Leaked LAPD records reveal officers in fireworks blast received only brief suspensions

This is read by an automated voice.Please report any issues or inconsistencies here.

After the LAPD bomb squad botched the detonation of seized fireworks and leveled part of a city block in 2021, destroying dozens of homes and costing the city millions in lawsuit payouts, police officials would not disclose how the officers responsible for the disaster were held accountable.The punishments remained a closely held secret until recent weeks, when the internal affairs investigative files for the incident surfaced online — along with hundreds of thousands of confidential police records obtained by hackers who targeted the L.A.city attorney’s office.A Times investigation published two years after the June 30, 2021, incident in South L.A.

identified the six bomb squad officers on the scene that day.Since then, neighborhood residents and community activists have repeatedly called for them to be fired.

But the leaked files show they all escaped serious discipline.The harshest punishment was a suspension of 18 days without pay for Det.Damien Levesque, the highest-ranking member of the unit who was present, the LAPD records show.

Others received even less time off before returning to work.California Elected officials are demanding answers from the L.A.

city attorney’s office about how a massive cache of confidential LAPD files got dumped online.The Times has found the compromised material includes crime scene photos, medical records and other sensitive police records.Two bomb squad technicians, Stefanie Alcocer and Mell Hogg, were each suspended for 10 days after the investigation found they grossly misjudged the weight of the fireworks they placed into a containment vessel before detonating them, according to the LAPD records reviewed by The Times.

All three were later transferred off the bomb squad.They did not respond to requests for comment Friday, nor did an LAPD spokesperson.

The department did not respond to questions about whether the officers named in t...