Overview: Former Riverside County Sheriff Department employee Victoria Flores has filed a lawsuit against Sheriff Chad Bianco, alleging wrongful termination, retaliation, and civil rights violations. The lawsuit claims that Bianco is responsible for corruption and unconstitutional conduct within the department, and that he has a history of falsifying records and violating the rights of inmates. Flores alleges that she was terminated due to her vocal feedback regarding these issues, and that Bianco’s management of the department has resulted in a lack of accountability. The lawsuit comes amid an ongoing investigation into patterns and practices within the department, and Flores’ allegations provide further evidence of wrongdoing.
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For nearly 30 years, former Riverside County Sheriff Department employee Victoria Flores worked her way up the ladder to the rank of captain and jail commander.
In the midst of what appeared to be a stellar career, however, Flores was unceremoniously fired in 2024.
Last Monday, in response to her termination, Flores filed a lawsuit against Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco claiming that previous to her dismissal, a stream of injustices were heaped upon her by Bianco. In the lawsuit she provides specific details regarding long suspected misdeeds occurring within the department and its jail facilities.
Beginning with the claim of wrongful termination, the Flores lawsuit accuses Bianco of retaliation against her, in addition to a slate of civil rights violations that include gender discrimination.
Flores claims she was targeted by Bianco due to what she described as her “unwavering commitment to honesty and accountability” and further declared the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department to be rife with “corruption and unconstitutional conduct.”
Her lawsuit is a whistleblower-type indictment of intentional malfeasance by Bianco, first hand observations and accusations of issues already been made by local civil rights groups, family members of detained individuals, loved ones of detainees who died on Bianco’s watch, local news publications, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and others. Concerns over Bianco’s management of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department have also already resulted in an ongoing patterns and practices investigation launched by California Attorney General Rob Bonta for possible civil rights violations in February 2023.
“All too often, when we see injustices, both great and small, we think, That’s terrible, but we do nothing. We say nothing. We let other people fight their own battles. We remain silent because silence is easier. Qui tacet consentire videtur is Latin for ‘Silence gives consent.’ When we say nothing, when we do nothing, we are consenting to these trespasses against us.”
Roxane Gay
In January 2024, after several months of investigation that included public records requests, review of coroner reports and investigations, grand jury documents and data analysis, Black Voice News (BVN) published Fentanyl Crisis and Mental Health Issues Drive 2022 Increase in Deaths in Riverside County Jails. That year, 19 people died in custody and Riverside County had the third highest death rate among the state’s 14 largest counties. Ten of the deaths were listed as accidental overdoses or suicides, five as natural deaths and one as a homicide.
All 19 individuals who perished in the county’s jails in 2022, were awaiting trial. Not a single one of them had been found guilty of the crime(s) that resulted in his/her confinement. They were being held in custody because their bail was unpaid–not having money for bail should not be a death sentence.
As noted above, many of the allegations Flores detailed in her lawsuit are not new though the facts provided in many instances are. The 2024 BVN report found that nearly a decade after a court-monitored settlement in a 2013 federal lawsuit that forced Riverside County jails to improve the medical and mental health care of men and women confined to their care, the county had yet to meet all requirements under the settlement or consent decree–an agreement with the plaintiffs in the lawsuit. At the time we published our report, nearly ten years after the settlement, the Riverside Sheriff’s Department had complied with only 13 of the nearly 80 provisions detailed in the consent decree.
In January 2024, the plaintiffs were still in dispute over whether the jails had satisfied the near 67 other provisions in the decree. This included things like maintaining adequate medical and mental health staff to care for people in custody and effectively evaluating and housing people with the most severe mental health problems. The Flores lawsuit alleges that similar failures continue to persist.
Flores alleges falsification of records directed by or sanctioned by Bianco among her many complaints against him and his regime.
I’m sure Bianco supporters will claim Flores is a disgruntled employee seeking revenge following her termination. But, according to the lawsuit, she waived a red flag within the organization long before her termination. She also claims it was her vocal feedback regarding what was happening within the department that led to her eventual termination.
I am grateful that the Flores lawsuit is public, I only wish–for the greater good of the community she served for nearly 30 years–Flores had found the courage to go public sooner. Perhaps it could have saved the lives of some in Bianco’s custody. Perhaps it might have impeded Bianco’s re-election. Perhaps it would have dissuaded his decision to run for governor.
It seems to me, however, that as Donald Trump’s mini-me, Bianco is following the playbook of his fascist idol and has no real concern about breaking the law. Perhaps Bianco feels as the county’s top law man, he is free to act as he chooses without fear of any law, retribution or accountability. I hope his assumptions are wrong and he is eventually held to account.
Of course, this is just my opinion, I’m keeping it real.