Podcast Summary: “Gunning Up: L.A. County’s Top Cop Versus the Feds”

Podcast: Crimes of the Times (L.A. Times Studios)
Host: Christopher Goffard
Release Date: September 23, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the dramatic standoff between L.A. County Sheriff Lee Baca and federal authorities, namely the FBI, as they investigate widespread abuse and corruption in L.A.’s jail system. Through in-depth interviews, first-person accounts, and secret recordings, investigative reporter Christopher Goffard details how a secret federal probe collided with one of California’s most powerful lawmen—and how heavy-handed tactics escalated the crisis.

Key People

• Lee Baca – L.A. County Sheriff with a reformer’s image, later implicated in jail corruption.
• Leah Marks – FBI Special Agent spearheading the jail investigation.
• Scott Craig – Burly Sheriff’s sergeant leading intimidation efforts.
• Carlos Naro – FBI Public Corruption Supervisor in L.A.
• Brandon Fox – Prosecutor involved in the case.

Detailed Breakdown

1. Lee Baca: The Reform Sheriff with a Troubled Legacy

• Background: Baca rose from modest beginnings to sheriff, projecting an image of a progressive reformer focused on inmate education and jail improvement ([01:04–02:35]).
  • “The purpose of a prison or jail is to educate the people there. ... What we've done is we've created this expectation ... that we're here to seek revenge for the sake of the crimes they've committed.” – Lee Baca [01:04]
• Contradictions: Despite reform talk, the system suffered endless scandals—gang violence, abuse, and corruption ([02:55–03:48]).

2. The Federal Probe and the Sheriff's Department Response

• FBI Investigation: FBI secretly investigates jail abuses, smuggling a cellphone to inmate/informant Anthony Brown ([04:52–05:55]).

• Escalation: Instead of cooperating, Baca sees the FBI as turf invaders and aggressively resists. The conflict turns personal when the Sheriff's Department targets Agent Leah Marks with surveillance and intimidation.

  “Sheriff Lee Baca was furious, and he had a choice. He could cooperate fully with the federal investigation. Instead, he decided to go to war.” – Christopher Goffard [04:52]

3. Targeting the FBI: Intimidation Tactics

• Stalking an Agent: A special team is assigned to tail Leah Marks over multiple days—without her realizing it ([07:32–08:42]).

• Direct Threats: Sgt. Scott Craig intimidates Marks with a threatening voicemail and an unannounced visit to her apartment, badge and gun on display.

  “He had his gun showing. He had his badge showing. It appeared very intentional to me that this was meant to be an intimidation tactic.” – Leah Marks [10:11]

  “Did you have any idea that they were watching you?” – Christopher Goffard
  “No.” – Leah Marks [08:31–08:32]

• Immediate Fallout: Marks’ supervisor is shocked; FBI agents scramble for her safety. Her experience raises questions about what the sheriff’s department might do to less-powerful individuals ([12:08–14:11]).

  “If they're willing to do this kind of thing ... what is happening to other people that in the areas they patrol, in the jails elsewhere?” – Leah Marks [13:40]

4. Sheriff Baca Confronts the Feds

• Verbal Clash: Baca confronts local FBI boss and U.S. Attorney, erupts:
  "I'm the goddamn sheriff. These are my goddamn jails. You want a gun up in here? Is that what you want?" – Lee Baca, as recounted by Andre Barat [14:11]

• Backlash: The intimidation only steels the FBI's resolve. A confidential memo reveals a "long history of criminal allegations" against Baca, from favors for donors to pressuring businesses for political contributions ([15:54–16:32]).

  “They just approached an FBI agent, threatened to arrest her for doing her job. ... If that isn't a clear indication that we cannot work with them, I don't know what is.” – Carlos Naro [16:32]

5. Breaking Open the Case

• Federal Investigation Intensifies: With the hidden surveillance now revealed, the FBI starts demanding all internal sheriff’s files ([17:37]).

• Jailhouse Brutality Case: Gabriel Carrillo

  • Carrillo is beaten by deputies while visiting his brother in jail, then charged with battery based on an implausible account ([20:22–23:39]).
  • FBI tests the deputies’ story; finds it physically impossible, reinforcing suspicions of systemic abuse ([23:39]).

  “At this point, I really believed that a lot of what the inmates were telling me was happening.” – Leah Marks [23:39]

6. Sheriff's Overreach: Targeting the FBI and Judge

• Attempted Search Warrant: Sgt. Craig tries to get a search warrant against the FBI to access their undercover files.
  “The judge ... laughed them out of the room.” – Brandon Fox [24:20]

• Unintentional Confessions: Sgt. Maricela Long, unintentionally recorded, admits the purpose was to scare the FBI ([25:16]):

  “Marcel Long joking then to Scott Craig says, they're scared. ... The whole goal with this whole thing was to scare the FBI, back them off of their investigation.” – Brandon Fox [25:16]

7. Turning Point and Whistleblowers

• James Sexton’s Role: A young deputy who helped hide informant Anthony Brown is eventually compelled to cooperate, exposing more of the scheme ([26:25–27:30]).

  • “I misplaced my faith in leadership and the department.” – James Sexton [26:50]
  • “Nobody's going to walk up to you and say, we're going to kill you. ... But you need to watch your back.” – Brandon Fox, paraphrasing Sexton’s fear [27:20]

• Cultural Consequences: Those who break ranks, like Sexton, become pariahs in law enforcement.

  “Everybody loves the treason, but they hate the traitor. ... I became a man without a country.” – Brandon Fox [27:47]

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• Lee Baca on Rehabilitation:
  “The purpose of a prison or a jail is to educate ... not ... seek revenge ...” [01:04]
• Leah Marks, on being targeted:
  “He had his gun showing, he had his badge showing. ... meant to be an intimidation tactic.” [10:11]
• Carlos Naro, on the Sheriff’s actions:
  “If that isn't a clear indication that we cannot work with them, I don't know what is.” [16:32]
• Brandon Fox, on Sergeant Craig’s overreach:
  “The judge ... laughed them out of the room.” [24:20]
• Brandon Fox, on whistleblowers:
  "Everybody loves the treason, but they hate the traitor. ... I became a man without a country.” [27:47]

Timeline of Key Segments

• 00:03–05:55: Story setup, Baca’s background, and origins of the FBI investigation.
• 06:18–10:57: Leah Marks tailed and intimidated; direct confrontation in her apartment.
• 12:08–14:11: The shock within the FBI and questions about systemic intimidation.
• 14:11–16:52: Baca’s confrontation with federal officials; deepening investigation.
• 17:37–18:59: The FBI escalates their probe after being targeted.
• 20:02–23:39: Gabriel Carrillo’s case highlights jail brutality.
• 24:09–26:25: Law enforcement overreach and failed plots to derail the FBI probe.
• 26:25–28:22: James Sexton steps forward; the personal costs of whistleblowing.

Tone & Style

The episode is rich with dramatic tension, first-hand accounts, and the methodical piecing together of a real-life law enforcement power struggle. Goffard’s narrative voice is calm but urgent, while the direct quotations from law enforcement officers, prosecutors, and agents provide raw, personal insight into the stakes, fears, and calculations behind the case.

Final Thoughts

“Gunning Up” illuminates not only the specifics of L.A. County jail corruption but also the broader issues of power, loyalty, and accountability within law enforcement. The intimidation of an FBI agent is more than a bold move—it is symptomatic of an agency willing to go to war to shield its secrets, with ramifications far beyond one case. The episode balances gripping storytelling with a sobering examination of institutional rot and the high price of fighting it.