Appeals court rejects ex-LA sheriff’s appeal of conviction

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Former Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca faces time behind bars after a federal court rejected the appeal of his conviction on corruption charges.

The 76-year-old, who has Alzheimer’s disease, was sentenced in 2017 to three years for obstructing an FBI investigation into abuses at the nation’s largest jail system. He was also convicted of conspiracy to obstruct justice and lying.

Among the claims his lawyers made in the appeal was that Baca was wrongly prevented from presenting evidence of his Alzheimer’s diagnosis at trial.

A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday found the trial fair and the conviction sound.

The Los Angeles Times says Baca’s lawyers have a few last-ditch options available, including asking the full 9th Circuit court to hear the case.