At around 10:30 PM on March 31 of last year, LAPD Lieutenant Matthew Ensley was driving his gray Audi A6 down the 605 Freeway on his way to the Hawaiian Gardens Casino, when he drove into the rear end of 32-year-old Mario De La Cruz Jr.’s Toyota Camry.
The impact of the collision shattered Ensley’s front windshield and sent the Camry spinning out of control in a “circular motion” across the road until it hit a concrete center divider wall, according to a police report obtained by journalist Joey Scott, reviewed by L.A. TACO. After the crash, both men riding in the Toyota were transported to UCI Health in Los Alamitos.
When a California Highway Patrol (CHP) officer arrived at the scene, they found Ensley sitting on a concrete barrier on the right shoulder of the freeway, reeking of alcohol.
As the highway patrol officer spoke to Ensley, he noticed that the off-duty LAPD officer’s speech was “heavily slurred” and he swayed back and forth while slowly inching forward with watery, bloodshot eyes.
When asked how intoxicated he was on a scale from 1-10—one being slightly buzzed and 10 being black-out-drunk—Ensley told the officer, “One, the reason is because I’m bigger than most people that drink. I’m 6’6” 175 [pounds]. That is the reason why I’m safe.”
Asked if he hit his head during the collision, Ensley responded, “Absolutely not, I didn’t even know I got into a crash until you guys showed up.”
After admitting to drinking “a beer and an old-fashioned,” and failing to perform several field sobriety tests, as explained and demonstrated, Ensley was arrested for drunk driving and then transported to CHP’s Santa Fe Springs field office, where he blew a .21 on a breathalyzer.
Early the next morning, police learned that De La Cruz Jr. was diagnosed with “pain and soft tissue damage” to their head, shoulders, and abdomen. The 30-year-old passenger of the Toyota Camry reportedly suffered a “fractured right arm and a concussion.”
“An LAPD cop drove multiple times over the legal limit, got into an accident that put two people in the hospital, and got a sweetheart deal that will allow him to remain with the LAPD (a fucking lieutenant) while he does probation.”
In early April of 2024, Los Angeles prosecutors charged Ensley with felony DUI causing bodily injury and driving with a blood-alcohol level of over 15 percent.
Ensley was never tried on those charges, however.
A year after being arrested, prosecutors offered Ensley a deal to plead no contest to a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence with a blood-alcohol level over .08 percent, causing bodily injury, according to court records reviewed by L.A. TACO. The remaining charges against the lieutenant were dismissed.
In early May of this year, Ensley was sentenced to three years of probation. During that time, he’s legally required to abstain from using alcohol, submit to blood and drug tests, and pay a fine, in addition to other stipulations.
L.A. TACO first learned about Ensley’s plea deal through LAPD watchdog and critic, William Gude, AKA Film The Police LA.
“Looks like Ensley got 3 years probation,” Gude wrote in late July on X, where he has more than 85,000 followers. “An LAPD cop drove multiple times over the legal limit, got into an accident that put two people in the hospital, and got a sweetheart deal that will allow him to remain with the LAPD (a fucking lieutenant) while he does probation.”
In a written statement, a spokesperson for Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman told L.A. TACO that after speaking with the victim, who told police that they sustained a “fractured right arm and concussion” as a result of the car collision, prosecutors “determined there was insufficient evidence to prove that great bodily injury occurred.”
Because Ensley had no prior convictions or other “felony-qualifying factors,” by operation of law, his case had to be downgraded to a misdemeanor, according to the D.A.’s office.
“The case was initially filed as a felony based on a great bodily injury (GBI) allegation, but no GBI occurred,” the spokesperson explained. “With no priors or other felony-qualifying factors, by operation of law, it now had to be prosecuted as a misdemeanor. We then offered a standard first-time plea, including substantial community labor.”
Under the plea deal, Ensley is required to do 20 days of “community labor,” the spokesperson confirmed.
In recent years, numerous LAPD officers have been arrested for alcohol-related offenses or were the subjects of internal affairs investigations involving drinking, according to court documents and LAPD records.
Last month, Orange County prosecutors charged LAPD Sergeant Carlos Gonzalo Coronel with killing a teenager in Tustin, California, while driving drunk, and then fleeing the scene without stopping or calling police.
Prosecutors allege that after killing the teen and driving off, Coronel instructed his girlfriend to avoid the street where he left the victim to die and he personally searched the internet to see if there were any fatal hit-and-runs in Tustin and drove by the Tustin Police’s crime scene investigation.
In another incident, on Christmas Day, a rookie LAPD officer was arrested in Ontario after they allegedly killed a cyclist while driving drunk.
In some instances—like in the cases of Ensley and Coronel—LAPD officers who have faced consequences for alcohol-related crimes and misconduct have been able to keep their jobs.
Coronel was sentenced to three years of probation and 80 hours of community service in 2011, after being convicted of driving under the influence, according to court records. He was hired by the LAPD in 2008.
After his second DUI arrest, Coronel’s peace officer status was suspended on July 15, according to state records—roughly a month after the Orange County District Attorney’s Office filed charges of felony drunk driving and felony hit and run against him.
In May of 2024, Ensley’s peace officer certificate was temporarily suspended, following his DUI arrest, according to state records. But the suspension was withdrawn last month, on June 25, because the charges against him were reduced to a misdemeanor.
LAPD disciplinary reports from April and May show that the department recommended suspending more than 15 officers for alcohol-related misconduct in recent months, including 10 officers who were accused of driving under the influence.
When asked what Ensley’s current assignment is, a spokesperson for the LAPD told L.A. TACO, "Thank you for your inquiry. Your request has been forwarded to our Professional Standards Bureau.” LAPD Media Relations ignored several follow-up emails, and we never heard from their Professional Standards Bureau.
In years past, the LAPD's issues with alcohol abuse have caught the attention of the Police Commission, the civilian board of directors for the LAPD.
Two years ago, the commission approved a motion prohibiting off-duty officers who are carrying firearms from having a blood-alcohol level of .04 percent or higher.
Since then, alcohol abuse among LAPD officers has persisted, however.
LAPD disciplinary reports from April and May show that the department recommended suspending more than 15 officers for alcohol-related misconduct in recent months, including 10 officers who were accused of driving under the influence.
In one instance, a detective was suspended for 30 days after being arrested for child abuse for striking a child in the face, inappropriately using profanity toward children, and being intoxicated in a public area. In another, the LAPD sought to suspend a sergeant for 22 days for driving drunk, being in possession of a firearm under the influence of alcohol, and driving a car at a speed greater than 100 MPH on the freeway.
In another, the department recommended suspending an officer for 25 days for using “racial slurs towards staff at a restaurant" and “profanity towards outside law enforcement,” as well as damaging property while “intoxicated in a public place.”
These are just a handful of disturbing incidents in which an officer's drinking became a public problem, resulting in relatively light punishment.
