In a series of complaints filed with Los Angeles County Supervisor Stephanie Maxberry on Tuesday, February 23, 2010, Dr Joseph Zernik, a Los Angeles County Human Rights activist, detailed his abduction at gun point in La Verne, California, his false arrest, extortion, and armed robbery, related conduct by the Sheriff’s Department, which was alleged as amounting to corruption of operations and serious abuse of Human Rights, and related dishonest conduct by the La Verne Police Department undermining any integrity in crime statistics reports. [1]
Statements by Dr Zernik recounted events that were initiated on February 6, 2010, and involved his arrest by the La Verne Police, albeit – with no valid warrants to support such conduct, and with false data published in the matter by the Sheriff’s Department in its online Inmate Information Center. [2]
Events proceeded on February 7, 2010, purportedly through a bond transaction for $3,000, albeit bond was listed as $0.00 in the Sheriff’s online system, while Erika Higgins Bail Bonds, of Southgate, California, who executed the transactions, refused to provide the records documenting the legal foundation for the arrest and bond transaction with the Sheriff’s Department, as agreed in advance.
Events continued on February 8, 2010 with refusal of La Verne Police to allow access to the warrants – public records by California law, under the claim that such warrants were not “separate entities”. In fact, later searches in the respective court files failed to discover any valid warrant at all.
On February 17, 2010, Dr Zernik was subjected to puncturing of his car tires and a violent attack on his residence door, which - upon attempt to file a request for a crime report - a La Verne police officer explained to him the next day, were just “business transactions” by bounty hunters. La Verne Police also refused to arrest Dr Zernik, who surrendered at that time for refusal to collude in what he deemed corrupt bond/bail transactions of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
On February 18, 2010, around noontime, Dr Zernik was abducted at gun point and robbed of his wallet as well as his car and residence keys by the same individuals whom he had named the previous day as suspects –Richard Rodriguez, and Javier on behalf of Erica Higgins – and whose names La Verne Police refused to accept as suspects. For the next eight hours such persons kept Dr Zernik in handcuffs. As it later turned out – neither of the two men had the required certificates/licensees to engage in such armed abduction and robbery. Dr Zernik was subsequently held for hours in Southgate, California, while attempts were made to extort moneys out of him. When such efforts failed, Javier attempted to transport Dr Zernik to an unknown destination, and only due to Dr Zernik’s insistence he was eventually brought to the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Twin Towers jail in mid-afternoon that day. However, since neither Javier nor Richard Rodriguez had the required licenses/certificates, the Sheriff’s Department refused to accept Dr Zernik into custody at that time. In his complaint Dr Zernik alleged that although the Sheriff’s Department was fully aware of felonies being committed on Sheriff’s premises, Sheriff’s Deputies never attempted to stop such conduct, instead – the Sheriff’s Department created false records in its online system to cover up such alleged criminalities.
Dr Zernik was then transported back to Southgate, and again, he was extorted for moneys, which he again refused to pay. When he was finally transported back to Twin Towers in that evening, Dr Zernik stated that his pricey watch was robbed by a Sheriff’s Deputy, who immediately afterwards demanded that Dr Zernik sign a record that he had come into Sheriff’s custody with no possessions except for his clothing. When Dr Zernik refused, he stated that he was violently placed in solitary confinement and chained to the floor for some four hours, during which attempts, including threats of violence, were made to extort his signature. All such events were covered up in false records created by the Sheriff’s Department in its online Inmate Information Center.
On February 23, 2010 La Verne Police continued its refusal to allow access to the purported executed warrants for Dr Zernik’s arrest, under the claim by La Verne Police Records Supervisor Ruth Mahlow that such warrants were not “separate entities”, in disregard of California Public Records Act. La Verne Police Officer Garcia, likewise, refused to take an application for a crime report regarding the armed abduction, false arrest and armed robbery, which all took place in La Verne on February 19, 2010, under the claim that Dr Zernik “created the circumstances”, neither was a Daily Log number issued. [3]
On February 24, 2010 Los Angeles County Ombudsman Stephanie Maxberry confirmed receipt of Dr Zernik’s complaints against the Sheriff’s Department and its operations. [3]
Dr Zernik claimed that the fundamental problem was in conditions of the justice system in Los Angeles County, including the Los Angeles Superior Court, the Sheriff and Police, which were deemed a direct extension of the Rampart scandal (1998-2000), whose thousands of victims - the Rampart FIPs (Falsely Imprisoned Persons) - were yet to be freed. The general claim was that the Sheriff's Department of Los Angeles County implemented and was operating fraudulent case management systems, which allowed the large-scale deprivation of Liberty of persons in Los Angeles County, large-scale embezzlement of bail/bond moneys, as well as other violations of the law.
In his complaint, Dr Zernik also proposed the matching solution - publicly accountable validation (certified functional logic verification) of the computer systems of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, and strict enforcement of compliance with California Public Records Act – Cal Govt Code §6254(f). The position of the Los Angeles County justice system, as articulated by a well-connected source was that "computer systems, by their nature, do not lend themselves to validation". Dr Zernik claimed that there was nothing further from the truth. Computer systems were amenable to highly secure methods of validation, much better than any comparable paper-based system.
In his complaint, Dr Zernik also noted that lack of validity and security in other Los Angeles County computer systems had likewise been previously noted as a key deficiency by the Los Angeles County independent auditors - KMPG, Los Angeles. Furthermore, credible evidence had been previously presented by Dr Zernik, a Human Rights activist, to the Los Angeles County Supervisors, and a preliminary expert opinion letter had also been produced, supporting claims of the fraudulent nature of the case management systems of the Los Angeles County Superior Court itself. Furthermore, large-scale embezzlement of public funds by the Los Angeles Superior Court was alleged as well, where funds were routinely listed as "Journal Entry", and the Clerk of the Court refused to disclose the ultimate designation of such funds. Likewise, the failure and refusal of the Los Angeles Superior Court to publish audited financial statements remained inexplicable.
Los Angeles County agencies claimed that they had no authority to examine the computer systems of the Los Angeles Superior Court itself, or to audit the financial conduct of the Court. However, Dr Zernik urged the Los Angeles County Supervisors to act upon the recommendation of the official LAPD Blue Ribbon Review Panel report (2006) for "external examination" of the Los Angeles County justice system, which was claimed in that report to harbor a “sub-cult of criminality in its ranks”.
Dr Zernik also pointed out to the Supervisors that in the concurrently evolving, large-scale corruption scandal in the neighboring San Bernardino County, the San Bernardino Sentinel recently called for investigation of that county’s Superior Court judges as the "next logical focus.” [4] The Sentinel had previously reported that former Presiding Judge Michael Welch had been tied to numerous real estate fraud cases. [5] California Attorney General and gubernatorial aspirant Jerry Brown was routinely informed of various aspects of alleged widespread corruption in the Los Angeles County justice system in recent years, but adamantly refused to take any action.
In correspondence with Los Angeles County Supervisors, Dr Zernik stated the key message:
Our right to access public records, our Liberty, and our fundamental Human Rights are all connected at the hips! [6]
Links:

[1] February 24, 2010 email notice to Los Angeles County Supervisors of complaints filed with Los Angeles County Ombudsman Stephanie Maxberry:
http://inproperinla.com/10-02-24-notice-to-la-county-supervisors-of-complaints-against-sheriff-lee-baca-s.pdf
[2] February 17, 2010 email notice by Dr Zernik to La Verne Police Chief Scott Pickwith, as part of attempt to ascertain the legal foundation, if any, for his February 6, 2010, arrest, where the La Verne Police Department refuses to allow access to public records, which are the executed warrants for the arrest.
http://inproperinla.com/10-02-17-request-chief-pickwith-affirmation-of-arrest-warant-s.pdf
[3] February 24, 2010 Email correspondence with Los Angeles County Ombudsman Stephanie Maxberry and La Verne Police.
http://inproperinla.com/10-02-24-email-correspondence-with-los-angeles-county-ombuds-and-la-verne-police-s.pdf
[4] February 19, 2010 report of an evolving corruption scandal by the San Bernardino Sentinel, headlined – Judges – next logical focus.
http://inproperinla.com/10-02-19-san-bernardino-sentinel-judges-next-logical-target-in-corruption-scandal.pdf
[5] September 11, 2009 report by the San Bernardino Sentinel tying a Superior Court judge to numerous real estate fraud cases.
http://inproperinla.com/09-09-11-former-san-bernardino-county-superior-court-presiding-judge-sustpect-of-real-estate-frauds-san-bernardino-county-sentinel.pdf
[6] Blog
http://inproperinla.blogspot.com/