Contra Costa County is now adding more staff to investigate racial bias in cases involving the Antioch Police Department.
Some have suggested the ongoing FBI investigation and racist text messaging scandal involving the department could jeopardize thousands of criminal cases.
And now another legal action has been filed against Antioch police claiming officers engaged in racial profiling and excessive force.
Cell phone video from last year shows Antioch police arresting Juan Laspeda and he’s now suing the city over the arrest.
According to the complaint filed by his lawyer, it all began when Laspeda was standing outside of a friend's apartment building with his fiance when officers approached them asking if they were "alright.”
Laspeda said he told them he was waiting on an Uber, but officers continued to ask questions. Laspeda said things took a violent turn when he tried to walk away.
And he, and his lawyer, claim race was a factor.
“He definitely was profiled, him and his fiancé, and I believe because they are Hispanic,” said Stanley Goff, Laspeda’s lawyer. “And that does tie to the texting scandal taking place in Antioch.”
Goff believes it’s reflective of the department’s culture.
A department already embroiled in a racist text message scandal involving more than dozen officers and a federal investigation that has at least eight other officers on leave.
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Now the county is adding more staff, largely to review cases involving these officers to see if race played a role.
“Our district attorney and public defender believe there could be hundreds, if not thousands of cases that may need to be reviewed,” said Supervisor John Gioia.
He is the chair of the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors and he pointed out the state’s Racial Justice Act, which requires the state to show prosecutors did not consider race when making charging and sentencing decisions.
Contra Costa County is adding 10 attorneys to both the district attorneys and the public defenders offices, with half of them focusing directly on prior cases involving the officers connected to the text messaging scandal
It will cost the county just over $2 million per year and could involve cases going back years.
“What we need to do as a system is fix any harm to individuals that may have occurred as a result of their racism and bias,” said Gioia.
As for Laspeda, he was released from custody without any charges.
It’s why his lawyer is convinced race played a role and wants to raise the flag for other cases.
“My clients don’t want to just want to get money, they want to see this not happen to anyone else while they’re waiting on an Uber trying to visit their friend,” said Goff.
