Introducing: A Tradition of Violence

A Tradition of Violence is a podcast about deputy gangs that operate within the LA County Sheriff’s Department. Host Cerise Castle wrote the history of deputy gangs in LA for Knock LA, exposing their 50-year reign of terror and murder. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
There is a long standing urban legend in Los Angeles
County the Sheriff's Department is the biggest gang on the streets.
They've got matching tattoos. They steal from people, brutally beat them,
even kill them. This is a tradition of violence. A
podcast investigating the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's deputy gangs.

(00:22):
Is there a culture of violence inside the Sheriff's Department
are vironment? I mean, no, kill you. There's a d
cancer that's seeped into the department. It's going to really
be hard to get rid of. These gangs have badges,
unlimited resources, paid for by you, the taxpayer. My name
is Sei's Castle, and I'm a local l a reporter.

(00:45):
I grew up here and I've been curious about deputy
gangs ever since I learned about them as a kid.
Over the past two years, I've continued to search for
the truth behind these gangs. A few journalists before me
uncovered stories confirming that these gangs existed despite what the
sheriff says. While I was covering a protest in response

(01:06):
to George Floyd's death, I was shot by a police
officer with a rubber bullet. I was pretty badly hurt,
and my doctors told me to stay on the couch
for the next few months, but I didn't feel right
just sitting still, so I decided to use the time
to finally investigate, and what I found deeply disturbed me.
Over the past two years, I've uncovered twenty different deputy

(01:29):
gangs inside of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. They're
all over, from the deputy level all the way up
to senior leadership. He let listen to a tradition of violence.
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