L.A. County sheriff claimed protesters tried to derail a train. Footage suggests otherwise

Emanuel Padilla is arrested following a protest Nov. 18 near Sheriff Alex Villanueva’s home in La Habra Heights. Yet three days later, the sheriff’s department filed a supplemental report with the account of a detective who had monitored the protest and “immediately” recognized Padilla there based on information gathered from criminal investigations. A spokesman for the district attorney’s office said Gascón determined “there was not felonious conduct” after reviewing the video footage and ordered the case to be dismissed in the interest of justice. The footage “does not show Mr. Padilla placing, dropping or otherwise putting any object in the path of a train,” said Max Szabo, a spokesman for Gascón’s transition team. Jody David Armour, a law professor at the University of Southern California, said the case “really shines a light” on the importance of Gascón’s election and the discretion he might show in comparison to Lacey.