Last Updated on April 2, 2024 by BVN
S. E. Williams
Last month we learned of incremental movement by the Riverside County Board of Supervisors to peel away some of the autonomy of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department led by Chad Bianco.
In the wake of an alarming rise in custody deaths in 2022, the board authorized the County Executive Office (CEO) to study the feasibility of separating the sheriff’s department from the coroner’s office.
Upon completion of the study, the CEO recommended outsourcing autopsies related to in- custody and officer involved deaths. Although this is an incremental step toward transparency it falls far short of the type of transparency warranted to establish trust in the department as the change only deals with the autopsies portion of the in-custody deaths investigatory process, while a critical part of the process–the coroner’s review–remains unchanged. And, since Bianco also leads the coroner’s office, an important part of the in-custody death investigatory process remains opaque.
The slow walk toward true transparency and accountability continues to be impeded by tepid board members who tip-toe around criticism of the sheriff and refrain from any meaningful efforts to press for more aggressive change as if their campaign coffers depend on not rocking the boat too much so they don’t lose contributions from powerful police unions and other hardline supporters.
State law mandates that county boards of supervisors oversee sheriffs’ offices. And in 2021, AB 1185 was established giving counties the authority to establish civilian oversight boards to assist supervisors in that role. However, the law does not require counties to create civilian boards. In other words, AB 1185 is another example of one of California’s progressive laws without much teeth and a wide open escape hatch for boards that either lack the courage or the will to act.
When Black Voice News launched an investigation into the 2022 increase in in custody deaths in Riverside County Jails last year, board supervisors Chuck Washington and V. Manuel Perez were asked to share their concerns about the issue. We were told the board was briefed in a closed door session about the matter.
“The problem is when progress becomes its own ideology – that is, when advocacy for incrementalism is seen as the astute and preferred mode of political transformation. It is never easy to win, but progress is also never sufficient. Incremental change keeps the grinding forces of oppression – death – in place.”
Mychal Denzel Smith
Understanding Sheriff Chad Bianco is an elected official in his own right with significant latitude over how he manages the sheriff’s department, the county’s Board of Supervisors does however approve his billion dollar budget, thereby providing the board with some additional leverage–if they choose to use it. They have not.
Both supervisors gave dispassionate political responses to the Black Voice News inquiry. Third District Supervisor Washington shared how the supervisors were concerned about the in-custody deaths, but noted that Riverside was not alone in this regard, adding how in-custody deaths had risen in other state jurisdictions, and drugs are smuggled into jails in other counties too, he stressed. I understand he was in the midst of a campaign but in November, he told a reporter that the sheriff “is an independently elected position and I recognize his constitutional authority. Washington further assured that he will work with the department “to find solutions to incarceration challenges.”
While Fourth District Supervisor Perez on the other hand, last year would not comment on the sheriff or the in-custody deaths. Instead, he noted that to represent his constituents successfully, he has to work in good faith with people he may disagree with to effect change. “I am not interested in speaking ill or negatively about other policymakers, especially through the media or social media platforms.” We never asked him to speak negatively. We just ask for his thoughts/opinions regarding the loss of life in the county jails. I guess it was a matter of reading between the lines.
So, there you have it. This is a classic example of the structural and institutional incrementalism or change by degrees we’ve grown accustomed to in America. Incrementalism coupled with the military euphemism of acceptable loss…casualties or loss that are considered tolerable.. Is certain to move the issue of transparency in the Riverside County’s Sheriff’s Department forward at a pace slower than a three-toed sloth, which, believe it or not, moves slower than a snail.
You don’t have to search the annals of history to understand what I mean by this. Just look to the movement for civil rights that has dragged on incrementally since the end of the Civil War. Or the fight for women’s equality that began in 1848 and today women still earn 16% less than what men earn on average. Or, the fight for gay rights that began in the 1920’s and yet in 2023, a record amount of legislation, more than 520 anti-LGBTQ+ bills were introduced in state legislatures around the country.
We need supervisors who have the courage needed to take a stand and lead on this issue.
Of course this is just my opinion. I’m keeping it real.
