Los Angeles County sheriff won’t enforce vaccine mandate

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles County sheriff says he will not enforce the county’s vaccine mandate in his agency. Sheriff Alex Villanueva oversees the largest sheriff’s department in the county with roughly 18,000 employees. He said Thursday in a Facebook Live event that he does not plan to carry out the county’s mandate. Los Angeles County employees had to be fully vaccinated by Oct. 1. The mandate was issued by executive order in August and allows only for religious and medical exemptions. Villanueva says his employees are willing to be terminated rather than get vaccinated. More than 26,000 people have died of the coronavirus in Los Angeles County.