A Los Angeles police lieutenant has filed a legal claim against the city, alleging his superiors ignored his warnings about misconduct in an anti-gang unit until it became a public scandal, leading to him facing termination.
The claim, which typically serves as the precursor to a lawsuit, was brought this month by Lt. Mark Garza. It’s the first litigation being pursued by a former member the Mission Division gang unit, whose officers came under investigation last year over allegations they illegally stopped and searched vehicles and stole from people they pulled over.
Garza, who was in charge of the unit, said he reported his suspicion in June 2023 that some of his officers were conducting “ghost stops,” which meant their actions could go unnoticed because they didn’t document the encounters or turn on their body-worn or dashboard cameras and never informed police dispatch of where they were.
At that time, Garza said, the department’s body camera policy required supervisors to review only footage related to “complaints, use of force and pursuits.” Meanwhile, audits at the bureau level were limited in scope, with only two videos per unit reviewed randomly every 30 days or so. Without more robust checks, the lieutenant argued, it was possible for misconduct by his unit to fly under the radar.