Legal Action Begins as Widow of Fallen Deputy Seeks Justice After Grenade Explosion
Legal Claim Alleges Inadequate Training in Deputy Explosion Case
A legal claim filed by Nancy Lemus, the widow of Deputy Victor Lemus, alleges negligence within the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department following a fatal grenade explosion last summer. The claim asserts that the department failed to provide sufficient training in explosives handling and that an unreliable x-ray machine incorrectly indicated that the grenade involved was inert.
In her claim for damages, Lemus contends that her husband was not adequately trained in the safe handling of explosives, leading to a tragic outcome. The document specifically names two other deputies, Joshua Kelley-Eklund and William Osborn, stating that they did not sufficiently examine or manage the grenade before the explosion.
According to the Sheriff’s Department’s standard procedures, a government claim must be filed before pursuing a lawsuit against a governmental entity in state court. This claim was first reported by the Los Angeles Times.
In response to the claim, the Sheriff’s Department confirmed receipt but refrained from addressing specific details, citing an ongoing investigation. "We remain committed to thoroughly understanding the circumstances of this tragic incident and ensuring the safety of our personnel," the department stated in an email.
The explosion occurred on the morning of July 18, 2025, as the three deputies were examining two grenades discovered in a storage unit of an apartment building on Bay Street in Santa Monica. The claim alleges that Deputy Osborn utilized an outdated x-ray machine to inspect the explosive device and incorrectly informed Santa Monica officers that it was inert before taking it away instead of destroying it or turning it over to military authorities.
This erroneous x-ray assessment reportedly led the deputies to incorporate what they believed to be a non-functional grenade into a training demonstration, during which one of the deputies pulled the pin. "The device exploded, killing Victor Lemus, as well as themselves. The explosion made Claimant a widow," the claim states.
Additionally, the second grenade retrieved from the Santa Monica apartment has not been located at the blast site, in the deputies’ vehicles, or in their homes.
Sources within law enforcement, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, indicated that the allegations in the claim align with findings from a still-embargoed ATF investigative report pertaining to the explosion.
"This is still an active investigation," the Sheriff’s Department emphasized. "Sheriff’s Homicide investigators are continuing their investigation into the deaths of our Arson Explosive Detail Detectives, while the ATF leads the post-blast investigation to determine the origin and cause of the explosion as well as the subsequent whereabouts of the second device."
