July 9-15, 2026
Seven CHP officers face trial in “I can’t breathe” custody death
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman is moving forward with the prosecution of seven California Highway Patrol officers charged in connection with the 2020 in-custody death of Edward Bronstein, a 38-year-old Burbank man who repeatedly cried “I can’t breathe” as officers held him face-down on a mat while a nurse drew his blood at the CHP’s Altadena station.
Bronstein was pulled over on March 31, 2020, on the 5 near Burbank on suspicion of driving under the influence and taken to the Altadena CHP station for a blood draw. When he initially declined — family members said he was afraid of needles — at least five officers forced him face-down onto a mat while the nurse attempted to draw blood.
An 18-minute video filmed by a CHP sergeant captured Bronstein handcuffed and face-down, repeating “I’ll do it willingly, I promise,” while officers kept their knees on his back, legs and neck. Officers’ responses on the video — “Just relax and stop resisting” and “It’s too late” — became central to the prosecution.
After Bronstein’s voice fell silent, officers realized he had no pulse, slapped his face, and said: “Edward, wake up.”
CPR began approximately ten minutes after he became unresponsive. He was pronounced dead at Huntington Memorial Hospital at 4:28 a.m. His blood alcohol content was later found to be 0.04 percent — well below the legal limit.
The Los Angeles County coroner ruled the cause of death as acute methamphetamine intoxication during restraint by law enforcement.
The case was originally charged by then-DA George Gascón in March 2023. Each of the seven officers — Michael Allen Little, Dionisio Michael Fiorella Jr., Dustin Andrew Osmanson and four others — faces one count of involuntary manslaughter and one felony count of assault under color of authority. A registered nurse was also charged with involuntary manslaughter.
California paid $24 million to Bronstein’s family in a civil settlement in May 2023 — the largest civil rights custody death settlement in state history at the time and, nationally, second only to the George Floyd settlement.
The case is being prosecuted by DDA Brad Harmon of the Justice System Integrity Division.
Maywood ex-mayor’s corruption case drags into year five
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman is continuing the prosecution of former Maywood Mayor Ramon Medina and ten co-defendants in a case that has wound through the courts since charges were first filed in 2021.
Medina, who served as mayor of Maywood from May 2016 to December 2018, is charged with six counts of soliciting a bribe, three counts each of conspiracy, embezzlement and failing to file campaign statements, two counts each of grand theft, misappropriation of public funds and perjury under oath, and one count of failure to report behested payments.
Co-defendants include former City Manager Reuben Martinez and former Building and Planning Director David Mango, both charged with multiple counts of conspiracy, grand theft, embezzlement and misappropriation of public funds.
Maywood, a 1.18-square-mile city of roughly 27,000 residents — one of Los Angeles County’s smallest and most densely populated — had already lived through a wave of municipal dysfunction before the charges against Medina were filed. The city had famously outsourced all its services in 2010, creating conditions that allegedly enabled contractors and vendors to buy favor through bribes.
Medina is accused of directing city employees to void parking tickets for friends and supporters, attempting to sell affordable housing properties at less than half their fair-market value in exchange for a cut of bingo hall profits, and, with his son, raising more than 40 roosters allegedly trained for cockfighting.
The DA’s bureau of investigation launched the probe in 2018, raiding vehicles and seizing computers and bank records from multiple homes. Medina lost his 2018 reelection bid despite the ongoing investigation. The case appeared this week for a preliminary hearing setting, five years after charges were first filed, and is still awaiting resolution.
The case is being prosecuted by DDA Bobby Zoumberakis of the Public Integrity Division.
Los Angeles County employees accused of stealing $430,000 in unemployment benefits
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman is prosecuting 13 Los Angeles County government employees charged with allegedly stealing more than $430,000 in unemployment benefits from the California Employment Development Department.
Lead defendant Derrick Anthony Callella and 12 co-defendants are alleged to have fraudulently collected unemployment benefits while remaining employed by the county. The case appeared this week at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center for a preliminary hearing.
The alleged fraud is part of a broader statewide pattern of EDD fraud that accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the state agency paid out an estimated $30 billion or more in fraudulent claims due to inadequate verification systems.
The case is being prosecuted by DDA Kevin Sexton of the Public Integrity Division.
Noguez Assessor trial enters critical phase as people’s testimony resumes
The jury trial of former Los Angeles County Assessor “John Noguez” — born Juan Renaldo Rodriguez — and co-defendants Ramin Salari and Mark McNeil entered a critical phase this week as the people’s testimony resumed at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center.
The case has appeared on the DA’s Media Case Calendar across all five days this week — pretrial appearances giving way to jury trial in progress on July 13 and 14, and people’s testimony resuming July 15.
Noguez is charged with conspiracy and related charges stemming from an alleged scheme to manipulate property tax assessments in exchange for campaign contributions during his time as the county’s elected assessor. The people’s testimony phase is a significant marker — it means the prosecution has begun presenting its core evidence to the jury. All defendants are presumed innocent.
The case is being prosecuted by the Public Integrity Division.
Also on the docket:
Sandro Bladimir Martinez-Marroquin was arraigned July 14 in Antelope Valley on charges of murdering Los Angeles County Probation Officer Paula Lind. The killing of a county employee in the line of duty makes this a significant public safety story — watch for further developments as the case moves through the Antelope Valley courthouse. The case is being prosecuted by DDA Diane Hong of the Antelope Valley Division.
Thomas Merryman, a Los Angeles County Fire Captain, appeared July 9 for a preliminary hearing setting on charges of falsifying a disability claim. A fire captain allegedly defrauding the county’s disability system carries obvious resonance against the backdrop of the department’s ongoing wildfire response demands. The case is being prosecuted by DDA Arunas Sodonis of the Healthcare Fraud Division.
