A judge is mulling a request by attorneys for Los Angeles County to depose a 46-year-old Black man who alleges that he was harassed and discriminated against by his instructors while training to be a sheriff’s deputy due to his race and age.
In his Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit, plaintiff Donte Pipkins further contends he was subjected to disparate treatment because he had a kidney stone and that he was terminated in 2024 for seeking accommodations for his condition. On Tuesday, Judge Jerrold Abeles heard opposing arguments on the county’s deposition request and took the case under submission.
In their court papers, county attorneys state that Pipkins has twice failed to show up for properly noticed depositions without a proper objection and should pay $1,800 in sanctions for the cost of the county having to bring the motion.
“Plaintiff’s conduct constitutes misuse of the discovery process and has prejudiced (the county’s) ability to prepare its defense and complete discovery before the applicable deadlines,” the county attorneys state in their court papers.
But in their pleadings, Pipkins’ attorneys contend that the county motion “reflects gamesmanship by attempting to invert the proper discovery sequence rather than cooperating on scheduling and should be denied” while also stating that the opposition’s actions “lack civility and violate professional guidelines as well as this court’s own directives.”
According to Pipkins’ lawsuit, his LASD training instructor told him to “go shoot a video in the hood or something” and said he “shouldn’t be a cop because he’s not good at it.”
Pipkins also was often berated and told he was “stupid” and one deputy told him, “You will not be a sheriff’s deputy. I will personally see to that,” according to the suit, which further states that white and Latino trainees were not treated the same way.
Pipkins further contends he was accused of making up his kidney stone condition and not given accommodations. He says he was terminated in May 2024 at age 44 under false allegations of integrity violations and that younger as well as non-Black individuals were not similarly let go.
Pipkins, who dreamed of joining the LASD, has suffered emotional distress and financial losses since his termination, the suit filed in January 2025 states.