During a portion of an interview with Fox 11 Los Angeles aired on Wednesday, Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva stated that the Reimagining Los Angeles County proposal that would cut funding for the sheriff’s department, court system, and prosecutor’s office and redirect it to social programs is “laying the groundwork for defunding the sheriff’s department as we know it.” And stated that the county is going to fund “their pet projects through the sheriff’s department’s budget.”

Villaneuva said, “This motion is — basically is, they’re laying the groundwork for defunding the sheriff’s department as we know it. Bottom line, that is their goal. And they’re going to fund all of their ideas, their pet projects through the sheriff’s department’s budget. We take the lion’s share of net county cost, and that’s exactly what they’re going for.”

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