Officer A Los Angeles sheriff’s deputy will serve four months in prison after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge for using excessive force—despite originally being convicted of a felony by a federal jury. The reduced sentence comes after an unusual plea deal was offered by the newly appointed U.S. Attorney, Bill Essayli.
Deputy Trevor Kirk was caught on video in June 2023 tackling and pepper-spraying an elderly woman who had been filming an arrest outside a local supermarket. In February, a federal jury found Kirk guilty of one felony count of deprivation of rights under color of law, a charge that carries a potential prison sentence of up to 10 years. A felony conviction would also have barred him from continuing in law enforcement or possessing a firearm.
However, after Essayli assumed office, federal prosecutors extended a new plea offer: if Kirk pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor, the felony conviction would be dropped. They also recommended one year of probation. A judge accepted the reduced plea but handed down a four-month prison sentence on Monday instead of probation.
In a video statement, Essayli defended his decision, saying that a similar plea offer had been made to Kirk under the previous administration, but he initially rejected it.
In court documents approved by U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli, prosecutors argued that Deputy Kirk’s actions were on the lower end of the excessive force scale, that the woman did not sustain “serious bodily injury,” and that the case had been improperly prosecuted.
Several former prosecutors and experts in police convictions called this move highly unusual, especially given the absence of any clear evidence of prosecutorial misconduct, ethical breaches, or newly uncovered facts. The decision aligns with former President Donald Trump’s pledge to “protect and defend” law enforcement officers from prosecution and his broader efforts to exert greater influence over the Justice Department.
In cases where such deals occur, new evidence proving innocence is typically involved, “not just the same evidence viewed from a different angle,” he explained.
Kirk’s defense attorney, Tom Yu, stated they had filed a motion for acquittal, which was denied, and that they planned to appeal the ruling.
The Incident
While the original indictment described Kirk as having “violently” thrown the woman to the ground, the revised plea agreement claimed the woman “swatted” at Kirk and “resisted,” assertions Harper said were neither proven during the criminal trial nor supported by testimony in related civil cases.
Harper maintained that her client committed no crime, carried no weapon, and neither fled nor resisted arrest. The woman suffered a black eye, a fractured wrist bone, multiple bruises and scratches, and significant chemical burns from the pepper spray.
Harper warned that the plea deal sends a “dangerous message” suggesting that law enforcement officers convicted of felonies could still negotiate favorable deals behind closed doors after trial.
Philip Stinson, a former police officer and legal researcher specializing in police misconduct, described the plea offer to Kirk as “seemingly without precedent” in federal prosecutions of police officers.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department spokesperson, Nicole Nishida, confirmed that Kirk remains employed but is currently relieved of duty pending an internal investigation into possible policy or procedural violations.
A Shift in Federal Prosecution
Kirk’s case reflects a broader trend under the Trump administration toward a more lenient federal approach in prosecuting police misconduct. Trump’s April executive order on policing promised to “unleash” law enforcement and bolster their legal defenses.
In May, the Justice Department withdrew proposed consent decrees with Minneapolis and Louisville that aimed to implement police reforms after the killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. It also rescinded findings from six other investigations that had identified civil rights violations within police departments under the Biden administration.
Trump-appointed federal judges have also contributed to dismissing cases against officers, including the dropping of murder charges against a former Atlanta officer involved in a fatal shooting of an unarmed man in 2019.
Experts note that local prosecutors often have close working relationships with police, which can complicate accountability efforts. As a result, many look to the federal government as an essential check and balance when local law enforcement officers are accused of serious misconduct.
Following the announcement of the new plea deal, all four prosecutors originally assigned to the case withdrew, with at least one resigning and two others accepting buyouts from the federal office, according to court filings and spokesperson Ciaran McEvoy.