L.A. County sheriff’s unit accused of targeting political enemies, vocal critics
Back in 2018 I got into a serious car accident.  I was driving eastbound on Fountain Avenue when another car blew a red light and t-boned my Miata at full speed, crushing my entire driver's side, causing my car to spin 540 degrees, take out a stop sign and land on the front lawn of a nearby apartment building.I got out of my car, dazed amid a cloud of air bag dust and miraculously unscathed.  I was wearing my seat belt and had my convertible top and windows all the way down.  I otherwise would surely have ended up with a face full of glass.The other driver -- about a block away -- also got out of their car.  They took a glance at me, got back into their car and sped off.  Their car had no plates.I called 911 and Deputy Penate of the L.A. County Sheriff's Department arrived on the scene.  His attitude toward me was immediately hostile.I was in a completely traumatized state and had just experienced the scariest moment of my life.  As I was on the phone trying to arrange a tow, he approached me and said: "Do you think we could hurry this up? I'd really like to have some dinner tonight."A few minutes later as we were waiting for the tow truck, he got out of his patrol car and approached me again, making sniffing noises: "Why do I smell marijuana right now, sir?  If I search your car am I'm gonna find anything I'm not supposed to find?"I don't smoke marijuana.  There was no contraband in my car, which had been laying totaled on the side of the road with its top down for an hour.I had just been the victim of a serious crime and here was this law enforcement officer, trying to turn me into a criminal instead of assisting me in any way.That experience was a serious blow to my faith in law enforcement.