A California family wants answers from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department after they claim deputies from Temple City illegally entered their apartment and arrested their teenage children last fall. The teens' mother, Ceidy Cordova, posted a home surveillance video on TikTok of the deputies arresting the teens while their parents were not home. Shockingly, Cordova tried to speak to the arresting officers through the family's doorbell camera, but they refused to respond.
The angry mother says she got very little information from the sheriff's office regarding the October incident, but the story took off when she posted the videos on social media. The family has an attorney and plans to sue the sheriff's department for a slew of offenses, including unlawful entry into their apartment.
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The mom watched the scene unfold on the family's home surveillance cameras.
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Cordova said she and her husband were not home on the morning of October 22 when their 19-year-old daughter, Alaiza, called and said she had just returned from the gym and sheriff's deputies were at the door. The mother assured her daughter she was on her way home and instructed the teen not to let them inside. When Alaiza called a few minutes later and said deputies were inside the apartment, Cordova was very confused.
She attempted to talk to the officers through the camera. In the video, Cordova says "Hello" several times, but they appear to ignore her. Alaiza points to the camera at one point, but deputies do not look up. The young woman seemed to be backed into a corner as deputies handcuffed her as she struggled.
"I was having an anxiety attack," Cordova said.
The situation continued to escalate.
In a second video, deputies are seen holding Alaiza up against a wall outside the apartment, and she is crying, "I didn't do anything." A third video shows 14-year-old Issac's disagreement with police as they handcuffed him against an apartment wall like his sister.
The sheriff's office claims they restrained the teens because they were not cooperative. The family says that is false.
According to a statement from the sheriff's department obtained by the Times, deputies arrived at the apartment complex in south San Gabriel, after a report of a domestic dispute. Deputies claim the family's apartment door was "ajar" but the teens did not willingly let them enter.
"After several attempts to have the occupants of the residence exit the location to ascertain if anyone was injured inside, the deputies made entry and a use of force against a juvenile occurred," the statement reads.
The family says the door was closed.
Cordova told the Times that her daughter closed the door, but she did not lock it. She also attests to videos of the deputies showing them knocking to get someone's attention. The actual door is just out of the camera's view.
"Sheriff's Department. Is there anyone inside?" a deputy says before walking in. "Make yourself known."
Cordova retained attorney Narine Mkrtchyan, who says the case is "outrageous." She affirmed Cordova's claim that the door was closed and told the Times that the sheriff's deputies had no right to enter the apartment. She denied that her clients were being obstinate with deputies. Instead, they wanted to know why they were there.
The sheriff's office claims the videos are misleading.
In their statement, officials state the videos do not show the entire sequence of events but just pieces. The videos only give part of the story, and the sheriff's office stands by its deputies.
"Deputies had a lawful duty to ensure there were no injured victims and/or suspects inside the location," the department claims.
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Cordova thinks the sheriff's department is covering for itself.
She believes that the deputies made a mistake and went to the wrong apartment, and now they have to save face. "This is retaliation," she said. "They realized they ran into the wrong apartment, but now they're arresting these people after the fact to justify their entry."
The family now feels unsafe in their own home and organized a GoFundMe account so they can move away from San Gabriel and start a new life.
"Ceidy and her family are terrified in their own home, afraid to go to starbucks and being harassed by the same sheriffs. Isaac, 14, is afraid to go skate like he used to in fear of being targeted by the sheriff," the page reads.
All proceeds will help the family with moving costs and all future legal fees.
"I hope that your family gets justice. Everything they did to your family was illegal and just wrong. How many others do they treat this way?" one donor wrote. "I just hate to see this from the civil servants that are supposed to protect our kids. Please seek a lawyer and show the kids that we have to stand up for ourselves and our rights. It's not much but I hope the best for this family."
