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LA County Sheriff Lee Baca sworn for 4th term
Sheriff Lee Baca at a press conference at the Los Angeles Sheriffs Department June 8, 2007 in Monterey Park, California.
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LA County Sheriff Lee Baca sworn for 4th term
LA County Sheriff Lee Baca sworn for 4th term
Governor-elect Jerry Brown administered the oath of office to Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca. Baca’s entering his fourth term as sheriff.
Brown swore Baca in at a packed conference room in Our Lady of the Angels Cathedral in downtown Los Angeles.
The governor-elect, who says he’s known Baca for a long time, said what many of the police and politicians present already knew about Baca’s unusual style of law enforcement leadership. “We got a tough guy, but we got a lover at the same time.”
The 68-year-old sheriff likes to talk a lot about helping homeless people and rehabilitating inmates. He reiterated that in his address. “How can you expect to send someone to jail or prison for whatever period time, give them no educatioN and expect they are going to come out better than when they went in. It won’t happen.”
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Baca promised more help for inmates in his fourth term. His tenure has not been without controversy; it includes accusations of abuse of power when he ordered an investigation into a case that involved a campaign donor. But the sheriff’s biggest challenge may be diminishing budgets that threaten to further shrink his department.
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But the game has changed: Congress voted to eliminate funding for public media across the country. Here at LAist that means a loss of $1.7 million in our budget every year. We want to assure you that despite growing threats to free press and free speech, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust. Speaking frankly, the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news in our community.
We’re asking you to stand up for independent reporting that will not be silenced. With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else. Become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission.
Thank you for your generous support and belief in the value of independent news.
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