The family of a veteran San Diego police officer found dead outside a jail in French Valley after he was released from custody on a DUI offense last year is suing Riverside County on a wrongful death allegation.
Lawrence David Orso, 46, of Murrieta had a blood alcohol level of 0.23% — nearly three times the legal limit for driving — when he was arrested by the California Highway Patrol about 2:20 a.m. on Murrieta Hot Springs Road, near the 215 Freeway, on Sept. 21, according to jail records and the lawsuit filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Riverside.
Orso suffered from “uncontrollable hypertension and other serious cardiac conditions” and was wearing a portable EKG monitor when he was arrested, according to the lawsuit. He was first taken to the hospital, where he was cleared to be taken to the Southwest Detention Center and monitored.
Orso was suffering from severe chest pain, symptoms of alcohol withdrawal and was still intoxicated when he was released from custody at 8:26 a.m. after posting bail, the lawsuit says. He spent less than two hours in a sobering cell, according to the lawsuit.
“Despite clear evidence of his serious medical condition, including the visible presence of the monitoring device, SWDC (Southwest Detention Center) staff failed to take any appropriate steps to assess, monitor or provide the necessary medical care to Mr. Orso,” the lawsuit states. “This premature and medically unsafe release constituted a reckless disregard for Mr. Orso’s health and safety.”
Just six minutes after he was released from jail, the lawsuit alleges, Orso began experiencing distress and sat down on a curb outside the jail. Four minutes later, he collapsed in the parking lot, where he went unnoticed for approximately 40 minutes even though the jail is equipped with security cameras, according to the lawsuit.
A passerby discovered Orso and summoned authorities at 9:53 a.m. Deputies from the sheriff’s Murrieta station responded and began administering life-saving measures until paramedics arrived and took over. Orso, a 15-year veteran of the San Diego Police Department who worked as a patrol officer in the Mid-City and Northeastern Divisions, died at the scene.
At the time of Orso’s death, a sheriff’s spokesperson said all inmates receive screening for physical and mental health.
Sheriff Chad Bianco declined to comment, citing the pending litigation.