LOS ANGELES (CNS) - The Los Angeles City Attorney's Office has declined to file any charges stemming from an altercation between an activist and City Councilman Kevin de León that occurred in December at the height of calls for the councilman to resign his position.
The decision prompted criticism from both people involved in the Dec. 9 fight, which occurred at a community event in Lincoln Heights. Both de León and activist Jason Reedy had accused the other of being the aggressor.
De León issued a statement Wednesday saying he was "disappointed" in the decision not to file any charges against Reedy.
"He assaulted a woman on my staff, a community member and me at a children's Christmas toy giveaway," the councilman said. "A week prior, he stalked multiple women on my staff at my field office late at night. This man has a clear pattern of calculated violent behavior."
He said the city attorney "chose to prioritize politics over public safety once again," and in doing so, created "a very dangerous precedent, giving a green light to stalk and assault city employees."
Reedy told the Los Angeles Times he was disappointed that de León was not charged.
"I'm relieved I'm not being charged as I was the one that was assaulted and attacked," he told the paper. "I am absolutely disappointed to see that the city attorney did not feel the need to charge Kevin de León, but it is what it is at this point."
The scuffle occurred at Lincoln Park, where de León was attending a community Christmas event. At the time, the councilman was under intense pressure from some members of the public and his council colleagues to resign over his participation in a 2021 racially charged conversation with two other council members and a labor leader that was caught on tape and publicly released. The tape led to the resignation of then-Council President Nury Martinez.
A group of activists, including Reedy, showed up at the Lincoln Park event to confront the councilman and continue their calls for him to step down. The group followed de León during the event, and as he walked inside a building at the event, the activists followed him.
Video from the event shows de León backed against a wall inside the room, with Reedy standing directly in front of him with his arms held straight in the air. Reedy puts his head against de León's and appears to lightly bump heads with him twice before the councilman steps forward and grabs Reedy, forcing him onto a table.
Both men filed battery reports with the Los Angeles Police Department.
The city attorney's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on why prosecutors declined to pursue any charges.