San Diego, California: Ex-Deputy Jeremiah Flores Gets 57 Months for Excessive Force and False Report

Status: Federal jury conviction and sentence confirmed. Incident: August 29, 2024. Verdict: December 12, 2025. Sentence: July 7, 2026. Last reviewed: August 9, 2026. A surrender deadline announced by DOJ had not yet arrived when this brief was reviewed.

San Diego, California: Ex-Deputy Jeremiah Flores Gets 57 Months for Excessive Force and False Report

Former San Diego County Sheriff’s Deputy Jeremiah Manuyag Flores was sentenced to 57 months in federal prison after a jury found that he used excessive force against a restrained pretrial detainee and then falsified a report about it.

This is not an unresolved accusation. A federal jury convicted Flores on both counts in December 2025, and U.S. District Judge Linda Lopez imposed the sentence on July 7, 2026. The San Diego County Sheriff’s Office separately says it fired Flores on June 9 after an internal administrative investigation.

What remains hidden is the agency’s full administrative record: the final findings, the force review, the supervision and medical-aid findings, the policy versions in effect on the incident date, and the records showing what corrective action followed.

What the jury found

The incident happened at the San Diego Central Courthouse on August 29, 2024. Flores was assigned to the Court Services Bureau and was escorting a 57-year-old man identified in public records only as J.P. The man’s legs were shackled and his hands were cross-chained at his waist.

According to the evidence described by DOJ, Flores shoved J.P. from behind into a holding cell. J.P. struck the far wall and suffered a spinal fracture. The conviction release says he later underwent surgery and remained hospitalized for months.

DOJ says Flores did not provide medical aid and did not promptly tell a supervisor about the force. Another deputy discovered J.P. more than two hours later. The sentencing release says the trial evidence showed no resistance and no escalation that required force.

The false report was a separate federal crime

The accountability failure did not end at the cell door. When directed to document the encounter, Flores wrote an Inmate Status Report that said no force had been used. The jury convicted him not only of depriving J.P. of his constitutional rights under color of law, but also of falsifying a record in a federal investigation.

That second conviction matters. Force reporting is one of the main ways supervisors, prosecutors, courts, and the public can test whether an officer’s conduct was lawful. A false report can bury the event, delay medical attention, corrupt an investigation, and protect misconduct from review.

DOJ identified the criminal case as 25cr0254. Its sentencing release says Judge Lopez called Flores’ conduct egregious and discussed surveillance evidence showing him walking away from the cell. DOJ also said Flores was ordered to report to prison by August 18, 2026. As of this article’s August 9 review, that date was still pending; BadPD is not reporting that he had already entered custody.

The Sheriff’s Office confirmed the firing

The Sheriff’s Office issued its own statement on July 7. It said an internal administrative investigation led to Flores’ termination on June 9, 2026, and said the agency does not tolerate excessive force or lying.

That statement confirms an internal investigation and its employment result. It does not disclose the final findings, who reviewed the incident, whether any supervisor or reporting-system failure was identified, when command staff first learned what happened, or what reforms followed. A press statement is not a substitute for the final public records that California law permits the agency to release.

What BadPD is seeking

BadPD prepared a narrow California Public Records Act request to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office for the final administrative findings and disposition, the final use-of-force review, the applicable August 29, 2024 policy versions, and records showing final corrective action or required certification reporting.

The request expressly excludes J.P.’s medical records, private contact information, raw medical files, unrelated personnel records, drafts, and unrelated complaints. The purpose is to test the agency response and accountability system, not to invade the victim’s privacy.

Confirmed and pending

• Confirmed: a federal jury convicted Flores of deprivation of rights under color of law and falsification of records.
• Confirmed: Judge Lopez sentenced him to 57 months in federal prison on July 7, 2026.
• Confirmed: the Sheriff’s Office says it terminated Flores on June 9 after an internal administrative investigation.
• Pending as of August 9: the DOJ-announced August 18 surrender deadline.
• Records pending: the final administrative findings, policy versions, corrective-action record, and certification-reporting trail.

Correction and update policy: BadPD will attach the request number and any responsive records after they are received. If a source agency corrects a material fact, the correction and date will be added rather than silently replacing the original record.

Sources

• U.S. Attorney’s Office sentencing release (July 7, 2026).
• U.S. Attorney’s Office conviction release (December 12, 2025).
• San Diego County Sheriff’s Office sentencing statement (July 7, 2026).
• Sheriff’s Office Court Services Bureau policy index (current index reviewed August 9, 2026; not treated as the 2024 policy version).
• San Diego County Sheriff’s Office Public Records Center (reviewed August 9, 2026).