On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Linda Lopez sentenced Jeremiah Manuyag Flores, 45, to 57 months in federal prison after a jury convicted him of deprivation of rights under color of law and falsification of records in a federal investigation. Flores was also ordered to surrender to federal prison by August 18. The sentence follows a weeklong federal trial in December 2025 in which jurors deliberated for only two hours before finding Flores guilty on both counts.
According to evidence presented at trial, Flores was assigned to the Sheriff's Court Services Bureau at the San Diego Central Courthouse on August 29, 2024, where he was responsible for escorting detainees between courtrooms and holding cells. That afternoon, Flores was escorting a 57-year-old pretrial detainee, identified in court records as J.P., following a court hearing. The man was already heavily restrained, with his legs shackled and his hands secured by cross-chains around his waist. Federal prosecutors argued there was no resistance, no threat, and no justification for the force that followed.
As Flores escorted J.P. down a hallway toward an open holding cell, surveillance footage showed the deputy grabbing the back of the detainee's shirt before forcefully shoving him from behind through the cell doorway. Unable to catch himself because of the restraints, J.P. was propelled across the cell, slammed headfirst into the opposite concrete wall and collapsed onto the floor. The impact fractured the man's spinal column.
Instead of rendering aid, calling for medical assistance or notifying a supervisor as required under Sheriff's Department policy, Flores allegedly looked toward another deputy and remarked, "What? Nothing happened," before walking away. For more than two hours, J.P. remained lying on the floor of the holding cell beside a growing pool of blood before another deputy eventually discovered him. He ultimately underwent spinal surgery and remained hospitalized for months recovering from his injuries.
Even after the victim's injuries were discovered, prosecutors said Flores continued attempting to conceal what had occurred. When instructed to prepare an inmate status report documenting his earlier interaction with J.P., Flores allegedly wrote multiple false statements, including the assertion that "no force was used." Those statements ultimately formed the basis of the federal falsification charge.
During Tuesday's sentencing hearing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth Askins described the encounter as one marked by an overwhelming imbalance of power.
"The power disparity between the defendant who was in complete control and [J.P.], who couldn't do anything to protect himself, was as wide as the ocean," Askins argued. "There was no escalation here. There was no resistance here. The defendant didn't have to use any force at all. All he had to do was keep walking."
Judge Lopez echoed those sentiments before imposing sentence. She emphasized that the public has little visibility into what occurs inside jail facilities and must rely on correctional officers and deputies to uphold both the law and the Constitution.
According to the Department of Justice, Lopez criticized not only Flores' decision to use excessive force but also his repeated failures afterward. The judge noted that Flores falsely assured another deputy "nothing happened" before ignoring multiple opportunities during the following two hours to check on or assist the injured detainee.
"What you do then matters," Lopez told Flores before sentencing him.
Perhaps the most striking moment of the hearing came when Lopez referenced a still frame captured by courthouse surveillance cameras showing Flores smiling as he walked away from the victim's holding cell moments after the incident.
"I don't know how many years it's going to be before I get that photo out of my mind," the judge said. "Your conduct was egregious."
Flores had remained free on bond following his conviction but must now report to federal prison by mid-August.
The San Diego County Sheriff's Office terminated Flores following his conviction, concluding an internal administrative investigation. As a result of his felony convictions, federal officials said Flores is permanently barred from serving as a law enforcement officer at any level of government - local, state or federal.
The Sheriff's Office issued a statement after his termination saying Flores' conduct did not reflect the agency's values.
"Our agency does not tolerate the use of excessive force or lying by deputies," the department said. "Any Sheriff's employee who violates the law or policy will be held accountable."
Flores' case represents the latest in a series of high-profile federal civil rights prosecutions involving former San Diego County sheriff's deputies.
Just six weeks earlier, former San Diego County Sheriff's Deputy Aaron Richard Russell was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison for fatally shooting Nicholas Bils, an unarmed 36-year-old man, four times in the back as he fled custody outside the San Diego Central Jail in May 2020. Russell was convicted by a federal jury of violating Bils' civil rights and using a firearm during a crime of violence after prosecutors demonstrated that no other officer at the scene believed deadly force was necessary.
Together, the Russell and Flores prosecutions underscore an increasingly aggressive effort by the U.S. Department of Justice to pursue federal civil rights charges against law enforcement officers who abuse their authority.
"When a law enforcement officer abuses his authority and violates someone's constitutional rights, there will be serious consequences," U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon said following Flores' sentencing.
FBI San Diego Special Agent in Charge Mark Remily added that public trust depends upon accountability.
"Upholding civil rights is fundamental to the mission of every law enforcement agency," Remily said. "When an officer violates that oath, equal accountability is essential to maintaining the public's trust."
Flores had faced a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison on the civil rights charge and 20 years on the falsification count. Judge Lopez ultimately imposed a combined sentence of 57 months, or just under five years.
Just six weeks earlier, former San Diego County Sheriff's Deputy Aaron Richard Russell was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison for fatally shooting Nicholas Bils, an unarmed 36-year-old man, four times in the back as he fled custody outside the San Diego Central Jail in May 2020. Russell was convicted by a federal jury of violating Bils' civil rights and using a firearm during a crime of violence after prosecutors demonstrated that no other officer at the scene believed deadly force was necessary.
Together, the Russell and Flores prosecutions underscore an increasingly aggressive effort by the U.S. Department of Justice to pursue federal civil rights charges against law enforcement officers who abuse their authority.
"When a law enforcement officer abuses his authority and violates someone's constitutional rights, there will be serious consequences," U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon said following Flores' sentencing.
FBI San Diego Special Agent in Charge Mark Remily added that public trust depends upon accountability.
"Upholding civil rights is fundamental to the mission of every law enforcement agency," Remily said. "When an officer violates that oath, equal accountability is essential to maintaining the public's trust."
Flores had faced a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison on the civil rights charge and 20 years on the falsification count. Judge Lopez ultimately imposed a combined sentence of 57 months, or just under five years.
Theses cases also land against the broader backdrop of long-running scrutiny over San Diego County’s jail system, which has for years faced criticism over its high number of in-custody deaths. A 2026 independent study commissioned by the Citizens’ Law Enforcement Review Board examined 179 deaths in county detention facilities between 2011 and 2024 and found that San Diego County recorded the highest jail death rate among large California counties during that period.
The report found that most deaths occurred at the San Diego Central Jail and Vista Detention Facility, with the downtown Central Jail singled out as especially troubling due to its significantly higher death rate and concentration of serious incidents. Researchers also found that many deaths occurred within the first days or week after booking, raising concerns about intake, medical screening, supervision and early-custody monitoring.
Over the past decade, San Diego County has paid tens of millions of dollars in legal settlements and judgments tied to jail deaths and serious in-custody incidents, making Flores’ conviction part of a larger and ongoing debate over accountability inside facilities largely hidden from public view.
Originally published on July 7, 2026.
