Former LA County Jail Captains Retire After Inmate Abuse Probes

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Two Los Angeles County Sheriff's captains who had been subjects of internal department investigations were no longer with the force on Thursday.

KNX 1070's Kim Mariner reports one of the captains was a key figure in an inmate abuse scandal at Men's Central Jail.

Last July, the former head of the jail, Capt. Daniel Cruz, was accused of protecting overly aggressive jailers and allegedly making jokes about not hitting inmates in their face to avoid bruising their faces.

Cruz has denied the charges.

Capt. Bernice Abram was suspected of providing information to an alleged Compton drug dealer, but no charges were filed against her.

Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said both Cruz and Abram have opted to retire.

"The Sheriff's Department conducted its own internal affairs investigations and one of them was concluded, and I can't say what the findings were, but what I can tell you is that appropriate action was taken and there's another one that's still ongoing," said Whitmore.

But Whitmore rejected any assertion that the charges should tarnish the careers of either Cruz or Abram.

"They served the county well over the span of their career, and they did admirable duty, and we thank them for their service," he said.

Since neither was convicted of any crime, both Cruz and Abram will receive their full taxpayer-funded pensions.