LOS ANGELES — Former Los Angeles Times reporter Maya Lau filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday accusing Los Angeles County and former Sheriff Alex Villanueva of launching a retaliatory investigation into her journalistic work, raising First Amendment concerns and spotlighting the treatment of press freedoms under Villanueva’s leadership.
According to the LA Times, the lawsuit alleges a pattern of civil rights violations and retaliation following Lau’s reporting on a leaked list of deputies with histories of misconduct. Her attorneys argue the investigation was intended to intimidate and punish her for exposing a matter of public concern.
The suit names Villanueva, former Undersheriff Tim Murakami, and former Detective Mark Lillienfeld as defendants. It includes six counts of constitutional and state-level violations, including retaliation, conspiracy, and denial of constitutional rights. Lau is seeking damages for harm to her privacy, dignity, and the ongoing distress caused by the investigation.
Lau is represented by attorneys from Loevy & Loevy. Her legal team contends that the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department violated her rights under the First Amendment and California law by initiating—and later reviving—an investigation into her role in reporting on a confidential list of deputies accused of misconduct. The lawsuit describes the probe as a politically motivated effort to stifle journalistic scrutiny and suppress public accountability.
“This lawsuit seeks to reaffirm the protected role that journalism plays in our society,” said Lau’s attorney Justin Hill. “The LASD’s actions under Villanueva set a dangerous precedent for retaliatory policing aimed at the press.”
In December 2017, Lau co-authored a report for the Times revealing the existence of a list of nearly 300 deputies accused of misconduct, including planting evidence, falsifying reports and sexual assault. While the initial investigation into the leak began under then-Sheriff Jim McDonnell, it was ultimately dropped due to a lack of evidence implicating Lau in any crime.
However, the Times reported that after Villanueva took office in 2018, the investigation was revived. According to the lawsuit, Villanueva assigned Lillienfeld to lead the renewed probe and gave final decision-making authority to Murakami. The resulting case file, totaling more than 300 pages, was submitted to the California Attorney General’s Office in 2021.
In May 2024, Attorney General Rob Bonta declined to file charges, citing insufficient evidence. Despite this, Lau alleges her rights were violated and that her career in journalism was harmed by the prolonged investigation.
“The Sheriff’s Department needs to know that these kinds of tactics against journalists are illegal,” Lau said in a statement accompanying the suit. “I am bringing this lawsuit not just for my own sake, but to send a clear signal in the name of reporters everywhere: we will not be intimidated.”
The origins of the case trace back to 2014, when Diana Teran—then working with the Office of Independent Review—compiled a confidential list of deputies with sustained misconduct findings. By 2017, Teran was working inside the LASD when she discovered that reporters were asking questions closely aligned with that list. Though the department initially declined to pursue the matter, it was reopened under Villanueva.
The renewed investigation identified Lau, Teran, L.A. County Inspector General Max Huntsman, and several of his colleagues as suspects. Allegations against Lau included conspiracy, burglary, theft of government property and receipt of stolen materials.
According to the Times, the case file ultimately concluded that there was no probable cause for any of the allegations. Still, the existence of the investigation itself, the lawsuit claims, inflicted significant reputational harm.
In response to the lawsuit, the LASD issued a statement distancing itself from Villanueva’s administration: “The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department under Sheriff Robert G. Luna is firmly committed to upholding the Constitution, including the First Amendment. We respect the vital role journalists play in holding agencies accountable.”
Villanueva acknowledged the lawsuit but declined to comment on its specifics. “Under the advice of counsel, I do not comment on pending litigation,” he told the Times, though he defended his administration’s investigative practices as “based on facts.”
David Snyder, executive director of the First Amendment Coalition, previously told the Times that publishing material leaked by others is protected under the First Amendment, even if the source acted unlawfully.
“You’re not authorized to break into a file cabinet to get records. You’re not authorized to hack computers,” Snyder said. “But receiving information that somebody else obtained unlawfully is not a crime.”
“If LASD’s actions are left unredressed,” the lawsuit states, “journalists in Los Angeles will be chilled from reporting on matters of public concern out of fear that they will be investigated and prosecuted.”
