Sheriff's deputy accused of death threats, gun charges returns to work
A San Bernardino County sheriff's deputy facing criminal charges for allegedly holding a gun to a man's head while off duty has returned to work at West Valley Detention Center.
Richard Heverly, of La Verne, was placed on paid administrative leave following his Aug. 10 arrest in Riverside County.
He returned to work at the jail's transportation division on Nov. 4, said sheriff's spokeswoman Cindy Beavers.
At about 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 10, tow-truck driver Roger Gilstrap saw a big-rig truck on fire on the 10 Freeway near Eagle Mountain Road, about 50 miles east of Indio.
Gilstrap positioned his truck to block off lanes affected by the burning big rig and called the California Highway Patrol from his cell phone, according to the arrest declaration in Heverly's court file.
While Gilstrap was on the phone with the CHP, Heverly, 42, pulled up beside him in a red Dodge truck.
Heverly flashed his sheriff's department badge and told Gilstrap, "This entitles me to do whatever the (expletive) I want," according to the arrest declaration, which was written by a CHP officer.
Heverly grabbed Gilstrap's cell phone and disconnected the call, then pulled Gilstrap out of the tow truck and handcuffed his right hand, bruising and injuring Gilstrap's wrist, according to the arrest declaration.
Heverly then drove the barrel of a handgun into Gilstrap's ear, and told him, "I have a gun in your ear and I will kill you," according to the arrest declaration.
Heverly twisted the gun into Gilstrap's ear, bruising and cutting the inside of Gilstrap's ear and the surrounding area, according to the arrest declaration.
Heverly then handcuffed Gilstrap's arms behind his back and led him to the passenger side of the truck. He held Gilstrap for 3 to 5 minutes, according to the arrest declaration.
Heverly never told Gilstrap the reason for handcuffing him, according to the arrest declaration. Gilstrap told officers he feared for his life during the encounter with Heverly.
Heverly has pleaded not guilty to four felony charges: assault with a semi-automatic firearm, assault by a public officer, criminal threats and false imprisonment. All four charges carry sentencing enhancements because Heverly used a gun.
San Bernardino County sheriff's spokeswoman Cindy Beavers declined to discuss the reason that Heverly was allowed back to work at West Valley Detention Center.
Such details, Beavers said, "are never disclosed because we are not at liberty to discuss any of the findings in an administrative investigation."
Beavers said the decision to place a deputy on administrative leave is made on a case-by-case basis.
"When it is contrary to the best interests of the department for an employee to continue his regular duties, he may be assigned to special duty leave with pay at the discretion of the office of the sheriff," Beavers said.
Beavers said she wasn't aware of any restrictions placed on Heverly while he is off duty, such as restrictions on his permission to carry a gun.
Michael Schwartz, Heverly's Santa Monica-based attorney, said "there's much more to this case than the probable cause declaration."
He declined to comment on the specific allegations against Heverly.
Schwartz also represented Ivory Webb, a former San Bernardino County sheriff's deputy who was acquitted of criminal charges filed after he shot off-duty Airman Elio Carrion in Chino in 2006.
Heverly is next scheduled to appear in Indio Superior Court on Dec. 23 for a felony settlement conference. A preliminary hearing in the case is scheduled for Jan. 6.
At a preliminary hearing, the prosecution must present sufficient evidence for each charge against a defendant to be brought to trial. Preliminary hearings typically include testimony.
MIGHT AS WELL BRING DEPUTY WEBB BACK, DEPUYT WHO SHOT AN UNARMED MAN 3 TIMES!
Sad to say there are a lot more crooked police officers just like this out there ..
I hope you two "objective gentlemen" don't end up on the jury...
You should not assume and declare him crooked if you don't know both sides of story, Just because an arrest declaration was released doesn't mean you have idea he did it!!!
Brody-
You're right. My friend was handcuffed and beaten then threatened his family's safety if he reported the beating. Some Police are worse than gangsters.
we might as well bring back the racist cops who beat rodney king and was found not guilty.
The same people that declare this man guilty and seem to believe the initial police report are the same that declare that police are crooked and can't be trusted. You can't have it both ways. No matter what the police do you will find fault in their actions.
I can be intellectually honest and state while it sounds like the Deputy really screwed the pooch, lets wait and see how the jury or the judges decides the case.
Let's not judge the man before we have both sides of the story!
Webb was found not guilty, the illegals think they can do what ever they want in California and sue every American... B S , the government needs to drive the illegals like cattle back to Mexico, then what a nice world it would be !!!!!!! California spends 11 billion dollars a years on these free loaders....
GO HOME
There is something definetely wrong with this Picture.
Lou Lou. I think your reading the wrong article .. What do illegals have to do with this ?? But um reffering back to this article.. Im not saying all cops are crooked but alot are .. And they cover up for eachother .. Its a promise when your sworn in. All to often you hear of police abusing their authority. Not saying I hate police because they do serve a porpose and are human beings. But a lot of cops do this and to people who dont deserve to be treated like that. And I wouldnt put it past this one either..
This behavior by the deputy is inappropriate. The tow truck operator was trying to protect the public and received bad treatment and civil rights violations from the officer.
I wonder what ethnicity is the tow truck driver? Of the deputy?
I do not think felony charges are appropriate. Most likely misdemeanor charges.
The deputy should be fired and be penalized severely by the oncoming civil suit.
I have been unjustly handcuffed by police previously and I am a polished individual. Arrogance within the ranks should be dealt with and the bad agents/officers/deputies should be removed.
Anthony Smith
Pomona
Everyone is so quick to point the finger at the cops. Unless you’re directly involved in the case, all we (Joe Blow the Public) know is what the news paper prints. What type of material was inside the truck? Where was the truck driver? How many lanes of traffic were being blocked by the tow truck driver? If the so-called Good Samaritan tow truck driver thought he was doing such a good job by blocking traffic, how in the heck were the fire trucks going to get to the burning big rig to save the driver and prevent the hazardous waist from exploding and killing all the “looky-lews”?