The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors July 26 approved the first reading of an ordinance that would allow county voters to decide whether the board should have the power to remove a county sheriff from office under certain conditions.
The ordinance, introduced by Board Chair Holly Mitchell and Supervisor Hilda Solis, received a 4–1 vote, with Supervisor Kathryn Barger dissenting. The board has to vote again on Aug. 2 to put the measure before county voters on November 8.
If passed in the general election, it would allow the board to remove an elected county sheriff “for cause” by a four-fifths vote.
The “cause” is defined in the measure as a “violation of law related to a Sheriff’s duties, flagrant or repeated neglect of duties, misappropriation of funds, willful falsification of documents, or obstructing an investigation.”…