Video shows Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon’s right-hand man, Joseph Iniguez, arrested during stop for drunk driving

Newly released video shows top assistant Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon arrested after interrupting police who arrested his then-fiancé during a traffic stop as he walked home from a wedding in 2021.

Joseph Iniguez, the current No. 2 prosecutor in Los Angeles, was riding shotgun when police stopped the couple for an alleged traffic violation.

Iniguez was Gascon’s chief of staff at the time and last year received a $10,000 settlement from Azusa after filing a lawsuit over the incident, alleging a violation of federal civil rights.

He has since been promoted to deputy attorney general.

Iniguez, who recorded the video on a cellphone, can be heard telling officers: “You arrested the wrong person, let me tell you.” »

“It’s not good,” he said.

“That’s why when they talk about law enforcement and love our interactions with law enforcement, he did the right thing tonight and drove me.” We were at a wedding.

Iniguez also urged officers to run his license plates, which could have revealed to them that he worked for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.

“Examine our plates and see what you find,” he said. “Honestly. I’m not saying anything, just see what you find.

Also during the meeting, he repeatedly urged his fiancée not to speak to the police.

“FSTs are entirely voluntary and are not required by law,” he shouts as a police officer tries to question the driver.

FST refers to field sobriety tests, which police use to assess potential intoxication.

“If he has probable cause, he will arrest you,” Iniguez continued. “…He has reasonable suspicion,” he said, “of carrying out a traffic stop. ALL RIGHT.”

Under a California law, Government Code 26540, prosecutors are not allowed to assist in the defense of any suspected criminal.

“A district attorney shall not, while in office, defend, assist in the defense of, or act as counsel for any person charged with a crime in any county,” the code states, according to FindLaw.

Once his fiancée was handcuffed, the police officer approached Iniguez and arrested him as well.

“Sir, you are currently in public and you are drunk,” he said. “You are currently under arrest. Turn around for me. Put your hands behind your back.

Additional video shows Iniguez at the jail but does not include audio.

Another high-profile Gascon aide, Diana Teran, faces an 11-count indictment over allegations that she improperly accessed Brady’s documents against Los Angeles sheriff’s deputies.

Teran is accused of accessing the sheriff’s office database about her deputies while she worked there, then taking that information with her to the district attorney’s office to work for Gascon, who was elected on a platform anti-police.

Under Gascon, she “unlawfully” used improperly obtained data to help, according to the California attorney general’s office.

His defense attorney, James Spertus, previously told Fox News Digital that he hoped to exonerate his client and that the state had a weak case.

The Assistant District Attorneys Association, the county prosecutors’ union, named Iniguez and Teran in a 2022 lawsuit, alleging they both ordered their subordinates to break the law.

Neither Iniguez’s nor Gascon’s office immediately responded to requests for comment late Monday evening.