RELEASES SOUGHT IN RAMPART PROBE.Byline: Rick Orlov and Dominic Berbeo Staff Writers As the Rampart Division police corruption Police corruption is a specific form of police misconduct sometimes involving political corruption, and generally designed to gain a financial or political benefit for a police officer or officers in exchange for not pursuing, or selectively pursuing, an investigation or arrest. scandal continues to widen, prosecutors will seek the release next week of six to 10 people wrongly accused by officers, District Attorney Gil Garcetti Gilbert "Gil" Garcetti (b. August 5, 1941) served as Los Angeles County's 39th District Attorney for two terms, from 1992 until November 7, 2000. Background Gil Garcetti received a bachelor's degree in Management from the University of Southern California and a Juris said Thursday. Garcetti also said he is adding three prosecutors to the investigation and may add more. ``Our highest priority remains freeing people who have been wrongly imprisoned im·pris·on tr.v. im·pris·oned, im·pris·on·ing, im·pris·ons To put in or as if in prison; confine. [Middle English emprisonen, from Old French emprisoner : en- due to perjured per·jure tr.v. per·jured, per·jur·ing, per·jures Law To make (oneself) guilty of perjury by deliberately testifying falsely under oath. testimony from LAPD 1. LAPD - Link Access Procedure on the D channel. 2. LAPD - Los Angeles Police Department. officers,'' Garcetti said at a news conference in his Criminal Courts Building offices. He confirmed reports that former Officer Rafael Perez was given a lie detector test lie detector test n. a popular name for a polygraph which tests the physiological reaction of a person to questions asked by a testing expert. A potential or actual criminal defendant or possible witness cannot be forced or ordered to take a lie detector test. . While Garcetti would not discuss the results, other law enforcement officials said Perez failed the test, casting doubt on some of his statements. Perez is at the heart of the controversy involving the Rampart Division anti-gang CRASH unit, with allegations that officers routinely planted evidence, lied in court and assaulted people to get convictions. Perez is scheduled to be sentenced later this month for his guilty plea on cocaine theft charges. ``By the time this is over, the LAPD will be a better police agency,'' Garcetti said. ``We want to make sure we have prosecutable cases and not someone who Perez might be singling out. Successful prosecutions and state prison sentences will be the best deterrent to misconduct.'' Also, Garcetti said his office has reinstituted ``roll-out teams'' to investigate shootings by the Sheriff's Department and Santa Monica Santa Monica (săn`tə mŏn`ĭkə), city (1990 pop. 86,905), Los Angeles co., S Calif., on Santa Monica Bay; inc. 1886. Tourism and retailing are important, and the city has motion-picture, biotechnology, and software industries. and Pasadena police. He said he hopes to soon reach an agreement to include the LAPD. Roll-out teams had been discontinued as a county budget-cutting move. LAPD Chief Bernard Parks has said as many as 99 individuals might have been wrongly convicted based on the actions of the officers. Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. officials have estimated that the city could face up to $125 million in liability claims, based on known cases so far, but independent estimates put the cost much higher. County officials do not believe they will be affected by any of those lawsuits. Assistant County Counsel Lou Aguilar said the District Attorney's Office prosecuted cases based on the evidence and testimony provided by the officers and would be protected from any liability. In a related development, City Council President John Ferraro John Ferraro (May 14 1924—April 17 2001) served as a Los Angeles City Councilman from 1966 until his death. Early life Ferraro was born in the working class suburb of Cudahy, California, just south of Los Angeles. created a working group to provide direction on the lawsuits expected to be filed. The group will include representatives of the mayor, the city attorney, chief legislative analyst and city administrative offices. It also will include council members Mike Feuer and Cindy Miscikowski Cindy Miscikowski represented the 11th District on the Los Angeles City Council for two full terms from 1997 through 2005. Previously, she was an aide to Councilman Marvin Braude and the Executive Director of the Skitball Cultural Center in its beginning stages. , who chair the council's Budget and Finance and Public Safety committees, respectively. Also on Thursday, attorneys said they will add the city, City Council and City Attorney James Hahn as defendants in a lawsuit brought by Javier Ovando, who claims Los Angeles police officers from Rampart shot him, then framed him for assault. ``It's absurd for them to say they didn't know these things were going on. It was happening right under their nose,'' said attorney Gregory W. Moreno, who represents Ovando. Ovando, speaking at a news conference at Moreno's offices in Montebello, said he is suffering. ``I feel very bad about what happened. I just want to say one thing: I'd like my life back, that's all.'' CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Garcetti |
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