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Resident raises complaint about Ventura County Sheriff's deputies during public comment
Summary
A resident told the council he was grabbed and detained by two Ventura County Sheriff's Department officers during an Oct. 25 interaction and asked whether the conduct was acceptable; staff asked him to leave contact information for a follow-up.
Adam Smith addressed the council during public comment to report an interaction with two Ventura County Sheriff’s Department officers in downtown Ojai on Oct. 25. Smith said he was riding a bicycle while making a delivery, was approached by Sergeant DeBlau and Deputy Castellanos, and that the interaction escalated into physical contact and a temporary detainment while he sought to contact counsel.
Smith said the officers would not provide badge numbers when he asked and that one officer “grabbed me by the back of my collar” during the encounter; he said officers later told him he was free but that they had at times threatened jail or a citation during the interaction. Smith asked the council whether it considered the officers’ conduct acceptable.
Staff asked Smith to leave contact information with the city so staff could follow up; the city requested his details, and council staff said they would provide follow-up contact and indicated the matter would be looked into further.
