The families of three men who died while in the custody of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department are suing for civil rights violations.
Loved ones gathered in front of a federal courthouse in downtown Riverside on Thursday to announce the new lawsuits which will join four others already filed against the county.
Attorneys representing the families said the inmate deaths could have been prevented and are now seeking justice.
“We’re here to announce three additional civil rights lawsuits filed in federal court against the county,” said attorney Christian Contreras.
The complaints list Riverside County, its sheriff department and Sheriff Chad Bianco as the defendants, alleging charges of negligence, failure to protect inmates from harm, failure to provide medical care and more.
All three inmates died in 2022 in separate incidents while being held at Riverside County jails.
“It seems like if you commit any offense, whether it be a minor offense or any type of offense, you will die in jail,” said Contreras.
Sara Solis wants justice for her son, Mario, who was arrested in April 2022 for a nonviolent offense.
She said from then on, Mario exhibited signs of mental illness. In September 2022, Mario ingested a pencil, a toothbrush, and bags of soap and ultimately died from a puncture to his veins.
Attorneys allege Mario’s death by suicide happened because the staff did not properly conduct safety checks on inmates.
“What’s my definition of a jail? A place that killed my brother before he could turn the age of 21,” said Marissa Vazquez, whose brother, Michael, died in custody. “A place that is unsafe for any individual.”
Marissa said her 20-year-old brother was arrested for burglary and six days later was found on his bunk, suffering from an apparent overdose. His family alleges his death was caused by a delayed response in life-saving medical care and safety checks.
The new lawsuits come after California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced a civil rights investigation into the sheriff’s department by the Department of Justice in February.
“Our investigation will seek to determine whether the sheriff’s office has engaged in a pattern or practice of unconstitutional or unlawful policing,” said Bonta.
Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco responded to the lawsuit announcement on Thursday night, saying:
“The theatrics of attorneys do nothing but further victimize families. Their misleading statements for the media do not change the facts of how they died. The facts are that our deputies and nurses do all they can to prevent inmates from illegally taking drugs that kill them, committing suicide, or harming other inmates. We will vigorously fight these frivolous suits in court. Not one of these inmate deaths has involved deputies.”
Denisse Gastélum, another attorney representing the families, said Bianco’s “continued attacks on the families and their attorneys only furthers the point that Sheriff Bianco does not care and has no regard to human life.”
Gastélum alleged that Bianco “posted offensive questions” to the families on social media, including asking, “Did they demand that their family members not commit suicide or consume drugs while they were in custody?”
“It is no surprise that this insensitive position regarding individuals who suffer from mental illness has a trickledown effect from the County to the Sheriff to the corrections supervisors and on down to the custody and medical staff working at the County jails,” Gastélum said.