A former Los Angeles County sheriff‘s deputy pleaded not guilty Thursday to federal charges alleging he participated in the cover-up of the beating of a handcuffed visitor to Men’s Central Jail.
Byron Dredd, 33, entered his plea in Los Angeles to a three-count indictment charging him with conspiracy to violate Gabriel Carrillo’s civil rights and two counts of making false reports, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Five other former deputies have been convicted in relation to the assault and cover-up and are pending sentencing, including ex-Sgt. Eric Gonzalez, who faces sentencing Monday.
Dredd, like his co-defendants, was assigned to the visiting center at the downtown jail.
On Feb. 26, 2011, Carrillo and his girlfriend went to the jail to visit his incarcerated brother. Both visitors had cell phones in their possession, which is prohibited under jail rules.
When the phones were discovered, Carrillo was handcuffed and brought into an employee break room, where he was beaten and sprayed with a burning agent similar to pepper spray, evidence at a previous trial showed.
The victim was later transferred to the hospital by paramedics.
As a result of false statements made by the previously convicted deputies and allegedly made by Dredd, Carrillo was charged with several crimes, including resisting an officer and battery.
The indictment against Dredd alleges he wrote an incident report in which he falsely claimed Carrillo attacked one of the deputies and then attempted to escape, prosecutors said.
If convicted of the charges, Dredd would face as much as 35 years in federal prison — up to 10 years for the civil rights conspiracy, up to 20 years for the falsification of records, and up to five years for making false statements to the FBI, prosecutors noted.
The case is the result of a federal investigation into corruption and civil rights abuses at county jail facilities.
As a result, 15 current or former sheriff’s deputies have now been convicted of federal charges related to the ongoing probe.
Carrillo, an ex-forklift operator, was paid almost $1.2 million last year to settle a civil rights lawsuit.
— City News Service