Los Angeles DA sues prosecutor for retaliation after being punished for misgendering child predator.

A Los Angeles deputy district attorney has accused his superiors of a "comprehensive retaliation campaign" that hindered his career and resulted in his suspension without pay and additional punishment for "misgendering" a convicted child predator and murderer. This is the latest in a series of roughly 25 whistleblower lawsuits.

"For the past two years, Gascon has attempted to silence me, Sanna, the prosecutor, told Planet Chronicle Digital. He has suspended me without pay, threatened my livelihood, attacked my credibility, tarnished my reputation, demoted me, investigated me, and harassed me, all in an effort to make me obey him; to keep me quiet; to prevent me from speaking up on behalf of those most affected by his misguided political policies."

According to court filings obtained by Planet Chronicle Digital, Sanna is accusing Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon, the county, and other officials of whistleblower retaliation and the intentional infliction of emotional distress.

While on an approved vacation, Gascon's office attempted to investigate him for "insubordination," according to the filing.

The conflict in the case primarily arises from Gascon's treatment of James "Hannah" Tubbs, a child molester who also struck his friend's head with a rock in Kern County.

Gascón's attorneys at the Dhillon Law Group stated that since publicly opposing Gascón's mishandling of the Tubbs case, Gascón has set his sights on Sanna, looking to manufacture any conceivable reason to make an example of his perceived disloyalty and ultimately, terminate him.

In 2021, Tubbs was almost released from an adult men's prison for assault charges, but Los Angeles prosecutors requested a transfer of custody to hold him accountable for a 2014 attack on a 10-year-old girl.

The allegation claims that Gascon removed Sanna from the case and hindered his ability to present evidence, before retaliating against him with false investigations when he exposed policy and ethics breaches.

Sanna raised other ethics issues, including a potential violation of Marsy's law, which protects victims' rights, and saw additional retaliation, according to the complaint. He was later ordered to drive 70 miles from his office in Antelope Valley to meet with top Gascon aide Joseph Iniguez and suspended for "misgendering" Tubbs. The complaint alleges that he was ordered to make the same drive at least two more times in an "intentionally abusive and malicious manner."

The right-hand man of the Los Angeles DA was arrested on a public intoxication charge, as shown in a video.

"In early 2022, Sanna's promising career was derailed when he publicly exposed how Gascon's policies led to a miscarriage of justice in the Tubbs case, nearly resulting in the release of a dangerous and violent sexual predator. Sanna also revealed how the Gascón Administration suppressed evidence and directed him not to oppose defense counsel's arguments in order to secure Tubbs's release."

The Tubbs case attracted national attention because, despite being in his 20s, he was tried as a juvenile in Los Angeles under Gascon due to the perpetrator being only 17 at the time of the crime.

In 2022, Planet Chronicle obtained jailhouse phone calls that revealed Tubbs and his father discussing a plan to identify as female in order to be housed in a girls' facility or released from jail. Following the release of these calls, the lawsuit claims that Sanna was informed that Gascon's administration was planning to take action against him.

Tubbs, who has a history of violent crimes and drug offenses in California, Washington, and Idaho, was accused of attacking at least two girls, including one in Los Angeles. Despite his plan for a light sentence in a juvenile facility that would have kept him off the state's sex offender registry, Kern County prosecutors extradited him to face manslaughter charges.

Hannah, now 28, is being held in the California Institution for Men, according to prison records. The decision to house her there was made by state officials.

"Deputy District Attorney Shea Sanna, in the Tubbs case, followed his ethical and legal duties to present all relevant evidence to the court. However, his attorney, Anthony Fusaro, stated that this evidence conflicted with D.A. Gascon's recently enacted policies and public statements, leading Gascon to seek its suppression. When Sanna informed his supervisors and the public of Gascon's suppression efforts, Gascon responded with a relentless retaliation campaign against Sanna that persists to this day."

In 2021, Sanna prosecuted a high-profile case involving a teen who drove the wrong way and struck a mother and her baby in a stroller in Venice Beach.

Although not related to the retaliation lawsuit, Baca blew the whistle again on the lenient punishment of a teen suspect. Despite being released after a short time, Baca was later murdered in a drive-by shooting before his 18th birthday.

Gascon is facing roughly two dozen retaliation lawsuits from prosecutors in his office.

In November, Gascon is up for re-election and will face opposition from independent Nathan Hochman. His office did not respond to a request for comment.