Immigrant Advocates Endorse Bilingual Candidate Alex Villanueva to Unseat LASD Sheriff Jim McDonnell

Challenger Alex Villanueva said that the last time a Los Angeles County Sheriff spoke Spanish was in 1890. On Monday, the bilingual Latino who served in the sheriff’s department for 32 years won an endorsement he hopes will change that.

The Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, known as CHIRLA, said that they will campaign for Villanueva and tap into 1,000 volunteers who will knock on doors and make phone calls.

Before a throng of cheering supporters at CHIRLA headquarters, Villanueva pledged to take ICE out of the county jails. {snip}

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McDonnell added that Villanueva has never supervised more than 18 people, has never had a command and has never managed any budget. The LASD is a $3.3 billion enterprise, said McDonnell, with 18,000 employees.

Villanueva claims that McDonnell has failed to reform the department despite upheaval four years ago at the top of the department. Former LASD Undersheriff Paul Tanaka is now serving a five-year federal term for obstruction of justice.

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