John Scott, the undersheriff of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, has been appointed as the temporary replacement for Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca.
Voters will elect a new sheriff later this year, but Scott will serve until the new term starts Dec. 1. Scott, who has 36 years of law enforcement experience, is not planning to run for the Los Angeles County sheriff position.
Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchens said Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors had made “absolutely the right decision” in appointing Scott, pointing to his history of implementing reforms in Orange County jails and his familiarity with Los Angeles. Prior to taking on the undersheriff position in Orange County in 2008, Scott was head of custody operations for Los Angeles County.
As interim Sheriff, Scott will head an agency with 18,000 employees, including more than 9,000 sworn deputies, and an annual budget of around $2.5 billion.
Scott’s predecessor, Sheriff Lee Baca, announced his retirement earlier this month amid allegations of inmate abuse and favoritism.