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'Woke' California prosecutor 'ironically in charge of ethics' charged with felonies

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'Woke' California prosecutor 'ironically in charge of ethics' charged with felonies

Left-wing Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon’s right-hand woman is facing nearly 11 felony charges after state prosecutors say she helped herself to confidential information about 11 deputies as far back as 2018 and took it with her when she left the sheriff’s office to work for the DA three years later.

Diana Teran is accused of accessing a sheriff’s office database about its deputies when she worked there and then taking that information with her to the district attorney’s office to work for Gascon, who was elected on an anti-police platform. Under Gascon, she “impermissibly” used the improperly obtained data to assist, according to the California Attorney General’s Office.

During a controversial tenure in the DA’s office, she allegedly used some of that information to help criminal defendants and stifled line prosecutors under her.

A law enforcement source told Fox News Digital that the case had been referred to the state attorney general’s office due to a conflict of interest, indicating Teran remained the leader of the office’s ethics and integrity unit for months despite an investigation into her own conduct. In that role, she was in charge of divisions that prosecuted misconduct allegations against police and other public officials.

TOP ADVISER TO LEFT-WING CALIFORNIA DA CHARGED WITH NEARLY A DOZEN FELONIES

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Diana Teran, the former head of the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office’s ethics and integrity unit, is pictured in an April booking photo after her arrest on 11 felony charges for allegedly taking and/or misusing data on sheriff’s deputies without authorization. (Los Angeles County)

“She illegitimately accessed the officers’ files while with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department,” Tatiana Chahoian, a deputy district attorney who told Fox News Digital in March that Gascon sent an armed plainclothes investigator to intimidate her at her home after an unrelated whistleblowing incident. “Then she came to the district attorney’s office and used all that information against the officers.”

In one case that Chahoian prosecuted, she said a woman who took a felony plea deal after breaking another woman’s clavicle in a road rage fight was involved in a separate use-of-force incident with the deputy while holding her baby.

Teran allegedly withheld the entire case file as well as video evidence from the DA’s office, including Chahoian, who was handling the proceedings. In bodycam video that Sheriff Robert Luna later released, a DUI suspect can be seen arguing with deputies who pulled her boyfriend over in a DUI stop and found the infant without a car seat or seat belt.

Deputy Los Angeles District Attorney Tatiana Chahoian found herself in hot water after an interview with FOX 11 Los Angeles in which she blew the whistle on a memo about how to prosecute street racing and street “takeover” cases in the county. (FOX 11 Los Angeles)

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“The mother who was punched was a violent person and involved in multiple incidents,” Chahoian said. “But Teran wanted to screw over the deputy, so she made sure no one in the DA’s office had access to the actual video, including me, the assigned prosecutor.”

James Spertus, Teran’s attorney, previously told Fox News Digital he expected to clear his client and that the attorney general’s allegations would turn out to be a “very embarrassing” failure.

“I want the world to know that the AG’s office will face a very quick and expeditious loss on this sort of thoughtless legal theory that an official can be prosecuted for doing an official act,” he said. “It’s just really something that you wouldn’t expect in law enforcement today.”

California Attorney General Rob Bonta speaks at a news conference at the state Capitol in Sacramento on Feb. 23, 2022. Bonta’s office has filed 11 felony charges against a top Los Angeles deputy district attorney who was the head of the county’s ethics and integrity unit. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

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The allegations against Teran are believed to involve her alleged misappropriation of “Brady” material – information about police misconduct that must be turned over to defense attorneys.

“The controversy deepens now with allegations that Teran illegally introduced sensitive information into DA databases — information that she and Gascon knew would inevitably be shared with defense attorneys,” John McKinney, a veteran L.A. deputy district attorney who unsuccessfully ran to unseat Gascon in the recent primary election, wrote on X. “This alleged breach, committed by someone entrusted to uphold the highest legal standards, represents serious criminal acts and shows a void in judgment and leadership by Gascon.”

The Supreme Court ruled in 1963’s Brady v. Maryland case that prosecutors have to disclose “material evidence” that could help a defendant’s case, according to experts at Cornell Law School.

But that doesn’t mean they have to hand over all unflattering information about a given officer connected to a criminal case, and some of the information taken from the sheriff’s office is believed to have included unfounded or unsustained allegations.

Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon (Myung Chun/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images/File)

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The criminal complaint accuses Teran of taking, copying or making use of data on 11 Los Angeles sheriff’s deputies without authorization.

“No one is above the law,” said Attorney General Rob Bonta, a Democrat, in a press release. “Public officials are called to serve the people and the State of California with integrity and honesty. At the California Department of Justice, we will continue to fight for the people of California and hold those who break the law accountable.”

The Association of Deputy District Attorneys, the county prosecutors’ union that has been openly critical of Gascon over his policies, slammed Gascon in a statement posted to its website.

“Her case is in its nascent stages,” the group’s vice president, Ryan Erlich, wrote. “But it is not too early to ask Gascón and his inner circle some key questions, beginning with ‘what did the District Attorney know and when did he know it?’”

The charges against top Los Angeles DA official Diana Teran allege she stole information on 11 deputies and “impermissibly” accessed it years later. (Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department)

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The union also noted that another top Gascon aide, Joseph Iniguez, allegedly threatened an officer who arrested him on a public intoxication charge in 2021 and that Gascon’s three years of leadership have cost the county millions in civil cases. The union named both Iniguez and Teran in a lawsuit in 2022, alleging they both directed subordinates to break the law.

Rank-and-file prosecutors appeared to welcome the charges on social media.

“Have fun with your friends in prison, D!” Chahoian wrote.

Jonathan Hatami, another deputy district attorney who attempted to primary out Gascon, wrote that the charges against Teran show the DA’s leadership “is not right or fair.”

“And, it is also illegal,” he added.

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“This is just the latest example of Gascon’s demonstrated record of poor judgment and lack of leadership in running the district attorney’s office,” Nathan Hochman, a former federal prosecutor who is running as an independent to unseat Gascon in November, told Fox News Digital. “He promoted Teran to his No. 3 in command, ironically in charge of ethics and integrity, despite legitimate objections from many experienced prosecutors.”

Gascon, in a statement, defended his Brady policy and said he would cooperate with state investigators.

  

“When I took office, we developed a protocol that ensured we complied with our constitutional obligations under Brady, which requires us to turn over potentially exculpatory evidence to the defense, a category that includes law enforcement’s prior misconduct, while simultaneously complying with state and federal law around privacy,” he said. “I stand by that protocol.”

Fox News’ Bill Melugin and Adam Shaw contributed to this report.

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Nevada

Southern Nevada shelters brace for annual kitten season surge of newborn cats

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Southern Nevada shelters brace for annual kitten season surge of newborn cats


As temperatures rise in Southern Nevada, animal shelters are bracing for the annual surge of newborn cats known as “kitten season.”

Kitten season happens every year between about March and October, when warmer weather leads community cats to breed, and shelters begin seeing little kittens trickle in.

Animal care officials urged residents who spot kittens in their neighborhoods to avoid intervening right away.

The best thing to do, they said, is to leave the kittens where they are because their mother is likely caring for them.

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Even if the mother cat is not immediately visible, she may be nearby searching for food.

The mother cat is taking care of the kittens, and removing them can reduce their chances of survival.

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Their best chance, officials said, is for the kittens to stay with their mom, who can provide nourishment.

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New Mexico

2nd inmate dies at MDC within a week

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2nd inmate dies at MDC within a week


ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – A 36-year-old inmate died at the Metropolitan Detention Center after a medical emergency in custody.

The Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center said Julian Wilgress was in custody when staff called a medical emergency code at about 1 p.m. on April 28.

MDC said Wilgress was booked into the jail on April 27.

MDC personnel said a medical team from the University of New Mexico Hospital responded, but Wilgress died.

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The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office came to the facility to investigate. MDC’s Office of Professional Standards is also investigating under standard protocol.

The New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator will determine the official cause and manner of death.

This marks the second inmate death at MDC after Derrick Benavides died on Monday morning.



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Oregon

Texas teaching pro takes title at PGA Professional Championship in Oregon

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Texas teaching pro takes title at PGA Professional Championship in Oregon


BANDON, Ore. – It was the kind of beautiful shot golfers dream about. Pure contact, the ball soaring against a blue sky and sliding just a touch a right before touching down on the green near the flagstick on the closing stretch at iconic Bandon Dunes Golf Resort. And it was all propelled by a late bathroom break and a quick walk back into the fairway that left little time to overthink a pressure-packed situation.

This particular shot, an 8-iron from 173 yards, had significant meaning. Jesse Droemer, a teaching professional at Riverbend Country Club near Houston, was tied for the lead through 16 holes in Wednesday’s final round of the PGA Professional Championship. His lead had been as many as three during the back nine, but he had been run down by Ben Kern. Droemer needed to make something happen.

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On No. 17 of the resort’s Bandon Dunes course, Droemer faced a challenging shot into the green with the flag tucked on the left behind a knob as strong winds blew off the left. He nailed that 8-iron to within birdie range. He missed the putt and settled for a par, but that proved to be enough. Kern, playing in the final group behind Droemer, soon after landed his approach on the right side of the putting surface and watched the ball slide off the green into the rough. Kern’s ensuing bogey gave Droemer a one-shot lead, and after both players parred the 18th, the title was Droemer’s.

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Jesse Droemer won the 2026 PGA Professional Championship at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Oregon.

What were Droemer’s thoughts as he left the 17th tee on his way to what would prove to be the tournament-deciding shot? Probably not what you would think, as Droemer explained after receiving the trophy.

“Well, honestly, I had to use the restroom so bad, I had to run from the tee over to the Porta Potty that was like 200 yards away,” Droemer said with a smile. “[Caddie Carl Everts] got the number, and I said, ‘Give me a yardage,’ and he had it, and I just stepped up and hit the shot. No time to think, just react. I do think that was one of the shots of the tournament, for sure.”

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After nearly holing a 77-yard approach shot into the par-5 18th that set up the winning par, Droemer finished with a 2-under 70 in the final round, good for a 4-under total of 283. Kern, of South Bloomfield, Ohio, shot 71 in the final round to finish in second place at 3-under. Michael Kartrude of Royal Palm Beach, Florida, was third after a closing 70 and a 2-under total. It was the second straight day of strong breezes that at times surpassed 20 mph, causing havoc for club selection and making it tough to hole putts of any length.

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“I was just embracing the challenge,” said Droemer, 34. “I knew it was gonna be windy. I knew the conditions were gonna be tough, and I was just really was trying to embrace the elements. And, you know, I’m glad it was windy. I’m glad it was playing hard.”

Droemer, Kern, Kartrude and 17 other players now have a new challenge: the PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club on May 14-17. The top 20 from the PGA Professional Championship qualified for the major in Pennsylvania. It will be Droemer’s third appearance in the PGA Championship, having first qualified via the PGA Professional Championship in 2023 and again in 2025. He missed the cut in both those tries, but the victory at Bandon Dunes inspired fresh confidence.



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