$1 million lawsuit claims Sacramento sheriff’s deputy pursued woman online, in texts for sex

The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office was hit with a $1 million lawsuit alleging that a deputy who responded to a call to help a suicidal 21-year-old woman later pursued her online and induced her to send a pornographic video to him.

The lawsuit, filed Tuesday on behalf of the woman identified only as “Jane Doe,” accuses Deputy Patrick Walker of “inappropriate communications” with the woman, including the discussion of a sexual relationship with her and an offer to pay her for “sexually explicit photographs and recordings.”

The lawsuit, filed in Sacramento federal court by civil rights attorney Mark Merin, says Walker sent photos of himself to the woman while in uniform inside the Sheriff’s Office locker room “to gain her trust” and badgered her for photos of herself.

“Defendant Patrick Walker frequently repeated his requests for sexually explicit content and pressured Plaintiff Jane Doe until she relented and acceded to his requests,” the suit says, adding that the woman eventually used Facebook Messenger to send “a sexually explicit video of her genitalia.”

Merin said Walker used a payment application to send her $500 after that, and that Walker later cut off communications with the woman.

Sheriff’s spokesman Lt. Rod Grassmann declined to comment on the allegations, citing pending litigation.

He confirmed in an email that sheriff’s officials “have an ongoing internal affairs investigation for this incident.”

Walker did not respond to an email request for comment. Online records maintained by Transparent California show Walker earned $142,338.42 in pay last year.

The suit, which also names outgoing Sheriff Scott Jones, describes the young woman as disabled and says she has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, anxiety and depression, and suicidal thoughts.

The suit says the interaction between the woman and Walker stemmed from a July 25 suicide attempt by the woman, whose friends called 911 for help.

Walker was one of the deputies who responded, and the woman was taken for treatment to Kaiser Permanente South Sacramento Medical Center, where she was placed on a 72-hour hold, the suit says.

Walker “accessed law enforcement-based records and files to obtain Plaintiff Jane Doe’s private personal contact information, including her cellphone number,” the suit says, adding that he did so “under the pretense of performing his official duties as a law enforcement officer, including by using a pass code to enter into a law enforcement database.”

Misuse of law enforcement records is a crime, the suit says, and Walker texted the woman “under the guise of authority and concern for her mental health and well-being.”

The two exchanged texts despite Walker knowing that the woman “was particularly vulnerable, fragile, and susceptible to manipulation and coercion,” the suit says, adding that Walker “began to initiate inappropriate communications with Plaintiff Jane Doe over a several-day period.”

At some point after Walker sent her the money after receiving the video, he “abruptly terminated” his communications with her and left the woman with “severe anxiety and emotional distress,” the suit says.

The suit says “Walker’s conduct destroyed (her) trust in the justice system, where predators, like (Walker), are entrusted with power over vulnerable persons.

The suit alleges invasion of privacy, sexual harassment, negligence and other claims and seeks more than $1 million in damages.

Merin said he filed a claim with the county in September over the case and called the county’s risk management firm to make certain they were aware of the nature of the claim and to settle the matter without going to court but had no success.

“This is a case that should have settled right off the bat,” Merin said.