LOMITA : Sheriff Opens Ombudsman Office to Field Complaints
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An ombudsman’s office has opened in Lomita, part of a long-anticipated effort to soothe community anger over the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s past use-of-force policies. Five retired judges were appointed to review complaints forwarded by the ombudsman’s office and to provide an independent review in cases involving allegedly excessive use of force.
Rudolph De Leon, 69, a retired police captain who worked as a special assistant to former California Atty. Gen. John Van de Kamp, was hired in mid-March for the ombudsman’s job. He began work Monday as the Sheriff Department’s in-house investigator of citizen complaints.
De Leon, the unanimous choice of the Board of Supervisors for the $60,200- a-year job, vowed to provide swift and efficient response to community concerns and complaints.
“I want to give people confidence that their complaints are going to be addressed, and there will be fairness and efficiency in dealing with their complaints to their satisfaction,” he said.
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