LAPD officer charged with illegally recording colleagues' conversations

A Los Angeles Police Department officer has been charged with illegally recording his colleagues' conversations.

Daniel Flores, 43, faces 16 counts for allegedly recording his colleagues without their permission. His arraignment is scheduled for Aug. 10. He faces a maximum possible sentence of 13 years in prison.

"This case serves as a warning to anyone seeking to record a conversation without the other person's permission that doing so is illegal and has been a crime in the state of California for over 50 years," District Attorney Nathan Hochman said. 

The LA County District Attorney's Office said some of the recordings allegedly contained homophobic, racist and sexist remarks. Hochman denounced the remarks and called for the employees to be held accountable.

"One can address important issues by going through the proper legal channels," Hochman said. "If one chooses a law-breaking path instead, then the consequences will be straightforward and significant."  

LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said he supported prosecutors filing charges against Flores. 

"I am committed to ensuring the workplace is professional, respectful, and free from misconduct, and any employee who violates those standards will be held accountable," McDonnell said. 

Flores allegedly recorded the conversations in 2024. The District Attorney's Office said Flores and his colleagues were in charge of hiring at LAPD. 

"It doesn't matter where you work or who you are – a neighbor, a coworker or, in this case, a police officer," Hochman said. "Your right to privacy in a confidential conversation is protected, no matter who is doing the recording or, with few exceptions, why they are doing the recording."

CBS LA obtained the criminal complaint filed against Flores, which revealed that more than 120 audio files had been submitted to the LAPD's Internal Affairs Bureau and the Office of Inspector General in what was supposed to be an anonymous complaint. When the evidence was turned over to LAPD, they discovered that Flores was the officer who made the recordings. 

Flores has filed a civil lawsuit due to the charges he faces. His attorney, Alan Jackson, shared a statement with CBS LA. 

"Daniel Flores did not leak this material. He did not sell it, post it, or hand it to a reporter. He walked it into Internal Affairs and gave it to his own department. In an official complaint, because he believed the Department would do something about it," Jackson's statement said. "The Department's answer was to investigate him. The District Attorney's answer is to prosecute him. We reject these charges completely, and we will not be quiet about them."

His statement goes on to say that by charging Flores, LAPD is telling every officer that documenting bigotry will land them in a courtroom, and that the safe move is to "hear the slurs, say nothing, and go home."

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass shared a statement regarding Flores' charges on Thursday, hours after McDonnell and Hochman spoke on the matter during a press conference. 

"The bottom line is that the alleged racist, sexist, and homophobic comments made are outrageous and unacceptable. While I understand that it is inappropriate and a crime to record colleagues without their consent, these charges certainly send the wrong message that calling out egregious behavior could land you in prison," Bass said. "I am worried that this will deter whistleblowers and discourage officers from using the appropriate reporting channels in the future."