighty-eight (88) cities in Los Angeles County contract with the Sheriff's Department for their complete municipal law enforcement services.

Some of the newer contract cities like Santa Clarita and West Hollywood have never had police departments. When their city governments were founded, they took over what was formerly unincorporated land, and then contracted their police responsibilities to the county sheriff. Since the department had substations in those areas, the result was to maintain the status quo.

In contrast, Compton, California, once had a police department. In 2000, the city council voted to dismantle the troubled police department and contract for police services. Compton has been at times notorious for gang violence, especially during its recent history. <!--

Other agencies
LASD provides dispatch services by contract to *California Department of Corrections for state parole officers. The services are provided by LASD County Services Bureau dispatchers.

Sheriff's dispatchers at the Avalon Sheriff's Station on Catalina Island also provide dispatch services for the city of Avalon Fire Department.

Transit Contracts

 * Metrolink
 * Los Angeles MTA (Metro)
 * Antelope Valley Transit Authority
 * Foothill Transit

Community Colleges Services Bureau (#87)

 * Los Angeles Community College District
 * Antelope Valley College

Court Services Division

 * Prisoner Transport Services with 31 of the 58 counties in California
 * Los Angeles County Marshal/Municipal Courts (Merged into LASD Court Services January 1. 1994)

Contract Custody Services

 * California Department of Corrections (Housing Parole Violators)

Reserve program
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department supplements its full-time ranks with over 800 reserve deputies. Reserve deputies are often civic minded people that have other full-time jobs outside of law enforcement. However some reserves may be retired Peace Officers, or former full-time officers that wish to keep their California Peace Officer Standards and Training certification active.

Like full-time deputies, reserve deputies are professionally trained and duly sworn law enforcement personnel. In most cases, reserves are assigned to the same duties as full-time deputies. Since reserve deputies have the same powers of arrest as full-time deputies they are required by law to meet the same hiring, background, medical and psychological standards as full-time deputies. Reserve deputies must first complete the state mandated training and then work assignments as their regular jobs permit.

Reserve sheriff's deputies are issued a badge, an identification card, uniforms, a Smith & Wesson M&P duty weapon, handcuffs, baton, and other necessary equipment. Reserve deputy sheriffs are either Level I Designated, Level I Non Designated or Level II. Level I Designated reserves have the same training and 24-hour peace officer authority as regular full-time deputies and may carry their firearm concealed off duty without the need for a concealed weapons permit (CCW). Level I Non Designated and Level II reserve deputies have full peace officer powers when on duty, and, if issued a CCW permit, may choose to carry a concealed weapon when off duty.

Reserve deputy sheriffs must volunteer 20 hours per month of their time, with the regular compensation being one dollar per year. Reserve deputy sheriffs may also qualify for shooting bonus pay of up to $32.00 per month, and some paid special event assignments are occasionally available, as well as overtime for Level I deputies. Like full-time deputies, reserve deputy sheriffs serve at the will of the Sheriff, must obey all departmental regulations, but do not fall into the framework of the civil service system. Reserve deputies supplement the regular operations of the Sheriff's Department by working in their choice of Uniform Reserve (Patrol), Mounted Posse, Search and Rescue or as a Specialist.

Demographics
By sex:
 * Male: 86%
 * Female: 14%

By race:
 * White: 60%
 * Hispanic: 26%
 * African American/Black: 10%
 * Asian: 4%

Rank, insignia, and uniforms
Rank insignia for Lieutenant through Sheriff is worn on the collars of the shirt and the shoulders of the jacket. Rank insignia for Bonus Deputies (Detectives, FTOs, Team Leaders, Watch Deputies, etc.) and Sergeants is worn on the upper sleeves in the form of chevron stripes. Sworn staff from Deputy upwards wear silver-tan shirts with forest green pants, the traditional Sheriff's uniform in California.

Sheriff's Security Officers, Security Assistants, and Community Service Officers have the same green pants, but with white uniform shirts. Custody Assistants, who work in the County Jails as well as station lockups, have all green uniforms. Law Enforcement Technicians, Parking Control Officers, and other unarmed civilian uniformed staff wear blue uniforms.

Class A uniforms, which are wool-blend and worn with metal badges and name tags, are the standard every day uniforms. Class B uniforms, which are wash-and-wear polyester-cotton with cloth badge patches, are worn in custody environments, certain specialized units, and can also be authorized for wear in inclement weather or extreme heat. There are also specialist uniforms such as bicycle patrol gear, nomex flight suits, tactical uniforms, and others for special circumstances. Authorized headgear includes the combination cap and campaign hat in green for the Class A uniform, worn with the county hat piece, as well as baseball caps with the Class B uniform.

Badges for sworn personnel are metal, gold colored, six-point stars. The center of the badge is circumscribed by a blue cloisonne band containing the words "Deputy Sheriff" and "Los Angeles County" in gold lettering. The inner circle, within the blue band contains a silver likeness of the California State Bear. The serial number of the badge appears at the bottom of the badge below "Los Angeles County." Ranks above Deputy have the title in the top part of the inner-circle of the badge, just above the Bear.

Badges for civilian uniformed personnel are of the standard Los Angeles County departmental design, being gold colored shields with a likeness of the California State Bear at the top, and an enameled county seal in the center. The top-most ribbon contains the words "County of Los Angeles" and the following one "Sheriff's Department." The bottom ribbons have the job title of the holder and a serial number.

History
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, which was founded in 1850, was the first professional police force in the Los Angeles area. The all-volunteer, Los Angeles-specific Los Angeles Rangers were formed in 1853 to assist the LASD. They were soon succeeded by the Los Angeles City Guards, another volunteer group. Neither force was particularly efficient and Los Angeles became known for its violence, gambling and "vice."

On March 10, 2007, actor Jackie Chan joined forces with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department in their current recruitment campaign, oriented towards encouraging more members of the Asian American community to join the Sheriff's Department. In the announcement with Sheriff Lee Baca, Chan was seen wearing an Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputy uniform. One LASD public service announcement has already featured Chan.

On December 15, 2009, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 to merge the Los Angeles County Office of Public Safety into the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. The merger took place on June 30, 2010.

Members killed on duty


As of 2016, 129 sheriff's deputies have been killed in the line of duty since the department's founding in 1850.

Awards, commendations, citations and medals
The department presents a number of medals to its members for meritorious service. The medals that the LASD awards to its officers are as follows:
 * Medal of Valor Award.png Medal of Valor - The Medal of Valor award is the highest honor a member of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department can receive. It is awarded to persons who distinguish themselves by displaying great courage, above and beyond the call of duty, in the face of an immediate life-threatening peril, and with full knowledge of the risk involved.
 * Meritorious Conduct Gold Award.png Meritorious Conduct Gold Medal - This medal is the second highest award a Department member can receive. It is awarded to persons who place themselves in immediate peril and perform an act of heroism and/or save the life of another person.
 * Meritorious Conduct Silver Award.png Meritorious Conduct Silver Medal -This medal is awarded to persons who, when confronted by circumstances beyond the normal course of their duties, place themselves in potential peril while performing an act of heroism or while saving or attempting to save the life of another.
 * Life Saving Award.png Lifesaving Award
 * Purple Heart Award.png Purple Heart Award
 * Meritorious Service Award.png Meritorious Service Award
 * Exemplary Service Award.png Exemplary Service Award
 * Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Distinguished Service Award.png Distinguished Service Award
 * Humanitarian Award.png Humanitarian Award
 * Unit Commander Award.png Unit Commander Award

Misconduct
In October 1969, LASD deputies bungled a drug raid in Whittier along with officers from the California State Bureau of Narcotics and one officer from nearby Vernon. The team went to the wrong address. In the confusion, the Vernon officer, Detective Sergeant Frank Sweeny, fired his rifle. The bullet went through the floor of the apartment and killed Heyden Dyer who lived downstairs.

On February 11, 1989, an incident of overwhelming force by sheriffs in riot gear invaded the family home of GLOW professional wrestler Mt. Fiji in Cerritos, California during a bridal shower for Dole's sister, Melinda. Much like the Rodney King incident two years later, the event was videotaped by a neighbor, Doug Botts showing the sheriffs beating the family. After being a celebrity for three years on National TV, the massive Mt. Fiji smartly took a passive stance, arms folded in the middle of the street, where the video showed her being beaten to the ground with police batons and flashlights. All 34 members of the party, all Samoan, were beaten and arrested. The Samoan-American community was angered, contending the incident was racist in nature. The family sued the Sheriff's Department and won a 23 million dollar settlement.

In 2006, an investigation into corruption at the department collapsed due to "the intimidation tactics of the LASD." A summary of the allegations claimed that captains in the department were ordered to collect $10,000 from each towing contractor doing business with the department. The payments were used as contributions to political causes favored by the sheriff.

In December 2009, the L.A. Times reported that L.A. County Auditor-Controller Wendy L. Watanabe's office found 348 deputies worked more than 900 hours of overtime between March 2007 and February 2008. This would equal an extra six months of full-time work. The audit found that over the last five years, the department had exceeded its overtime budget by an average of 104 percent for each year.

In September 2009, Mitrice Richardson was observed in a Malibu, California restaurant seemingly experiencing a mental health crisis. She made statements regarding being from mars and avenging the death of Michael Jackson. Unable to pay her restaurant bill and out of concern for her mental health, restaurant staff called the sheriff's who arrested her and subsequently released her without her car, phone, money or any means of caring for herself at 12:38am. Her naked skeletal remains were discovered approximately eleven months after her disappearance. The county settled with the family for $900,000.00.

According to the Los Angeles Times, in 2010, the department hired almost 300 new officers. The department later discovered about 100 of the new hires had lied on their applications. Fifteen of the new officers cheated on the department's polygraph test. About 200 of the new deputies and guards had been disqualified by other law enforcement agencies for misconduct or having failed qualification tests. The department launched an investigation of how the media found out about the flawed hiring process.

In September 2010, three deputies (Humberto Magallanes, Kenny Ramirez and Lee Simoes) pleaded no contest to charges related to their beating of a prisoner in 2006. The three men were sentenced to various periods of parole and resigned from the department.

In December 2010, members of a widely known gang-like group of L.A. County Sheriff's Deputies known as 'The 3,000 Boys' were involved in a violent fight in the parking lot of the Quiet Cannon Restaurant in Montebello. An anonymous call made to the Montebello police department reported three Sheriff's Deputies were holding down a fourth, beating him severely. Montebello Police arrived on the scene and broke up the fight; however, no arrests were made. The '3,000 Boys' is a name referring to a gang of L.A. County Sheriff's Deputies and Jailers who have been involved in the beatings and organized fights of inmates in the 3,000 block of the Men's Central Jail in Downtown Los Angeles. In May 2011, six deputies were suspended without pay (pending termination and criminal prosecution) for the beating of Evans Tutt, an inmate who had been filing complaints about living conditions within the jail.

In January 2011, Deputy Patricia Margaret Bojorquez was sentenced to a year in custody for making a false police report against her husband and recklessly firing a gun in her home.

In April 2011, Deputy Sean Paul Delacerda was convicted of breaking into a woman's home kidnapping, assaulting her with a handgun and falsely imprisoning her.

In July 2011, the department agreed to pay a half million dollars to the family of 16-year-old Avery Cody Jr. Cody was shot by Deputy Sergio Reyes in 2009. Reyes made several statements under oath that were disproven by video of the incident. The department then agreed to settle, but admitted no guilt.

In October 2011, Deputy Mark Fitzpatrick was convicted of an on-duty sexual assault and false imprisonment during a May 2008 traffic stop. Fitzpatrick has a long history of similar complaints against him during his career with the LACSD. The department agreed to pay the woman $245,000.

In January, 2012 Jazmyne Ha Eng was shot and killed by Deputy Brian Vance outside a mental-health center in Rosemead, where she was a patient. Vance said Eng charged him and the other three deputies on the scene, making them fear for their lives. Eng was 40 years old, weighed 93 pounds and stood five feet one inches tall. An internal investigation ruled the killing justifiable, but in February 2014, the county agreed to pay $1.8 million to settle the matter.

In May 2012, part of the Gang Enforcement Team was accused of being a clique called "Jump Out Boys" after a pamphlet was discovered indicating that members would receive a tattoo after being involved in a shooting, glorifying the incident. It drew comparisons to the problematic Rampart Division of the LAPD in the 1990s, who had the same tattoo.

In June 2012, Deputy Rafael Zelaya was sentenced to six months in jail for stealing drugs from someone while on duty.

In July 2013, a federal jury awarded $200,000 to a 69-year-old man who had his rib broken by two sheriff's deputies attempting to arrest him in 2009. The jury also ordered Deputy Mark Collins to pay punitive damages of $1,000.

In October 2013, Deputy Mark Eric Hibner, was convicted by a jury of two counts of domestic violence and three counts of making threats.

In December 2013, Deputy Michael Anthony Grundynt was sentenced to three years probation for a fleeing the scene of an accident in 2011. He had been driving while drunk.

In March 2014, Deputy Jose Rigoberto Sanchez pleaded no contest to one count each of rape under color of authority and soliciting a bribe. He was sentenced to eight years and eight months in prison. His rapes happened in 2010 while he was on duty.

In early July 2014, six correctional officers, two deputies, two sergeants and two lieutenants were convicted by a federal court of interfering with a federal grand jury investigation of the county jail.

In popular culture
In the late 1950s, a short lived Dragnet-style television series, "Code 3", aired based on real cases (though names and locations were changed) from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. The late Eugene Biscailuz, then sheriff of Los Angeles County, was featured in a cameo tag line at the end of every episode.

Dan Raven was a police drama that ran on NBC from 1960 to 1961. It featured Skip Homeier as the titular character, a detective lieutenant assigned to the West Hollywood Sheriff's Station, whose cases often involved show business celebrities.

The department's Emergency Services Detail (ESD), which functions under the umbrella of the Special Enforcement Bureau (SEB), was depicted in the short lived television series, 240-Robert. The SEB also includes the Canine Services Detail (K-9), and the Special Enforcement Detail (SED), which is the department's special weapons team.

The department's gang unit was the subject of a 1988 Academy Award-nominated short documentary film, Gang Cops.

Don Johnson features as a LASD deputy in the 1989 film Dead Bang, a movie directed by John Frankenheimer.

James Ellroy's L.A. Quartet novel The Big Nowhere features an LASD deputy, Danny Upshaw, as one of its three protagonists.

In September 2003, ABC premiered 10-8: Officers on Duty, a comedy/drama based on a rookie with the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department. The show lasted one season. The show's name was based on the police radio code for "in service".

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's Recruit Training Bureau is featured on Fox Reality show The Academy, documenting the day-to-day activities of the recruits and training staff of LASD Academy Class 355 and 368. The show aired from May 2007 to July 2008.

The show The X-Files released an episode "X-Cops" (season 7, episode 12) in which FBI Special Agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully collaborate with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (in a pseudo-crossover of an episode of Cops) in order to catch a mysterious, shapeshifting entity. Some actual deputies were featured in the episode for a scene where a SWAT team raids a drug house.

In the 2013 video game Grand Theft Auto V, a parody of the LASD known as the Los Santos County Sheriff's Department (LSSD) patrols Los Santos County, which is based on Los Angeles County.

In the 1970s, the department was featured as the police department that was present at the rescues on Emergency!