Former Sheriff Alex Villanueva sued Los Angeles County on Thursday, June 13, alleging his placement on a “do not rehire” list for alleged discriminatory remarks aimed at Inspector General Max Huntsman violates his due process and First Amendment rights.
Also named as defendants in the U.S. District Court suit are the county Board of Supervisors, the Sheriff’s Department, the Equity Oversight Panel, the Office of Inspector General, Huntsman and others.
The suit seeks unspecified damages, but a tort claim filed with the county last month demanded more than $25 million.
The lawsuit alleges that shortly after Villanueva announced his candidacy for the Board of Supervisors on Sept. 12, 2023, the county — secretly and unbeknown to him — initiated an investigation from his tenure as sheriff for alleged discrimination, harassment, inappropriate conduct toward others and retaliation that had been resolved more than a year earlier.
“The allegations against Villanueva had been determined to be unfounded, yet the county newly initiated the complainants’ allegations without ever notifying Villanueva or providing him with notice of any type,” the suit states. “Villanueva was never able to address the allegations, nor was he made aware of the findings.”
Huntsman declined to comment. The county supervisors and Villanueva could not be immediately reached for comment.
The lawsuit says that on Jan. 31, a day before mail-in ballots began going to voters, Villanueva learned for the first time through a Los Angeles Times article of the “no rehire” designation and that the county’s investigation determined he had violated discrimination and harassment policies.
Villanueva alleges the Times falsely painted him as a bigot in the story published just five weeks before he lost the March 5 primary election against incumbent Fourth District county Supervisor Janice Hahn. Hahn declined to comment.
According to the Times story, Huntsman had accused Villanueva of “dog-whistling to the extremists he caters to” when he repeatedly referred to the inspector general by his foreign-sounding birth name, Max-Gustaf.
Subsequently, in an interview with the Times editorial board, the combative former sheriff — purportedly without any evidence — accused Huntsman of being a Holocaust denier.
Villanueva, who lost his bid for reelection as sheriff in December 2022, disputes that his use of the name “Max-Gustaf” is discriminatory or harassing.
Huntsman has publicly used that name on his county desk plaque and it also appears online at Transparent California, a salary and pension database for California public officials, the suit notes.
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Villanueva also alleges Huntsman has defamed him on the Office of Inspector General website, claiming: “The Sheriff’s Department, particularly under former Sheriff Alex Villanueva, has gone to great lengths to keep its conduct secret.”
Villanueva’s tenure as sheriff, which began in 2018, was plagued by numerous public battles with the county Sheriff Civilian Oversight Commission stemming from his refusal to comply with subpoenas compelling him to testify about deputy gangs within the Sheriff’s Department. He finally provided testimony to the commission in January.
Villanueva also faced widespread criticism after he attempted to rehire former Deputy Caren Carl Mandoyan, who had worked on his election campaign and had been fired in 2016 for alleged domestic violence, stalking and harassment.
