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Former L.A. County sheriff’s deputies sentenced to prison for inmate assault

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LOS ANGELES – Two former Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies who beat and pepper-sprayed a mentally ill county jail inmate without provocation and then lied about it were sentenced Monday to federal prison.

Bryan Brunsting was sentenced to a year and nine months in prison, while Jason “Johnson” Branum was given five months behind bars. Both will have to serve two years on supervised release following their prison time, and were allowed to remain free pending their appeals.

Brunsting and Branum were convicted in May of three federal counts — conspiracy against rights, deprivation of rights under color of law and falsification of records — in connection with the assault six years ago at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility. Jurors reached the verdict after about 90 minutes of deliberation.

U.S. District Judge George Wu imposed far more lenient sentences than those recommended by government prosecutors, who argued that longer prison terms would deter other law enforcement officials from engaging in the same type of offenses.

Wu disagreed, questioning whether the length of incarceration in such cases is quite as significant as prosecutors made out.

The case was one of several trials in Los Angeles federal court stemming from the FBI’s multi-year investigation into brutality and other misconduct in the sheriff’s department.

Wu said the defendants’ crimes “stemmed from an us-versus-them mentality.”

Prosecutors said the beating of pretrial detainee Philip Jones in a surveillance-free hallway at Twin Towers on March 22, 2010, was designed to both punish the inmate for “disrespecting” a jail employee and to teach a rookie officer — whom Brunsting was training — a lesson about how the jail really worked.

“They kicked him, struck him, sprayed him with OC (pepper) spray,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Lindsey Greer Dotson told jurors, adding that Jones, who suffers from schizophrenia and hears voices, “wasn’t kicking, punching, swinging” or in any way fighting back.

The deputies then concocted a phony story that Jones was combative in order to explain the assault in a report that could have been used to refer the inmate for criminal prosecution.

Defense attorney Richard Hirsch countered that the inmate truly had become dangerous and a legal amount of force was necessary to control him. He told the jury that the only injury suffered by Jones was eye irritation from the pepper spray.

Neither defendant, nor Jones, took the stand during the weeklong trial. However, the prosecution had a key witness in ex-deputy trainee Joshua Sather.

Sather, who quit the department immediately following the Jones assault after a crisis of conscience, testified that Brunsting and Branum beat Jones until he was “screaming and crying” and then fabricated reports to cover up the assault.

Sather also told the downtown jury that he saw Brunsting “spread (the victim’s) legs and kick the inmate in his private parts.”

Brunsting, now 32, was Sather’s training officer at the county lockup on a floor housing mentally ill and suicidal inmates.

At one point, Sather testified, Brunsting told him that Jones had disobeyed an order and deputies would now teach the prisoner “a lesson.”

Brunsting’s attorney said the case called attention to the problem of housing the mentally ill in jail facilities and the lack of training for officers who must deal with them.

Hirsch said his client was a “young, immature deputy” thrust into an unpredictable, “very scary” situation with an aggressive, possibly homicidal pretrial detainee.

Brunsting and Branum were among more than a dozen sheriff’s officials to be tried by federal authorities in the jails investigation.

Branum, 36, had previously served in the U.S. Army in Bosnia, Iraq and Kuwait, winning the Bronze Star for bravery.

“I don’t recall ever having a criminal defendant before me who has won a Bronze Star,” the judge said before imposing the five-month term.

Both ex-officers made pre-sentencing statements to the court. Brunsting told Wu that he continues to take pride in his character and work ethic. Branum said he had “spent the majority of my life protecting people who could not protect themselves.”

The federal jails probe reached the department’s highest offices. Ex- Sheriff Lee Baca faces trial on corruption charges next month while his former second-in-command, Paul Tanaka, was convicted of obstruction of justice charges and is appealing his five-year sentence.

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Filed Under: Crime/ Safety

38 comments for "Former L.A. County sheriff’s deputies sentenced to prison for inmate assault"

  1. 149.
    Every public officer who, under color of authority, without lawful necessity, assaults or beats any person, is punishable by a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, or pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170, or by both that fine and imprisonment.
    (Amended by Stats. 2011, Ch. 15, Sec. 263. Effective April 4, 2011. Operative October 1, 2011, by Sec. 636 of Ch. 15, as amended by Stats. 2011, Ch. 39, Sec. 68.)

    Not sure but this sounds like a misdemeanor, this is listed in the penal code

    • This is why the system failed to work. If you assault or beat someone WITHOUT color of authority, it is considered a more serious crime and subject to a much stiffer sentence.

      So what we have is a system that promotes criminal behavior by cops. They commit a crime, it probably won’t get investigated. If it does get investigated the DA will probably throw the case. If by chance the DA can’t find a way to throw it, the penalties are reduced because, well, sycophants love their cops.

      Ever wonder why citizens seem to be taking the “us versus them” mentality the cops promote into their own hands?

      • Well, Tim, once again you prove your ignorance based on your own negative contact with police officers.

        Deputies and officers often police themselves just like in this situation. The department acted swiftly as did the DA. If the judge rejects a sentencing recommendation, that’s their perrogative.

        It’s just like any other criminal in the justice system, defendants often get diversion, probation, charges dismissed and deals far below what the DA, or probation department recommends.

        Just look at your Lancaster/Palmdale most wanted or absconded parolees and you’ll see some guys with much lengthier and more serious rap sheets are walking around free still out committing crimes.

        • Sorry Foolco, when your nonsense runs more than a couple lines I can’t be bothered reading it. Maybe I’ll ask your wife what you’re on about here next time my turn comes up.

          • I’m sure reading is hard for those convict bakersfield handymen. I’ll keep it to monosyllabic for you in the future, Tim.

          • That’s better. Hold your nonsense to two lines Foolco.

            Your investigators are wrong by the way…I was never a handyman in Bakersfield. Looks like you’re not as up on things as you think.

            If you really want to find me it just isn’t that hard. All you gotta do is ask.

          • Just to point out to anyone who missed it how well Foolco has proven my point.

            While “Bakersfield handyman” isn’t correct, it shows pretty clearly that Foolco has been checking. No doubt using his family Foolco law enforcement connections to investigate someone not because they committed a crime, but just because he doesn’t like them.

            For his next move he will no doubt try to threaten me with selective enforcement courtesy of his brothers in blue. This is what he means by “good cops.” How’s it look?

          • LOL…wow, ya caught me Foolco.

            I actually ran a pool service when I was in Bakersfield, but yeah, I did handyman work for my clients including sewer line replacements. I’m touched that you keep such close tabs on what I say.

            I don’t even bother to read most of the nonsense that you spew any more, since you long since gave out enough personal info to track you down. Given your close ties to law enforcement I was surprised at that.

  2. @ Tim Scott
    Yes, the system did do it job and it worked. If you have a problem with the Federal judge decision maybe you should tell our Senators for terms limits for federal judges. Or maybe you can picket the Judge’s court room or maybe you can call the people in AG office for California ask them for justice. I am sure there are state laws under which they can file on, I am sure you can figure it out as always.
    Sorry William got you confused with Tim Scott

  3. @William
    Yes, the system did do it job and it worked. If you have a problem with the Federal judge decision maybe you should tell our Senators for terms limits for federal judges. Or maybe you can picket the Judge’s court room or maybe you can call the people in AG office for California ask them for justice. I am sure there are state laws under which they can file on, I am sure you can figure it out as always.

  4. Wtf one year in jail that is crazy !!! TREAT EVERYONE THE SAME DON’T MATTER COP OR NOT THEY COMITED A CRIME ANY OTHER PERSON WOULD OF GOT 3-5 THAT BS!

  5. Rex has sheriffs follow people around in Lancaster. For no cause. That’s harassment. No one cares about that though.

  6. Well, I have something to say. The system worked these two jacka**es are done in the field of law enforcement and they will get some time in prison with federal supervision (parole). They are now felonies. This WILL happen again in some other place and some other time with someone else who should not have been hired in the first place. When people are involved there is “ALWAYS” someone who should not be there; Judges, politician, government workers, military, law enforcement, firefighters, nurse, doctors, foster care parents, caregivers in senior citizen homes and clergy. You name the field and you can find people who should NOT have been in the position in the first place. Screening will only get you a percentage of not suitable personnel for the job but it is not fail proof. Nothing is. All we can hope for is a system of checks and balance, a working protocol with oversight in place. What more do you want? Our Justice system is not perfect but it is better than other systems.

    • Assault under cover of authority…less than a year in prison…and you say “the system worked.” How about punishment befitting the crime rather than soft sentencing for “the boys in blue”?

  7. So because you work in an environment with mentally ill and you arent “properly” trained it gives you the right to assault them? Or because you served this country and received a bronze star for bravery it gives you the right to assault a mentally ill person? This judge is a JOKE and neither of these “officers” accept what they did as wrong, you can tell by their closing statements. They are a disgrace ALL 3 of them

    • Wow what a sick, demented,irrational comment. Wearing a badge does not give you the license to savagely attack someone like an unreasoning wild pack of animals…and then lie about why they did it. Not all, but often times hate filled savages seek out police positions to act out on their hate and demented inclination to violence. On the other hand, some are sincere and try to do the right thing. Its too bad the savages get the air time and it has completely eroded public confidence. Man dominating man to his own injury. Praying for God to soon step in and intervene in this sick, sick world.

    • You won’t find any good cops defending these guys, unlike yourself, whose own client killed Deputy Steve Owen and you go on defending him.

      You might have some support from your fellow cockroaches and bottomfeeders, but the rest of us know who you really are.

      https://www.thefreelibrary.com/WARRANT+ISSUED+FOR+CON+WOMAN+SENTENCING+MISSED,+NO+RESTITUTION+MADE.-a0128394846

      Perhaps you can get some nice folks a job with Reba or maybe Carrie Underwood….right Mikki?

      • @Shane Falco… good cops in AV… not! I know the truth on Steve Owen in my trials and what Rex Parris did to him, not to mention Lee D’Errico. I pray every day for law enforcement as they are my partner’s at AV-East Kern Second Chance.

        • With as many times you’ve been arrested by so many different cops in the AV, I get why you don’t think there are any good cops, because you always have negative contact.

          You’re a career con artist and dragging out Rex as some state man argument in an attempt to deflect is the norm for the con artist.

          Telling people you were a surgeon at Children’s Hospital in order to steal from them….that’s classy, Mikki.

          • @Shane Falco… sorry, not a con artist like Rex, Lee and Marv. Sorry what happened to Steve Owen, but karma is a bitch. BTW… ask Brown of Station 33 how his ribs feel.

          • Michelle, you probably shouldn’t even bother with Foolco. Just get the straight story from his wife.

          • There are many, many good cops. There are many, many good public servants. Rex is not one of them. He is a megalomaniac bully who makes a lot of money for himself and his friends off the backs of the taxpayer.

          • @Mikki Nelson/Michelle egberts…you’re saying you ARE NOT a con artist? Let’s see, besides conning that guy out of $2,000 telling him you worked for Reba, let’s look at the rest…

            “A probation officer’s report said her victims included a neighbor who loaned her $1,000 for rent after she said she hadn’t received her paycheck, a man who let her move in with him after she said her husband was killed, a mover paid with a bad check, and a Lancaster hotel where she skipped out on a $300 bill after offering nonexistent concert tickets as payment.”

            In another instance, Egberts-Greene allegedly got $1,100 from another person whom she told she was a physician who operated on children at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, prosecutors said.”

            I’m sure that’s all the fault of Rex. I’m sure it was his fault that your fraud had three different sheriff stationsalong with the aero bureau looking for that tour bus.

            You plead no contest to three felonies as well. In fact you and I both know there were more victims who were too embarrassed by being conned by you that they didn’t want to testify….but hey…you’re thumping your chest for kicking a firefighter in the ribs. We are used to dealing with combative trash like you, luckily, it’s just during a call and then you’re somebody else’s problem.

            You’ll always be a con artist, classically deflecting to Rex, Marv, Lee, the sheriff’s department, firefighters and anybody else. You lay down with dogs, Michelle and many people can’t wait until you get those karma fleas yourself.

          • Funny thing, Shane Falco… Michelle has, indeed, made egregious actions in the past and she rightly served her time for the crime. All that, but, she is at least trying to atone for her prior stupidity. Can you say the same for yourself or your heroes at Rex and company? Your heroes Rex and D’errico were soundly thrashed in court by Ms. Egberts on more than one occasion, with the judge quite critical of their current actions. Do you continue to support illegality by them while denouncing past failures by others? Seems a bit hypocritical to me.

          • Foolco would have to move up numerous notches to just be hypocritical. He’s the bad cop son of a bad cop family. From that group, hypocrisy is better than most results that can be expected.

          • Stinger…the con artist asked for comments so I commented about exactly who and what SHE is. She made it about Rex, Lee, Crist, LASD and a firefighter she assaulted but not once about what she’s done and her convictions.
            With her it’s everybody else.

          • Shane Falco, if you are talking about con artists you have to include Rex, Lee, and Marv. They have been conning the citizens of Lancaster for years.

          • Connie, people can absolutely have an opinion on the leaders of Lancaster. Most of the vitriol comes from those on the opposite political spectrum of Rex.

            As far as I know, unlike Michelle Elbert’s, none of those you mentioned have ever been charged and also plead guilty to the fraud with mountains of evidence and numerous victims/cases against them.

            If a deputy breaks the law, he should face the consequences and they should be just as severe as anybody else. Period. No excuses. Michelle’s client killed Steve Owen and she defends the criminal, his actions and blames karma for the Deputy getting killed.

    • They are waiting for another article so they can exclaim that police officers never get punished for their crimes. Of course these two are going to club Fed, so it will not be all that bad for them.