Fresno County Deputy Sexual Assault: Victims’ Legal Rights

If you were sexually assaulted, detained, or mistreated by a Fresno County sheriff’s deputy, you may have a claim against the deputy and against the County — but the deadline to preserve it can be as short as six months. Call (833) 200-7111 for a free, confidential consultation. No fee unless we win.

This page is part of our sexual misconduct and abuse practice. Everything you tell us is confidential, whether or not you decide to pursue anything.

If You Had an Encounter With a Fresno County Deputy, Read This First

Claims against a public agency in California operate on a much shorter clock than most people expect. In many cases you must file a formal written claim with the government entity within six months of the incident, before you can file a lawsuit at all. Miss it, and the claim can be barred permanently — regardless of how strong it is.

Six months goes by quickly, particularly for someone processing a traumatic encounter with a person who had a badge and a gun. If something happened to you involving a Fresno County deputy this year, please talk to a lawyer now rather than waiting to see how the criminal case turns out. The conversation is free and it commits you to nothing.

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What Has Been Alleged

On August 24, 2026, the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office announced felony charges against Alejandro Gabriel Apodaca, 31, of Lemoore, who was serving as a Fresno County sheriff’s deputy at the time of the alleged conduct.

According to the felony complaint filed in Fresno County Superior Court:

• On March 11, 2026, Apodaca is alleged to have directed a woman to pull her vehicle to the side of the road, approached the vehicle, reached inside and taken her cell phone, and attempted unwanted sexual contact as she moved away from him inside the car.
• On May 10, 2026, Apodaca is alleged to have gone to a second woman’s apartment while wearing his law enforcement uniform and engaged in unwanted sexual contact, including touching her and directing her to engage in sexual contact with him.

The complaint charges one count of sexual battery by restraint (Penal Code § 243.4(a)), one count of assault by a public official (Penal Code § 149), two counts of sexual battery (Penal Code § 243.4(e)(1)), and one count of false imprisonment by violence or menace (Penal Code § 236). He was arrested May 12, 2026 and released on bond, and was arraigned August 26, 2026.

He has been on unpaid administrative leave from the Sheriff’s Office, and his POST certification has been temporarily suspended. The Fresno Police Department’s Sexual Assault Unit handled the investigation rather than the Sheriff’s Office, to avoid a conflict.

These are allegations. Mr. Apodaca has not been convicted of anything and is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing on this page should be read as a statement that he committed any crime.

Why a Criminal Case Is Not Enough

A criminal prosecution punishes the individual. It does not compensate the person who was harmed, and it does not require the agency that employed him to change anything.

Those are the two things a civil case can do. And a civil case can proceed regardless of what happens in the criminal court — including if charges are reduced, dismissed, or resolved by plea, and including if there is an acquittal. The standards of proof are different. A criminal conviction requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt; a civil case requires only a preponderance of the evidence, meaning more likely than not.

Survivors are also not parties to the criminal case. The District Attorney represents the People of California, not you. Decisions about charges, plea offers, and sentencing are made without your consent. A civil attorney represents you and only you.

Claims Available When an Officer Commits Sexual Assault

Sexual misconduct by a law enforcement officer acting under color of authority can support several distinct claims. Which apply depends entirely on the specific facts.

Federal civil rights claims (42 U.S.C. § 1983)

When an officer uses the authority of the badge to commit sexual assault, that can violate the victim’s constitutional rights — including the Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable seizure and the Fourteenth Amendment right to bodily integrity. Courts have long recognized that an officer who exploits state authority to sexually assault someone is acting under color of law even though the assault itself is not authorized.

Section 1983 claims carry two significant advantages: they are not subject to the six-month government claim requirement, and they allow recovery of attorney’s fees from the defendant. In California the deadline is generally two years.

Claims against Fresno County itself

A public entity is not automatically liable for an employee’s misconduct under federal law. But a county can be held responsible where the harm resulted from its own policies, customs, or failures — commonly called a Monell claim. That can include negligent hiring, inadequate training, failure to supervise, ignoring prior complaints, or a pattern of tolerating misconduct.

Under California state law, the analysis differs and a public entity can be vicariously liable for its employees’ acts within the scope of employment in some circumstances. Both theories are worth evaluating, and they have different procedural requirements.

California state law claims

These can include sexual battery (Civil Code § 1708.5), violation of the Bane Act (Civil Code § 52.1), which addresses interference with rights by threat or coercion, false imprisonment, assault and battery, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. State claims against a public entity are subject to the government claim requirement described below.

The Deadlines, Plainly

This is the most important practical information on this page.

• Government claim: six months. Under Government Code § 911.2, a claim against a public entity for personal injury generally must be presented in writing within six months of when the cause of action accrues. This is a prerequisite to filing most state-law claims against the County.
• The childhood abuse exemption does not apply here. Government Code § 905(m) exempts childhood sexual assault claims from the claim requirement. That exemption is limited to claims under Code of Civil Procedure § 340.1 — childhood cases. Adult survivors of sexual assault by a government employee generally must still file the six-month claim.
• Late claims. Government Code § 911.4 allows an application to file a late claim within one year of accrual. It is discretionary, it can be denied, and it is not something to plan around.
• Federal § 1983 claims: generally two years, with no government claim prerequisite. This is sometimes the only avenue left when the six-month window has passed — which is one reason it is worth talking to a lawyer even if you think you are too late.
• Adult sexual assault claims generally: Code of Civil Procedure § 340.16 allows ten years from the assault or three years from discovery of injury, whichever is later. Note that this longer period does not eliminate the separate six-month government claim requirement when a public entity is a defendant.
• AB 250’s revival window does not help here. The two-year window for adult survivors that opened January 1, 2026 expressly excludes public entities.

If you are reading this and doing arithmetic about your own situation, please just call. Determining the actual accrual date is a legal question, and getting it wrong in either direction is costly.

Your Privacy

This is the concern we hear most often, and it is a fair one.

Civil lawsuits involving sexual assault are frequently filed under a pseudonym — “Jane Doe” — rather than the survivor’s name, and California courts routinely permit it in these cases. Your identity would be known to the court and the defendants, not to the public or the press.

Beyond that: everything you tell a lawyer in a consultation is confidential and privileged, even if you never hire that lawyer and even if you decide to do nothing. You are allowed to explore your options without committing to anything, and without anyone finding out you called.

You also do not have to have reported to police to have a civil claim. Many survivors never report. That does not eliminate your rights.

Compensation in a Civil Case

A civil claim may seek damages for:

• Therapy, counseling, and psychiatric care, past and future
• Medical expenses
• Lost income and diminished earning capacity
• Pain, suffering, and emotional distress
• PTSD and trauma-related conditions
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Punitive damages against an individual officer, where the conduct warrants it
• Attorney’s fees, where a federal civil rights claim succeeds

Cases involving officers are not ordinary assault cases. The betrayal of public trust — being harmed by the person who was supposed to protect you, in a situation where you could not safely refuse or walk away — is itself part of the harm, and it is recognized as such.

What to Do Now

1. Write down what you remember — dates, times, locations, what was said, what he was wearing, whether a patrol vehicle was involved, whether there was a body camera. Do it now; detail fades.
2. Preserve everything. Texts, call logs, photos, medical records, anything you told a friend or family member at the time.
3. Note any report you made — to police, to the Sheriff’s Office, to a hospital, to a rape crisis center — and the report number if you have it.
4. Do not sign anything from the County, its risk management office, or any insurer without talking to your own attorney.
5. Get support. The Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network operates a free, confidential 24/7 hotline at 1-800-656-4673 and online at rainn.org. Locally, the Rape Counseling Services of Fresno provides free advocacy and counseling.
6. Talk to a lawyer about the deadline, even if you are undecided about everything else. Preserving the claim and pursuing it are two different decisions, and only one of them has a clock.

How The Wagner Law Group Can Help

We are a Fresno firm. Our office is here, the Sheriff’s Office is here, and these cases are litigated in the courthouse downtown.

We Have Done This Case Before, in This County

This is not a new area for our firm. We represented five women sexually assaulted by J. DeShawn Torrence, a former Sanger Police Department officer who used his badge, his uniform, and his patrol car to attack women he encountered on duty over a period of roughly six years.

A federal jury in Fresno convicted Torrence of eight counts of deprivation of constitutional rights under color of law. He is serving five consecutive life sentences. In January 2026, the City of Sanger approved a $5.25 million settlement for one of our clients — a woman who was 67 years old when Torrence raped her after following her into her home during a DUI investigation.

Our founding attorney, Nicholas “Butch” Wagner, put it this way at the time: the city acknowledged that it is liable for its officers’ actions and has to make good for it. That is the point of these cases. The criminal conviction put Torrence in prison. It did not compensate the women he harmed, and it did not make the city answer for six years of not stopping him.

Two things we learned in that litigation matter directly here. First, victims almost always come forward late, and there are almost always more of them than anyone initially knows. Our firm became aware of eight or nine women who said Torrence victimized them, and we expected there were others who never called. Second, municipal liability is winnable — but only if the claim is preserved on time.

The Wagner Law Group focuses on serious personal injury, wrongful death, and abuse litigation, including cases against government institutions. We also represented survivors of sexual abuse by federal correctional officers at FCI Dublin. Butch Wagner has more than 42 years of trial experience, and the firm has recovered over $300 million for clients.

Cases against law enforcement agencies are difficult. Agencies close ranks, records are hard to obtain, qualified immunity is raised as a defense, and the six-month claim requirement traps people who did not know it existed. They require a firm willing to litigate rather than accept a quick, quiet number.

What we offer:

• A free, confidential consultation — by phone, video, or in person
• An honest assessment, including telling you if we do not think you have a case
• Trauma-informed handling; you control the pace and what you share
• Filing under a pseudonym where appropriate to protect your identity
• No fee unless we recover for you
• Rated 4.7 stars across 90+ verified Google reviews

Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome in any future case. Every claim depends on its own facts.

Call (833) 200-7111 or reach us below. If you would rather just ask a question than start anything, that is fine too.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I file a civil case if the criminal case is still pending?

Yes. Civil and criminal cases proceed on separate tracks, and waiting for the criminal case to conclude can cause you to miss civil deadlines — particularly the six-month government claim requirement. In some situations a civil case is paused while criminal proceedings run, but the claim still has to be preserved on time.

What if he is acquitted, or the charges are dropped?

A civil claim can still proceed. Criminal conviction requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt, while a civil case requires only a preponderance of the evidence. Outcomes in the two systems regularly differ.

Can I sue Fresno County, or only the deputy?

Both may be possible. Under federal law, a county is liable where its own policy, custom, or failure — in hiring, training, supervision, or response to prior complaints — caused the violation. Under California law, a public entity can be vicariously liable for employee conduct within the scope of employment in some circumstances. Which theories apply depends on the facts and on what discovery reveals about the agency.

I never reported it to police. Do I still have a claim?

Possibly, yes. A police report is not a prerequisite to a civil claim. Many survivors never report, for reasons that are entirely understandable — especially when the person who caused the harm was law enforcement. Your account, corroborating evidence, and any contemporaneous disclosures to others all matter.

Will my name be made public?

Not necessarily. Sexual assault cases are commonly filed under “Jane Doe,” and California courts routinely allow it. Your identity would be known to the court and the defense, not to the public.

How much does this cost?

Nothing upfront. We handle these cases on contingency — no attorney’s fee unless we recover for you. In successful federal civil rights cases, attorney’s fees may also be recoverable from the defendant.

I think I might be past the deadline. Is it worth calling?

Yes. A late-claim application may be available within one year, and federal civil rights claims generally carry a two-year deadline with no government claim prerequisite. People give up on valid claims because they assume it is too late. Ask before you assume.

Has your firm handled a case like this before?

Yes. We represented five women assaulted by former Sanger Police officer J. DeShawn Torrence, who is now serving five consecutive life sentences following a federal conviction for violating their civil rights under color of law. In January 2026 the City of Sanger approved a $5.25 million settlement for one of our clients in that litigation. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome, but that case involved the same core question this one does: whether a city or county can be held responsible when an officer uses the authority it gave him to commit sexual assault.

What if the deputy who harmed me is someone else entirely?

The same legal framework applies. This page discusses one publicly charged case, but the rights described here belong to anyone harmed by a law enforcement officer acting under color of authority — in Fresno County or anywhere in California.

Serving Fresno County and the Central Valley

The Wagner Law Group represents survivors throughout Fresno (93701, 93702, 93703, 93704, 93705, 93710, 93720, 93721, 93722, 93726, 93727, 93728) and across the Central Valley — Clovis, Madera, Sanger, Selma, Reedley, Kerman, Kingsburg, Visalia, Hanford, Lemoore, and Tulare — with cases handled statewide.

Call (833) 200-7111. Confidential, free, and no obligation.

This page is attorney advertising and is provided for general informational purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice, and no attorney-client relationship is formed by reading it or by submitting the contact form. All information regarding the criminal case described above is drawn from publicly reported accounts and public statements by the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office as of August 26, 2026, and is subject to change. Criminal charges are allegations only; every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law, and nothing on this page states or implies that any charged individual committed any offense. The Wagner Law Group does not represent, and does not claim to represent, any victim or party in the matter described. Deadlines discussed here are general descriptions of California law and do not constitute advice about any individual claim; accrual dates and applicable limitations periods are fact-specific and must be evaluated by an attorney. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome in any future case. The Wagner Law Group focuses on personal injury, wrongful death, and abuse litigation.