2 top O.C. sheriff’s officials leave posts

In a significant shake-up at the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, Assistant Sheriff Jo Ann Galisky was fired and colleague Steve Bishop resigned today in moves stemming from a grand jury investigation of an inmate’s beating death.

Both officials were appointed assistants by former Sheriff Michael S. Carona, who is now facing trial on charges that he misused his public office to enrich himself and others, including his wife and mistress. Neither Galisky nor Bishop explained their departures.

The housecleaning came a day after a special grand jury impaneled by the district attorney’s office completed a nine-month investigation into the October 2006 fatal beating of John Chamberlain at the Theo Lacy Jail, run by the department. The findings have been temporarily sealed.

John Moorlach, chairman of the Board of Supervisors, confirmed that both moves were connected to the investigation.

The sheriff’s department investigated the death itself rather than referring the case to the district attorney’s office, breaking a 20-year-old policy designed to avoid possible conflicts of interest. At the time, Galisky oversaw jail operations and Bishop was in charge of investigations.

Chamberlain, a 41-year-old Mission Viejo computer technician, was attacked by about 20 inmates who believed he had been charged with child molestation. In fact, Chamberlain had been accused of possessing child pornography.

One of the inmates charged in the murder alleged that a jail guard allegedly said Chamberlain was a molester. And hours before Chamberlain was killed, his public defender called jail officials to warn that his client felt his life was in danger and urged them to place him in protective custody. He was not moved.

christine.hanley@latimes.com

stuart.pfeiffer@latimes.com