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Streetsblog California
LA City Atty Loses Bid to Criminalize Man Punched During Traffic Stop; Diversion Agreement Paves Way for Civil Proceedings Against City, LAPD to Resume
Lawyers for Alexander Mitchell believe the misdemeanor resisting charges, filed 11 months after Officer Joshua Sportiello socked Mitchell in the face, were retaliatory and intended to interfere with proceedings in the civil suit Mitchell filed against the City. That suit was stayed earlier this year, pending resolution of the criminal case.
August 7, 2026
City Attorney Takes Her Own Swing at Man Sucker Punched by LAPD in 2024
Eleven months after Officer Joshua Sportiello punched Alexander Mitchell in the face, the City Attorney's office filed misdemeanor resisting charges against him. Was it in retaliation for Mitchell's civil suit?
March 6, 2026
