Riverside County Sheriff's Department

Riverside County Sheriff's Department
Patch of the Riverside County Sheriff's Department
Patch of the Riverside County Sheriff's Department
Badge of the Riverside County Sheriff's Department
Badge of the Riverside County Sheriff's Department
Flag of Riverside County
Flag of Riverside County
Common nameRiverside Sheriff's Office
AbbreviationRCSD, RSD, RSO, RCSO
Agency overview
FormedMay 9, 1893; 131 years ago (1893-05-09)
Employees3000+
Annual budget$502 million
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdictionRiverside County, California, U.S.
Map of Riverside County Sheriff's Department's jurisdiction.
Operational structure
HeadquartersRiverside, California
Sheriff-Coroner responsible
Bureaus
4
  • Coroner & Courts
  • Corrections
  • Field Operations
  • Support & Administration
Divisions
10
  • Administrative Services
  • Central Field Operations
  • Coroner & Courts
  • Corrections
  • East Field Operations
  • Professional Standards
  • Public Information Office
  • Special Operations
  • Support Services
  • West Field Operations
Facilities
Stations12
Jails
5
  • Blythe Jail
  • Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility
  • Indio Jail
  • Robert Presley Detention Center
  • Southwest Detention Center
Website
www.RiversideSheriff.org

The Riverside County Sheriff's Department (RSD), also known as the Riverside Sheriff's Office (RSO), is a law enforcement agency in Riverside County, in the U.S. state of California. Overseen by an elected sheriff-coroner, the department serves unincorporated areas of Riverside County as well as some of the incorporated cities in the county by contract (see contract city). 17 of the county's 26 cities, with populations ranging from 4,958 to 193,365, contract with the department for police services. The county hospital and one tribal community also contract with the department for proactive policing. Riverside County is home to 12 federally recognized Indian reservations. Absent proactive policing and traffic enforcement, the department is responsible for enforcing criminal law on all Native American tribal land within the county. This function is mandated by Public Law 280, enacted in 1953, which transferred the responsibility of criminal law enforcement on tribal land from the federal government to specified state governments including California. The department also operates the county's jail system.

In addition to performing law enforcement and corrections roles, the department performs the functions of the coroner's office and marshal's office. In its coroner function, the department is responsible for recovering deceased persons within the county and conducting autopsies. When California reorganized its judicial system in the early 21st century and eliminated state marshal's offices, the department assumed responsibility for state courts within the county, providing court security and service of warrants and court processes. The department also provides services such as air support, special weapons teams for high-risk critical incidents, forensics services and crime laboratories, homicide investigations, and academy training to smaller law enforcement agencies within the county and in surrounding counties.