Del Mese News Today

A witness subpoenaed in the Civilian Oversight Commission's investigative hearings on deputy gangs was ordered by the Sheriff's Department not to testify.

Matthew Burson, a former captain in the L.A. County Sheriff's Department, confirmed he was instructed not to investigate the Banditos, one of the controversial groups often referred to as "deputy gangs."

One former official says he was told by Sheriff Alex Villanueva's then-chief of staff not to ask questions about the group. The former chief of staff contends they never discussed the Banditos.

In a sworn declaration, a retired chief highlights failures by the Sheriff's Department to properly investigate gang-like groups of deputies.