Justin Ramirez

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Service Record

Orange County California Sheriff's Department

Rank Deputy
Dates of Service Ended December 2022.[1]
Salary $261,805 (2022)[2]
Last Known Status Resigned[3]

Incident Reports

2019 Death of Chong Tok Rha

On July 15, 2019, Ramirez and Deputy Laurie Schwartz arrested Rha, who struggled.[4]

Rha died while in custody.[4]

Response Timeline

Ramirez was named in a federal wrongful death lawsuit.[4]

The county District Attorney cleared the officers of any wrong-doing.[4]

In October 2021, the county paid $1.5 million to settle the family's lawsuit.[4]

2022 Harmful Materials

On September 2, 2022, Ramirez was working as a school resource officer when he showed pornographic videos to four teenage girls.[3]

One of the girls' mothers reported the incident to the Sheriff's Department, specifically asking that an officer not be sent as she feared it would be Ramirez. The department told the mother that officers from another agency would respond, but Ramirez and another officer were dispatched to take her statement.[1][4]

Response Timeline

The agency investigated and referred the case to the county District Attorney for possible criminal prosecution.[3]

Ramirez resigned.[3]

On February 17, 2023, Ramirez was charged with a misdemeanor count of distributing harmful material to a minor. Ramirez faces a maximum sentence of 364 days in jail.[3]

On April 25, 2023, a judge allowed Ramirez to enter a pre-trial diversion program. The prosecutor did not agree with the diversion.[5]

In May 2023, one of the girls' families filed a claim, which is a precursor to filing a lawsuit.[6]

On August 10, 2023, the state Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) temporarily suspended Ramirez's certification for resigning during an investigation and for "egregious or repeated acts that violate the law".[7]

In September 2024, another girl's family filed a lawsuit against Ramirez, the county, and the Sheriff.[1]

On September 12, 2024, the POST Commission revoked Ramirez's certification.[1]

LEO Ratings

References


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