Two Los Angeles Police Officers Charged with Filing a False Report, Conspiracy
Two Los Angeles Police Department officers have been charged with purportedly filing a false police report when they responded to an alleged DUI traffic collision, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office announced today.
Rene Marcial Ponce (dob 06/06/77) and Irene Gomez (dob 05/01/78) have been charged with one felony count each of filing a false report and conspiracy to commit an act injurious to the public in case BA449841.
Ponce and Gomez pleaded not guilty on Sept. 7. Their next court hearing is Oct. 11 in Department 30 of the Foltz Criminal Justice Center.
On Oct. 26, 2014, Ponce and Gomez were on patrol in the Hollenbeck area when they responded to an early morning traffic collision in the 3000 block of East Side Boulevard. At the scene, an alleged drunken driver was accused of colliding with two parked vehicles, Justice System Integrity Division prosecutors said.
Ponce and Gomez allegedly avoided conducting a driving under the influence investigation and collectively wrote a traffic collision report in which they lied about the driver not being present at the scene, according to overt acts detailed in the felony complaint.
The charging document additionally alleges that Ponce and Gomez failed to conduct a sobriety examination, placed the driver in their patrol vehicle and drove him home where they directed him to go to sleep. Ponce had been with the LAPD for 13 years and Gomez for three years at the time of the incident.
If convicted as charged, the defendants face a maximum sentence of three years in local custody. The case was filed for warrant on Sept. 6 and remains under investigation by the Los Angeles Police Department, Internal Affairs Division.
Two Los Angeles Police Department officers have been charged with purportedly filing a false police report when they responded to an alleged DUI traffic collision, prosecutors said.
Rene Marcial Ponce, 39, and Irene Gomez, 38, have been charged with one felony count each of filing a false report and conspiracy to commit an act injurious to the public, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.
Ponce and Gomez have pleaded not guilty.
On Oct. 26, 2014, Ponce and Gomez were on patrol in the Hollenbeck area when they responded to an early morning traffic collision in the 3000 block of East Side Boulevard.
At the scene, an alleged drunken driver was accused of colliding with two parked vehicles, prosecutors said.
Ponce and Gomez allegedly avoided conducting a driving under the influence investigation and collectively wrote a traffic collision report in which they lied about the driver not being present at the scene, according to the felony complaint.
The charging document additionally alleges that Ponce and Gomez failed to conduct a sobriety examination, placed the driver in their patrol vehicle and drove him home where they directed him to go to sleep.
Ponce had been with the LAPD for 13 years and Gomez for three years at the time of the incident.
