LAKEPORT, Calif. – On Monday a visiting judge denied an attempt by the county's sheriff to get a restraining order to prevent disclosure that he lied to investigators about a 2008 shooting.
Retired Butte County Superior Court Judge William Lamb denied Sheriff Frank Rivero's request for a restraining order against District Attorney Don Anderson, and also refused to close the hearing to the public or to allow the case's documents to remain under seal.
That means that Anderson's finding on allegations that Rivero lied during a 2008 shooting investigation now are public record.
The finding: Rivero lied and now is on the District Attorney's Office's “Brady” list of officers with credibility issues, according to case documents Lake County News obtained following the hearing.
Lamb did, however, allow Rivero to move forward in the process of seeking a preliminary injunction against Anderson. Hearings for that action have not yet been scheduled.
Rivero served Anderson last Friday in the case, as Lake County News has reported.
The action was Rivero’s attempt to stop Anderson from disclosing anything publicly or to criminal defendants about the finding.
Anderson is required under the 1963 U.S. Supreme Court Brady v. Maryland to disclose to criminal defendants any information that could be exculpatory, including issues surrounding the credibility of law enforcement officers involved in their cases.
In the spring of 2011 Anderson had begun his inquiry, which wrapped up last month. Anderson told Lake County News that he sent his finding to Rivero’s attorney on Feb. 19, the same day that the Board of Supervisors approved adding $2,000 to the contract with the Fullerton-based Jones and Mayer law firm, who the county was forced to hire due to a judge’s ruling last year.
Anderson and Rivero’s attorney had an agreement that information about the finding would not be disclosed publicly for 10 days after the determination, with Rivero’s suit coming on the 10th day.
However, that was a day after Anderson's final report on the Brady investigation was shown to retired Lake County Superior Court Judge David Herrick in chambers during a motions hearing in the case of three Hells Angels members facing prosecution for a June 2011 fight with a rival gang member.
After that review Herrick ordered the report to be provided to the defendants but to be placed under seal and not disclosed publicly.
A full report on the hearing, along with the full hearing video and an examination of the documents, will be posted Tuesday morning.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
How to resolve AdBlock issue? 
