Sheriff's Policies Need Changes, Malibu Commission Says

Urged by public speakers addressing two incidents involving Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department officers, the Malibu Public Safety Commission voted 3-1 on Wednesday to recommend the City Council explore ways to improve policies on late-night traffic stops and inmate releases from the Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station

However, the City Council might not be in a position to dictate rules to the sheriff’s station. The city has a contract for sheriff’s services, but the Malibu/Lost Hills station is not under the control of the city as a police department would be.

"We welcome any positive ideas that could help with public safety," said Malibu/Lost Hills Capt. Joseph Stephen. "Whether they'd be implemented, I couldn't promise that."

City Manager Jim Thorsen told the commission he did not support the recommendation.

"I don't see it as a big enough issue to take to council and reemphasize what's been presented to the sheriff's [officials at this meeting]," Thorsen said.

Among those who addressed the commission were the family of Mitrice Richardson—the woman who went missing and was found dead in 2010 following her 2009 late-night arrest and release from the Malibu/Lost Hills station—as well as Monique Lukens, a Northridge resident who has frequently addressed the City Council, claiming she wrongfully received a ticket in Malibu for failing to stop when she chose to seek a well-lit area before pulling over her vehicle for a sheriff's officer.

Several commissioners said officers should not ticket drivers for doing what Lukens said she did. Also, they said people arrested and booked at the station should not be released into the dark of night without a means of finding or paying for transportation home—especially women transported to the station without their purse, money or cellphone, which was the case for Richardson.

"She was left to fend for herself," said Lauren Sutton, Richardson's aunt.

Commissioner Marlene Matlow said, "When you arrest someone here and take them to Lost Hills, and release them in the night, they really are in harm's way."

"I don't ever separate me from my purse," Commission Chair Carol Randall said. "I think that's a real issue for any woman. We all carry our lives in them."

Lt. Jim Royal, the Malibu/Lost Hills station's liaison officer for the city of Malibu, told the commission there is no policy requiring officers to separate arrestees from their belongings during an arrest. They have a choice, he maintained, to remain at the station overnight, or to call for a taxi.

Royal also defended the policy on traffic patrol stops. He cited an incident in which  a motorist opened fire on deputies during a stop. Royal stressed public safety and said that if a motorist fails to pull over immediately, it can be a cause for alarm.

"When a driver does not yield, it's not unreasonable for deputies [to assume] that the driver's either hiding evidence [or] arming themselves," he said. "The deputies are going to be on high-alert when that happens. If someone doesn't pull over, generally speaking, that could result in pursuit being initiated."

Lukens' supporters spoke at the meeting.

"Motorists have been having their safety compromised," said Armaiti May, a Santa Monica resident. "Who knows if that cop behind them is real or an impersonator? It makes me really question what the protocol should be for police officers stopping people."

Commissioner David Saul was the panel's lone opponent to the recommendation for the City Council. He said it would be singling out the Malibu/Lost Hills station from the county's other sheriff's stations.

"We're not in a position to tell these guys what to do," he said. "Our City Council, aside from taking our recommendation … can't be [putting] Lost Hills against all these different areas. The policy we're trying to enforce has to be across the board. I think we're overreaching our area."