Riverside County’s criminal deputies

The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department has been in complete free fall since the election of Sheriff Chad Bianco.

From massive contract cost increases for cities which rely on the department to provide policing services to endless scandals, the department is a shining example of how not to run a law enforcement agency.

Most recently, former deputy Christian Heidecker has been in court to face charges he abused his power to “sextort” women in county custody.

Alleged victims of Heidecker came forward during a press conference in late September to call for other victims to speak out. “We just want justice because, as you see and hear, there’s crimes being done. Inside the jails is horrors being done to us,” one woman said.

According to reporting by KTLA, attorney Denisse Gastelum has said county officials tried offering a settlement to the victims before the deputy turned himself in. “Knocking on their doors offering them $1,000 to keep their mouth shut, so that they don’t sue the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department for allowing that animal to continue to victimize them while he has control in their custody,” she said.

For context, this is the same Riverside County Sheriff’s Department already under a state civil rights investigation following a record number of deaths in the jail system.

This is the same Riverside County Sheriff’s Department where another deputy was recently arrested for transporting 104 pounds of fentanyl.

This is the same Riverside County Sheriff’s Department which terrorized an elderly couple and had to settle a federal civil rights lawsuit.

This is the same Riverside County Sheriff’s Department which managed to hand off 60 pounds of methamphetamine to a suspected drug dealer during a sting operation and lost track of the drugs.

This is what happens when you elect someone with no qualifications to serve as the leader of a large and complex organization like the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.

This is what happens when you have Democratic officials like Supervisor Chuck Washington proudly touting endorsements from Sheriff Bianco.

Bianco and his enablers need to be removed from public office.