A Senate bill that would separate the Riverside County sheriff and coroner’s offices has cleared an important hurdle. It was prompted by concerns over a lack of transparency in investigating deaths in Riverside County jails.
SB 1379, which passed the Assembly Appropriations Committee on Thursday, would require the Riverside County Board of Supervisors to separate the offices of sheriff and coroner by July 2027. It also would require the county to create an independent medical examiner’s office and require Riverside County to post information about in-custody deaths in county jails on its website within certain timeframes.
The bill, authored by state Sen. Sabrina Cervantes, a Riverside County Democrat, came after critics said it was a conflict of interest for the sheriff’s department to investigate deaths in its own jails. In 2022, a rash of in-custody deaths claimed 18 lives — the most in any given year in two decades.
Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, who opposes the bill, said in a statement to KVCR that SB 1379 is politically motivated. The bill will now head to the Assembly floor. In order to be considered by the governor for signature or veto, the bill must be approved by both houses of the California Legislature by Aug. 31.