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High-Ranking L.A. County Prosecutor Arrested On Domestic Violence Call, Allegedly Tried To Intimidate Police
Los Angeles Hall of Justice. (Photo by Archie Tucker via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr)
Michael Yglecias, Head Deputy District Attorney with the L.A. County D.A., was arrested last month after a domestic abuse call, and has since been placed on leave. Citing a conflict, the county district attorney's office said that it will leave it up to the California attorney general’s office to decide if they will prosecute. The L.A. Times broke the story on Wednesday.
The misdemeanor battery arrest took place on June 23 at a Pomona home. According to a police report obtained by the Times, officers arrived at the residence on a domestic violence report, and found that Lisa Diaz, Yglecias's wife, had placed the call. Diaz then led the officers to the master bedroom, where Yglecias was by the bed folding his clothes. When officers asked him to give a statement, Yglecias said, "I'm folding my clothes, leave me the f--- alone," according to the report.
The reporting officer said that, later, Diaz provided a statement and said that she and Yglecias, 59, had been having an argument earlier, and that she'd decided to sleep in a different bedroom. According to Diaz, Yglecias did not want her to sleep in a separate room and the two continued to argue. At some point, she reached out to turn off a lightswitch, and Yglecias struck her in the arm, according to the report. Diaz said that she'd also hit back at Yglecias. When the reporting officer asked what the argument was about, Diaz said that it started because Yglecias had wanted to have sex, but she'd wanted to go to bed.
The report goes on to say that, when officers attempted again to get a statement from Yglecias, he simply responded with "your [sic] welcome to leave now." The reporting officer also claims that Yglecias has "positioned himself about two feet from me and had his chest puffed out in attempt to dominate the conversation and intimidate me," adding that he could smell alcohol on Yglecias' breath.
Yglecias was later placed in handcuffs, at which point, Diaz asked "is all this necessary?" and characterized the incident as a "family matter" and a "misunderstanding," as stated in the report. The report also adds that Diaz did not want to press charges.
Diaz did not have any visible injuries, said the reporting officer. Yglecias was arrested, and was released after posting a $20,000 bond the next day, reports the Times.
The California Attorney General's office wrote to LAist saying "The matter is still under review." The Pomona Police Department said they could not provide any further details about the arrest.
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