One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
LA DA Gascón Charges Baldwin Park Officer In Alleged On-Duty Assault On Teen Under Arrest
Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center photographed in September. The former Baldwin Park officer charged with an on-duty assault is scheduled for a preliminary hearing at the court on Dec. 7.
(
Frazer Harrison
/
Getty Images
)
L.A County District Attorney George Gascón has charged a Baldwin Park police officer with two counts of assault connected to the alleged beating of a 16-year-old boy who was under arrest.
The officer, Ryan Felton, pleaded not guilty Wednesday. The Baldwin Park Department said he no longer works for them.
In a news release, the DA's office gave this account of what took place:
On September 22, 2019, Felton and another officer were involved in a pursuit of a vehicle that had allegedly failed to yield during a traffic stop. The vehicle stopped and a youth exited and is accused of running away.
Felton got out of his vehicle and gave chase on foot. A short time later, the teen surrendered and laid face down on the ground. Felton is charged with kicking the teen while he was on the ground and assaulting him while he sat in the back of Felton’s squad car.
The case remains under investigation by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
“Those who wear the uniform must follow the law. Excessive force will not be tolerated in Los Angeles County,” Gascón said in a statement.
Gascón has promised to more closely scrutinize police officers who use force than his predecessor, Jackie Lacey. He has created a panel to review police shootings that Lacey determined to be legally justified. The panel will recommend whether criminal charges should be filed against the officers involved.
Sponsored message
Criminal justice reporter Frank Stoltze contributed to this report.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
