LA Sheriff Slams ‘Woke’ City Leadership Over Crime on Public Transit

LOS ANGELES—Los Angeles Sheriff Alex Villanueva blamed so-called “woke” city leaders in the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) for the hazardous conditions on the city’s public transit lines throughout a press conference April 13 at the Hall of Justice.

“When you’re on a train, or on a bus, you’re susceptible to every resident there with you; you can’t opt-out or action away,” Villanueva informed pressreporters. “You’re subjecting each traveler to the least typical denominator—that’s somebody with serious psychological problems, psychotic problems, arranged groups of individuals who are robbing individuals on the trains. There are a lot of things going on here not enhanced by the MTA Board.”

Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva speaks at a press conference in downtown Los Angeles on Nov. 2,2021 (Robyn Beck/AFP bymeansof Getty Images)

According to the constable’s department, numerous occurrences over the last coupleof months have happened on the city lines including the homeless population.

In February, a homeless male was split in half by a train after sleeping on the tracks.

In March, a individual was pressed onto the tracks at 7th and Metro PAX by a homeless individual and suffered injury to the head.

In April, a homeless guy who passedaway was on the train for more than 6 hours after he was deceased.

“And to state this risky environment is clearly an understatement,” Villanueva stated, including that the lines have endupbeing a “mobile homeless shelter” with more than 5,000 homeless individuals living on the trains.

A Los Angeles-bound Metro Rail train stops at the Lake Metro Link station along the 210 highway in Pasadena, Calif., on April 13,2007 (David McNew/Getty Images)

The constable, who rode on a handful of the city lines 2 weeks previous to scope out its public security, threatened to pull his department’s agreement to patrol parts of the MTA lines after seeing the conditions. He included the elevators in the stations have likewise been taken over by the homeless and utilized as porta-potties.

Villanueva stated he sentout a letter to the board stating he would getridof 325 of his deputies presently patrolling public transit and redeploy them inotherplaces unless the board bringsback complete public security control to the department by July 1.

Alongside the constable’s department, the Long Beach Police Department and the and the Los Angeles Police Department likewise patrol MTA lines within their jurisdictions under the present agreement.

But in 2017, the constable’s department had complete control of patrolling the MTA lines upuntil that agreement ended and the MTA developed a three-agency patrol system. Now, the duty of patrolling is split inbetween the 3 departments.

Villanueva stated throughout the press conference that the MTA is avoiding his deputies from doing their tasks through “degrading and defunding” law enforcement.

“It oughtto be keptinmind that our department has a Metrolink agreement and that is 538 miles of track, it covers 6 counties and you do not see this on the Metrolink—you just see it on the MTA system,” he stated.

According to the department’s stats, break-ins and intensified attacks on the MTA haveactually been increasing giventhat2019 But throughout the summerseason 2020 riots over the death of George Floyd, the MTA cut back on the usage of law enforcement on the train lines to lower the look of armed actions on daily transit systems.

But Villanueva stated as the MTA has attempted to make its system more “equitable,” however it hasactually been an “utter catastrophe.”

The MTA did not instantly respond to The Epoch Times’ demand for remark by press duedate.