California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced today that the California Department of Justice will not pursue criminal charges against Los Angeles Supervisor Sheila Kuehl and Peace Over Violence (POV) Director Patricia Giggans. The decision follows an extensive investigation into allegations that were initially examined by the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (LASD).
The investigation focused on the awarding of a sole-source contract by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to POV, as well as campaign contributions received by Supervisor Kuehl from individuals associated with POV. According to Bonta, "there is insufficient evidence to support the filing of charges based on the MTA’s awarding of a sole-source contract to POV, or on the campaign contributions received by Supervisor Kuehl from persons affiliated with POV."
Additionally, the DOJ investigated whether any crimes were committed in giving advance warning of search warrants executed by LASD on September 14, 2022, targeting Kuehl and Giggans. However, this aspect also yielded insufficient evidence for criminal charges.
The LASD began its inquiry on September 11, 2021, scrutinizing contracts between MTA and POV related to a sexual assault and harassment hotline operated by POV. During this investigation, LASD obtained three search warrants for various locations including MTA headquarters and Kuehl’s residence and office. A subsequent probe sought to determine if there was any prior warning given about one of these search warrants.
On September 20, 2022, Attorney General Bonta took over the LASD investigation. He directed LASD to halt its activities and transfer all relevant evidence and reports to DOJ. Following this takeover, DOJ conducted an independent review but found no grounds for criminal charges concerning either the MTA contract or campaign contributions linked to POV.
"DOJ has found insufficient evidence to file charges for interference with a search warrant," stated Bonta. Consequently, DOJ has closed its investigation into this matter.