'We're not afraid,' public defender says

Cuauhtémoc Ortega earns respect in handling of immigration cases

- GUSTAVO ARELLANO COLUMNIST

FORMER L.A. Councilmember Jose Huizar and his attorney Chad Hummel leave federal court in downtown Los Angeles in August.

(Irfan Khan Los Angeles Times)

With the same first name as the last Aztec emperor, it’s not surprising that Cuauhtémoc Ortega chose to be a fighter.

The federal public defender for Southern California is in charge of a unit that’s always underfunded and perpetually an underdog against the might and resources of the government. His team loses more often than not. But in a year when the Trump administration has tried to bend the law at every level and opportunity to its whims, Ortega has emerged as an important bulwark against federal overreach.

His office filed a motion in August to remove acting U.S. Atty. Bill Essayli from his post, arguing that the top federal prosecutor for Southern California has "no such lawful authority" because he’s yet to be officially confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Ortega and his team — the largest federal public defender's office in the country — are dealing with a deluge of immigration-related cases filed by Essayli. One of them involved an activist who prosecutors claimed assaulted a Border Patrol agent during a protest in Paramount. A jury acquitted Ortega’s client after screening video evidence that contradicted the government’s claims.

The trial also made national news after Ortega cross-examined Border Patrol sector chief Gregory Bovino about previous comments he had made describing undocumented immigrants as “scum, filth and trash.”

“It was a lot of fun to confront him,” Ortega said quietly but proudly. “Especially since I’m Latino and it wasn't lost on me that this person was head of the Border Patrol and that a lawyer who’snamed Cuauhtémoc is cross-examining him.”

His track record has earned the respect of friends and foes.