Sex, lies and bullets flying wildly. Then there are the stolen drugs, illegal chokeholds, planted evidence, falsified reports and a police officer who lied to move up the adoption list for a puppy. Those are among the misadventures uncovered during the first six months of disclosures under California’s new police transparency law, Senate Bill 1421, which took effect Jan. 1. The statute requires police to release long-secret records about officer shootings, use of force, sexual misconduct and dishonesty. Yet those disturbing examples of police misconduct have come from a only a smattering of law enforcement agencies around the state. Some large agencies, such as the Orange County, Riverside County and San Bernardino County sheriffs’ departments, San Jose Police Department, the California Highway Patrol and the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, have yet to turn over a single document. Others have released only paltry records.
The Orange County Register
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