Ex-deputy gets five years in prison for sexually extorting women; prosecutors ask for more

A former Riverside County sheriff's deputy was sentenced Thursday to five years in state prison for forcing women on house arrest to send him sexually explicit material, with the fear of reincarceration looming if they didn't. The prosecutor objected to the sentence, arguing for the maximum of 12 years in prison.

Christian Phillip Heidecker, 32, pleaded guilty in a previous hearing to 13 counts: four each of extortion, bribery and dissuading a witness, as well as one count of engaging in a sex act as a detention officer.

Riverside County Superior Court Judge Charles Rogers reduced two of those counts to misdemeanors, but denied Heidecker's request for probation. The judge also declined the defense's request that he recommend to prison officials that Heidecker serve the time in the state prison's fire camp program.

"The conduct Mr. Heidecker engaged in and whatever weakness he was experiencing was awful," Rogers said. "These young women were vulnerable and he was in a position of power."

Rogers said he based his decision to not sentence the former deputy to the maximum was based on his lack of criminal history, his previous public service and the remorse he believed the man feels about his actions.

“He is not going to be able to be in public service again, and it is not going to be easy for a former police officer to serve a prison sentence," Rogers said during the hearing, adding: "I believe his remorse to be genuine."

That sentiment was not shared by the Riverside County District Attorney's Office's prosecutor on the case, Jess Walsh, and two victims and their families, who were present Thursday for the hearing at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta.

While Heidecker did not speak during the hearing, his lawyer, Molly Tucker, stated on his behalf: "Mr. Heidecker does want to convey his personal apologies to everyone involved."

‘I had nowhere to run to’

Two civil attorneys representing some of the women who were victim to Heidecker's extortion requested the judge impose a maximum sentence, saying it was appropriate due to Heidecker's knowledge of the seriousness of his crimes as a law-enforcement officer and his violation of the public's trust.

"The only thing that Heidecker is remorseful about is that he got caught. If he didn’t I wouldn’t just be representing seven victims, it would be 14 victims, or 20 victims," said Denisse Gastelum, a civil attorney. "Today, make no mistake, the criminal justice system failed female victims."

Gastelum's comment Thursday was the first mention of there potentially being seven victims. Heidecker pleaded guilty to charges related to four women, the only crimes alleged in the DA's complaint. Gastelum said civil cases would be filed in the coming week with more information about the increase in alleged victims.

Gastelum's co-counsel Christian Contreres echoed her dissapointment with the judge's sentence, saying it was a missed opportunity to send a clear message to Sheriff Chad Bianco's department amid more than a dozen civil suits alleging misconduct and an ongoing civil rights investigation.

"Today Christian Heidecker was senteced to five years in prison for his abuse of power and for his sextortion scheme against his victims," Contreras said. "This was a clear abuse of power and a clear violation of our trust in law enforcement. This is just a portion of the problem here in Riverside County that starts with Sheriff Chad Bianco. We need clear reform. We need actual punishment."

One victim, who identified herself as YV, said Heidecker's crimes were greater in number and involved more people than investigators uncovered in his now resolved criminal case.

"They didn’t do a thorough investigation," said YV. "They didn’t try to find victims. Even though it’s the responsibility of the investigators to investigate, I urge anybody that has information about the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department or Mr. Heidecker to come forward."

Another victim who spoke during the hearing said she suffers persistent anxiety as she continues to complete the county's house arrest program.

"I felt I had nowhere to run to," said the 20-year-old woman. "This was a person who had control over if I could stay with my son and my family. I have already gone through multiple abuses in the past, and I did not think more would come from law enforcement."

A woman who declined to be present during the hearing had her lawyer read a letter to the court in which she described the fear she felt during a recent visit to the facility where she first met Heidecker.

"I couldn’t shake the thought that he would come out from the back and come and get me," she said. "My sense of security has been irrevocably shattered ... Imagine being alone at night and this man who was aggressive in his advances knows your address and that you can’t leave."

A mother spoke on behalf of her daughter during the hearing, a portion of which was in the form of a prayer.

"What you did was more than wrong; it was evil and perverse," she said. "You also seemed to believe that you and the other deputies would not be caught. A lie of the enemy that he has been using forever. Your name should stand for truth. I pray that you will seek counseling to find out what happened and why you went down this path."

Walsh, the prosecutor on the case, requested at the beginning of the hearing that the maximum sentence be imposed, making much the same argument as the victims who spoke: that the former deputy abused his authority.

"What the defendant did is one of the most egregious violations of the public’s trust," Walsh said. "The people have been greatly bothered and offended by the conduct of Mr. Heidecker. He held people's liberty in his hands and used his position of authority to take from them the most intimate things they had."

Civil suits loom

During a hearing last year, prosecutors presented evidence showing how Heidecker harrassed at least four women who were largely confined to their homes while their criminal cases were being resolved. Investigators seized dozens of text messages from both Heidecker's work and personal phones that showed how he would offer more lenient treatment, such as permission to go on trips to visit family, in exchange for sexually explicit photos and videos.

Prosecutors described last year how the women Heidecker extorted felt they had no choice given the deputy's legal authority over them while in the Riverside Alternative Sentencing Program at the Coordinated Custody Management Unit in Banning.

The DA's office initially filed 18 felony counts against Heidecker soon after he turned himself in to his department. A judge dismissed several counts after reviewing evidence during a hearing last year. Heidecker has been held on no bail since that time.

Several women have sued the county, the sheriff's department and Heidecker claiming he sexually assaulted them and preyed on their fear of being returned to jail if they did not send what he demanded.

Civil attorneys who represent the women also claim that lawyers representing the county attempted to compel their clients to sign contracts releasing the county from liability. The plaintiffs' attorneys deny the legitimacy of these agreements, as well as the settlements they included, some of which were for about $2,000. Those civil cases are to be filed in the coming weeks, with an increased number of potential victims.

"County counsel went around and tried to cover up what Christian Heidecker did," Contreras said Thursday. "There are greater problems in the county that need to come to light."

Heidecker's sentence comes as Bianco's department struggles with several scandals and a California Department of Justice civil rights investigation.

A former deputy was charged with dealing an often-abused ADHD medicine and hallucinogenic mushrooms. And another is charged with several felonies for transporting more than 500,000 fentanyl pills for sale. California Attorney General Rob Bonta launched an ongoing civil rights investigation of Bianco's department last year after the sheriff's department did not properly report a record-breaking number of in-custody deaths.

Christopher Damien covers public safety and the criminal justice system. He can be reached at christopher.damien@desertsun.com or follow him at @chris_a_damien.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Ex-California sheriff's deputy gets 5 years in prison in bribery case