As L.A. County sheriff’s deputies evacuated residents during last year’s Station fire, a training officer with the department noticed a deputy acting strangely. He was stumbling, then he fell over.
The deputy later admitted he was drinking vodka concealed in a Gatorade bottle during the deadly blaze.
The incidents, and others, are detailed in an oversight report released Tuesday that highlighted the department’s struggles with employees who drink on the job or whose drunkenness results in problems off the job.
Alcohol-related incidents involving department employees have increased this year, according to findings released by the county Office of Independent Review. There were 33 incidents from January through May, more than in the same period last year, including several cases in which deputies were found to be drunk on duty.
Full story: Alcohol-related incidents involving Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department employees increase – latimes.com