LOS ANGELES
A deputy with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department agreed to plead guilty to a federal civil rights violation for using excessive force during an assault of a transgender man in retaliation for the victim exercising his First Amendment rights, the Justice Department announced Wednesday.
Joseph Benza III, 36, of Corona, who was assigned to the Norwalk Station at the time of the incident on February 10, 2023, was charged late Tuesday with one felony count of deprivation of rights under color of law.
In a plea agreement also filed Tuesday, Benza agreed to plead guilty to the felony civil rights offense. He faces up to 10 years in federal prison.
Benza is expected to make his initial appearance in federal court in the coming days.
The victim of the assault, a 23-year-old man identified in court documents as “E.B.,” who weighed about half as much as Benza, suffered a concussion, contusions and abrasions, according to court documents.
“When an officer violates someone’s civil rights, it corrodes trust in law enforcement and undermines the effectiveness of other officers who sacrifice to protect the public,” said U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada. “This senseless assault and subsequent attempted cover-up are an affront to our system of justice. My office is committed to upholding civil rights and prosecuting those who abuse their authority.”
“Mr. Benza abused his position of authority to assault an innocent citizen, then dissembled to cover his actions during the subsequent investigation,” said Akil Davis, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “The FBI prioritizes the protection of civil rights and will pursue prosecution when warranted.”
“It is deeply troubling that a member of our Department, who has since been relieved of duty, violated the trust placed in them to uphold the law by abusing their authority,” said Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert G. Luna. “These actions undermine the integrity of our Department, the trust of our community, and the safety of those we are sworn to protect.”
In his plea agreement, Benza admitted that he was responding to a domestic violence call in Whittier when he saw E.B. drive by and extend his middle finger – an expression that is protected by the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States.
After seeing that he had been “flipped off,” Benza abandoned the domestic violence call and closely followed E.B.’s vehicle for 1.8 miles, intending to retaliate against E.B. with force, according to the plea agreement.
After calling 911 to report that he was being followed, the victim eventually pulled into a parking lot. Benza then parked behind E.B.’s vehicle and activated his overhead lights for the first time.
The plea agreement states that Benza approached E.B., who was exiting his vehicle. Without giving any commands, Benza grabbed the victim, who pulled away and said, “Don’t touch me.”
“Defendant Benza then violently body slammed Victim E.B. onto the ground. Once Victim E.B. was on the ground, defendant Benza mounted Victim E.B., punched Victim E.B.’s head and face multiple times, and pressed Victim E.B.’s face into the pavement,” according to the plea agreement.
Later that day, as he began preparing an incident report, Benza consulted with other deputies about whether he should include that he began pursuing E.B. because he had been flipped off.
Three LASD sergeants counseled Benza to omit that fact from his report, the plea agreement states.
To cover up his civil rights violations, Benza admitted that he prepared a false incident report that omitted any reference to the flip-off and instead misleadingly stated that E.B. was stopped for having an air freshener hanging from his rearview mirror. Benza also falsely claimed that E.B. had bitten Benza’s hand with enough force to puncture the skin and cited E.B. with criminal mayhem.
In addition to the false incident report, Benza engaged in additional obstructionist conduct, including discussing with other deputies how they would delete text messages about the incident from their phones, as well as discussing making false statements to federal authorities who were investigating the incident, according to the plea agreement.
During an interview with federal authorities in January 2024, Benza made false statements that including denying that he has seen E.B. flip him off and that he had not substantively discussed the incident report with others while he was writing it.
Benza admitted that a sergeant drafted substantive portions of the report.
The FBI is conducting the ongoing investigation in this matter, and the LASD has provided assistance.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Susan S. Har and J. Jamari Buxton, both of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section, are prosecuting this case.