L.A. County prosecutors laid out their decision in a 16-page memo, which The Times reviewed. “While the method employed by Johnson may appear concerning, the available evidence is inconclusive and suggests the amount of force used was not excessive.'
L.A. County prosecutors laid out their decision in a 16-page memo, which The Times reviewed. In it, they concluded there was insufficient evidence to prove Deputy Doug Johnson committed the crime of assault under color of authority.
“While the method employed by Johnson may appear concerning, the available evidence is inconclusive and suggests the amount of force used was not excessive,” the memo says.Officials were worried about the optics of the kneeling, “given its nature and its similarities to widely publicized George Floyd use of force,” a commander who was critical of the coverup wrote in an internal force review. Prosecutors said they could not determine from the video how much weight Johnson put on the inmate, Enzo Escalante, but that his injuries appeared minor. The memo says Escalante’s statements to authorities afterward suggest he didn’t think the force used against him was unreasonable. “Shortly after the incident, Escalante described Johnson as ‘just doing his job’ and said when he informed Johnson that he was having trouble breathing after being taken to the ground, Johnson adjusted his weight so he could breathe normally,” the memo said. The Times published courthouse security video of the incident in March, revealing that department officials had attempted to cover up the incident out of fear of bad publicity. According to a commander’s report, department officials were worried about the optics of the kneeling, “given its nature and its similarities to widely publicized George Floyd use of force.” Those officials decided not to pursue criminal charges against Escalante, who had punched the deputy in the face, to avoid drawing attention to the incident, the commander wrote. Charges eventually were filed against him, but they were dropped this week. The district attorney’s office said it was “unable to proceed because a material witness was unavailable.” They did not identify the witness.
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