July 7, 2025 Your Source for Brentwood News

The Big Price When Scofflaws Don’t Enforce the Law

By Tom Elias, Brentwood News Columnist

The list of California law enforcement agencies refusing to enforce current stay-at-home, crowd-size and masking orders from Gov. Gavin Newsom and county health officials numbers at least two dozen, stretching into most parts of the state.

Negative results of those scofflaw inactions were not obvious at first, while some counties let restaurants stay open despite closing orders, made no effort to prevent gatherings of more than 10 persons and assigned no sheriff’s deputies to enforce face masking.

But now some nasty consequences are clear. Leaping out at readers of county-by-county statistics during Christmas Week was a direct correlation between lack of enforcement and coronavirus prevalence, infections and deaths.

The numbers made it painfully obvious that inaction by law enforcement has cost plenty of lives. Lack of enforcement has also been counter-productive in achieving the scofflaws’ own proclaimed goals: allowing normalcy to return sooner rather than later. Larger caseloads inevitably mean longer shutdowns.

The refusals to act are pure dereliction of duty in a state where the most common motto of law enforcement is “To protect and serve.” These folks are not doing much to help protect their constituents from the worst pandemic of the last century.

Of the five California counties with the highest seven-day average COVID-19 cases in the week leading up to Christmas, just one has taken strong enforcement measures. That’s San Diego County, ranked fifth, where six deputies enforce anti-contagion measures full time.

But sheriffs in the four large counties with by far the biggest case numbers – Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside – all refuse.

 Those four counties also had the highest per-capita case rates among the state’s large counties, ranging from 4,110 per 100,000 persons in Orange County to 7,520 in San Bernardino County. Meanwhile, Santa Clara County, whose strict shutdown famously forced the San Francisco 49ers and several college sports teams to hit the road for weeks at a time, had a per capita caseload – 1,176 per 100,000 – far below those of the big scofflaw counties. Socio-economic differences can’t explain such huge gaps.

Do the anti-contagion measures work? These statistics, reported by the counties themselves, suggest the answer is yes.

This has not yet changed policy anyplace where law enforcement is commanded by people who enforce only the laws they like, even when measures they ignore can spare illness and lives.

Even contracting the virus in early December did not move Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones to change his policies. When the state imposed its mask mandate, Jones said his deputies would not enforce it, calling violations “minor.” How minor are they when they cause infections and death?

So far, Sheriffs Alex Villanueva, Don Barnes and Chad Bianco, who respectively enforce most laws in Los Angeles, Orange and Riverside counties, and San Bernardino County Sheriff-Coroner John McMahon continue refusing to enforce key state emergency edicts which have so far survived legal challenges.

Villanueva said early on his deputies won’t “take part in enforcing stay at home orders…” Barnes called following the rules “a matter of personal responsibility, not a matter of law enforcement;” Bianco said he won’t be “blackmailed, bullied or used as muscle” by the governor or health officials.

In all their counties, intensive care units were filled to capacity through most of December, but the sheriffs remained adamant. The only major anti-Covid law enforcement actions in those counties saw Los Angeles deputies break up two underground parties where dozens gathered and may have created “superspreader” events.

It’s not only sheriffs refusing to enforce laws, but also some police chiefs. In Stockton, Ceres, Dixon, Roseville, Folsom and many other cities, chiefs say they prefer an “education” approach to violators of masking and social distancing rules. That matches the stance of the non-enforcing sheriffs in the state’s hardest-hit areas.

There have been no consequences so far for any of the law enforcement people making these sometimes deadly decisions.

That’s worth contemplating as many millions of Californians respect the rules, stay home and try to save their lives and those of people with whom they might otherwise associate.

It’s also something voters should remember when the sheriffs involved come up for reelection in 2022 and 2024.

Email Thomas Elias at tdelias@aol.com. His book, “The Burzynski Breakthrough, The Most Promising Cancer Treatment and the Government’s Campaign to Squelch It” is now available in a soft cover fourth edition. For more Elias columns, visit www.californiafocus.net

Related Posts

Transform Your Life: The Free Virtual ONENESS GLOBAL SUMMIT Debuts July 18-20, 2025

July 7, 2025

July 7, 2025

The ONENESS GLOBAL SUMMIT, a transformative three-day virtual event, is coming, July 18-20, 2025, offering participants worldwide a free opportunity...

Ben Affleck Allegedly Spotted House-Hunting in Brentwood Actor Tours Homes Near Ex-Wife

July 7, 2025

July 7, 2025

The Oscar Winner Was Seen Leaving His Office and Then Checking Out Luxury Listings Ben Affleck was seen appearing tense...

Bel Air and Holmby Hills Estates Lead May’s List of America’s Top 10 Home Sales

July 7, 2025

July 7, 2025

LA Claims Two of the Top Three Luxury Home Sales Last Month Breaking into the nine-figure range, a recently sold...

Michael Madsen, Star of Reservoir Dogs and Kill Bill, Dies at 67 in Malibu

July 4, 2025

July 4, 2025

Actor Remembered for His Intense Performances and as a Poet  Actor Michael Madsen, known for his distinctive gravelly voice and...

Los Angeles City Council Cracks Down on ‘Disaster Tours’ in Pacific Palisades

July 4, 2025

July 4, 2025

City Council Bans Commercial Bus Tours in Burn Zone Amid Community Backlash Tour buses that have been operating in fire-ravaged...

Tow Truck Scammers Target Crash Victims Across L.A.: Authorities Warn of Fraud at Accident Scenes

July 4, 2025

July 4, 2025

Officials Urge Drivers to Stay Alert After Collisions as Rogue Operators Demand Inflated Fees  Motorists involved in vehicle accidents are...

Woman Dies After Melrose Store Altercation: LAPD Launches Homicide Investigation

July 4, 2025

July 4, 2025

Critically Injured Young Woman Died July 2, After She was Badly Beaten at Work  The death of a woman critically...

CHP Officer Dies in Culver City Crash: Medical Emergency Suspected Behind Tragic Incident

July 4, 2025

July 4, 2025

Officer lost consciousness while transporting a suspect before crashing into a tree California Highway Patrol Officer Miguel Cano died early...

L.A. Beaches Brace for Holiday Rush: Over 1 Million Visitors Expected This Fourth of July

July 4, 2025

July 4, 2025

County Officials Urge Beachgoers to Pack Out Their Trash and  Monitor Water Quality More than one million visitors are expected...

(Video) A visit to New York Bagel & Deli in Santa Monica

July 2, 2025

July 2, 2025

Authentic NY Style Bagels with Extra Creamy Cream Cheese and Multi-Cultural Desserts. Located at 2216 Wilshire Blvd. A visit to...

Hot Dogs & Rosé: Something About Her and The Culver Hotel Roll Out Summer Specials

July 2, 2025

July 2, 2025

Westside Venues to Serve Playful Bites and Seasonal Sips For the Holiday Weekend A bold new offering is making its...

NeueHouse Hosts Bold One-Night Dinner With Culinary Phenomenon Diego Argoti

July 2, 2025

July 2, 2025

Acclaimed Chef Brings Culinary Mischief With a Five-Course Tasting Experience. NeueHouse Hollywood will host an exclusive, one-night-only dining event on...

(Video) Legacy, Reimagined: Architecture, Design & Construction by Home Front Build Los Angeles

July 2, 2025

July 2, 2025

Go To Homefrontbuild.com For More Information @home_front_build Legacy, Reimagined: Architecture, Design & Construction by Home Front Build Los Angeles Go...

405 Crash Near the Getty Sends Three to Hospital: Two Seriously Hurt Near Site Where LAPD Sgt. Died

July 2, 2025

July 2, 2025

Early Morning Multi-Vehicle Collision Shut Down Lanes Near Brentwood Three men were injured and traffic was snarled for hours following...

Brentwood School Students Explore Gene Editing with Hands-On CRISPR Workshop

July 1, 2025

July 1, 2025

Science Program Gives Teens Hands-on Experience With Revolutionary Biotechnology Students at Brentwood School are getting a firsthand look at the...