By Meredith Kelly, Candance Gregoire-Pierson | Contributed
Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco is being accused of “falsely portraying” a man as an attempted assassin of President Donald Trump, that “destroyed his life” by making a series of false accusations, according to the complaint filed this week with U. S. District Court for Central District of California.
The complaint said Vem Miller, a Trump supporter who had previously attended political rallies, planned to attend the Trump rally in Coachella, Riverside County, California on Oct. 12, 2024.
Because of the alleged violation of Miller’s 1st and 4th Amendment rights, as well as the financial, social, and psychological consequences of the false accusation, Miller is requesting “$100 million in damages.”
The complaint discloses that before entering the rally, Miller willingly disclosed he had firearms in his vehicle to the deputies of the Riverside Sheriff Department’s. This resulted in Miller being asked to step out of his vehicle where he was detained by Sheriff Bianco.
One of the deputies stated that “the detention was for his own safety and protection.” While detained, Miller said he “was subjected to temperatures exceeding 110 degrees Fahrenheit” and was denied access to the bathroom and medical attention for “his pre-diabetic condition,” the complaint presents.
The complaint details the officers at the scene commented that Miller’s vehicle was “nice and orderly,” while Sheriff Bianco’s later statement describes Miller’s vehicle as in “disarray.”
The complaint noted 10 to 15 officers searched the vehicle for an hour and 20 minutes, resulting in many items of Miller’s being destroyed. During the search, Miller was never told the scope of the search nor was he asked for consent, the complaint stated.
Miller was charged with two misdemeanors without “formal questioning” and “the absence of any federal investigation.” The complaint also notes Sheriff Bianco later told the Epoch Times, “We arrested a man trying to get in the perimeter with two firearms who ended up saying he was going to kill the president.”
The pleading insisted, “Mr. Miller never said those words or anything remotely like those words at any time on October 12 or October 13, 2024.”
Sheriff Bianco then alleged, the complaint states, Miller engaged in additional criminal acts in an interview with Riverside Press-Enterprise and a press conference, and (that) Sheriff Bianco asserted Miller had attempted to assassinate the president and was carrying illegal passports and driver’s licenses.
Sheriff Bianco argued that he stopped “another assassination attempt” and Miller was a “lunatic,” the complaint adds.
The complaint cites “over 300 news outlets” made headlines that implied Miller’s involvement with an alleged assassination attempt of the president, and the widespread coverage of the false assassination attempt led to threats being made against Miller and a “loss of business opportunities and income.”
According to the complaint, the slew of false accusations caused the severance of Miller’s relationship with his children and the eviction of his elderly parents. The complaint claimed that the “defendants fabricated a narrative with nefarious intent.”
The complaint also claims Miller has suffered from a damaged reputation, loss of relationships, and “severe emotional distress.”
No comment has been made yet by Sheriff Bianco or the Riverside County Police Department, states the complaint.
