A Los Angeles County grand jury has indicted more than a dozen county probation officers following a state Department of Justice investigation into an alleged “fight club” at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall, according to sources familiar with the matter.

Few details about the indictments were available Friday, Feb. 21. However, the Los Angeles County Deputy Probation Officers’ Union acknowledged in a statement that “several of our members have received notices from the California Department of Justice (DOJ) requiring them to appear in criminal court.”

The blog 2UrbanGirls first published a copy of one such letter on its Instagram account. The letter, signed by Deputy Attorney General Paul Seo, orders the recipient to appear March 3 at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center and to “have an indictment bond prepared for yourself prior to your arrival in court.”

In the union’s statement, President Stacy Ford stressed that “every American is innocent until proven guilty.”

“Our members deserve to be treated with fairness and due process, just as they provide to those in their custody,” Ford stated. “We do not condone any unlawful behavior, and we will do everything in our power to support our members as they navigate this difficult situation.”

Last year, the L.A. County Probation Department placed 14 officers on leave for standing by during — and potentially orchestrating — fights between youth at Los Padrinos. Probation Chief Guillermo Viera Rosa, amid a restructuring of the department’s internal affairs unit, asked the Department of Justice to take up the investigation instead.

A recording of the first-known incident in December 2023, obtained by the Los Angeles Times, showed youth consecutively entering a day room in Los Padrinos and then attacking a 17-year-old, one at a time, before calmly sitting down to eat their meals. At least four officers stood by during the assaults, while two others halfheartedly attempted to break up the fights. Officers could be seen laughing and even shaking hands with the attackers at various points.

Probation Department spokesperson Vicky Waters referred questions about “any potential or ongoing investigations” to the DOJ.

“For our part, we have placed several officers on leave as a result of troubling incidents and allegations at Los Padrinos,” she said. “We have and will continue to work and cooperate with our law enforcement partners.”

The department has zero tolerance for the “misconduct of any peace officers” and is committed to “ensuring our juvenile facilities uphold the highest standards of professionalism, integrity and rehabilitation,” Waters said.

The California Attorney General’s Office declined to comment on the indictments.

“To protect its integrity, we are unable to comment on, even to confirm or deny, a potential or ongoing investigation,” a spokesperson said.

County Supervisor Janice Hahn, whose district includes Los Padrinos, described the indictments as “disturbing.”

“It breaks my heart that probation officers the County entrusted with this responsibility would use their power to abuse these kids,” Hahn stated. “This is only further proof that the culture of our probation department needs to change dramatically.”

Probation Oversight Commission Chair Eduardo Mundo said he had heard the rumors, but noted that the commission had not been notified formally of the indictments as of Friday.

“It is a terrible thing that we had those situations occur in a place where kids are supposed to be protected,” Mundo said. “Not knowing all the details, it’s difficult to fathom what led to those indictments, what kind of behavior it was.”

The Probation Department and Los Padrinos, in particular, have faced scrutiny for more than a year due to the substandard conditions at the county’s largest juvenile facility. Last year, the Board of State and Community Corrections, the regulatory body overseeing California’s juvenile halls, declared Los Padrinos “unsuitable” for the confinement of youth as a result of a severe staffing shortage. The dangerously low staffing led to sharp increases in violence and impeded access to services required for the youth in custody.

The facility was supposed to shut down in December, but county officials have refused to comply so far, arguing in court that there is no alternative available. The Board of Supervisors declared Los Padrinos a “local emergency” that same month and granted the department access to powers typically reserved for natural disasters to avoid “extreme peril.”

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Miguel Espinoza took up the question of the legality of the facility’s continued operation as part of a juvenile murder case and is currently weighing whether to force its closure.

The county, which sought to overturn the BSCC’s suitability ruling, was recently notified that its appeal was rejected. A separate reinspection of the facility remains ongoing.

Probation officials, the District Attorney’s Office and the public defender are due back in Espinoza’s courtroom in April.