By Tony Saavedra
The Orange County Register
SANTA ANA, Calif. — Orange County prosecutors will ask a judge next week to dismiss felony charges against a fired Santa Ana Jail officer accused of doctoring computer logs after an inmate died by suicide on his watch.
New evidence from a review of the case and an interview of the accused jailer has prompted the district attorney’s office to conclude it can no longer meet its burden of proof.
“The presumption of innocence until proven guilty is a cornerstone of our criminal justice system and it is one that must never be forgotten,” said District Attorney Todd Spitzer, in a prepared statement.
No one involved with the case would elaborate on the new evidence. Judge William Scott Zidbeck is expected to consider the dismissal request Oct. 31 , according to the district attorney’s office.
Former correctional officer Esteban Gonzalez, 39, of Chino was charged in September with three felony counts of altering public documents while working at the Santa Ana City Jail. Gonzalez faces a maximum sentence of six years in state prison if convicted on all charges.
He was accused of falsifying computer logs to make it appear that he had conducted required safety checks on inmate Darryle Samuel, who was found hanging by a bedsheet in his cell in June 2021. Entries made by Gonzalez in the log of safety checks did not correspond with video footage from jail security cameras, prosecutors said in a September news release announcing the charges.
At least one computer entry was changed by Gonzalez at the same time paramedics were trying to resuscitate Samuel, the release said.
A standard death investigation by the district attorney’s officer found that Samuel died hours after learning his girlfriend was pregnant by another man. The inquiry found no crimes committed in the death, but that Gonzalez allegedly doctored the computer log.
However, a later review by Deputy District Attorney Deborah Einhorn of the Special Prosecutions Unit found discrepancies in the evidence compiled by the Santa Ana Police Department, enough to request the case be dropped.
Neither district attorney officials nor Gonzalez’s attorney would disclose details about the discrepancies. The Santa Ana Police Department declined comment because the case remains pending.
“Esteban and myself have disputed the case from the very beginning. He didn’t need to be charged for this,” said Gonzalez’s attorney, Brett Rutkowski. “We’re glad he can get his name back and his reputation back.”
It was unclear Thursday whether Gonzalez would get his job back. Gonzalez made $173,364 in pay and benefits in 2022, according to the public pay database Transparent California.
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