Valley News Breaking News Team
Settlement brings renewed attention to allegations that former Riverside County sheriff’s investigator Kevin Duffy sexually abused numerous children through a law enforcement youth program and that department officials failed to protect victims.
RIVERSIDE — Riverside County has paid $2 million to a man who claimed he was repeatedly sexually abused as a 13-year-old boy by former sheriff’s investigator Kevin Duffy, bringing renewed attention to a decades-long scandal involving allegations of child molestation, possible departmental misconduct and claims that law enforcement officials failed to protect vulnerable children.
The settlement is the latest development in a case that has haunted the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department since 2009, when Duffy died by suicide while under investigation for sexual misconduct involving minors.
Over the years, former sheriff’s employees, private investigators and alleged victims have raised questions about how many children Duffy may have abused, whether investigators were prevented from arresting him and whether the department adequately investigated the allegations.
At one point, a private investigator publicly alleged that the number of potential victims could reach 250, although that estimate was disputed by the Sheriff’s Department and has never been independently substantiated.
The latest $2 million settlement involves a plaintiff identified as John Doe No. 3 in Riverside County Superior Court Case No. CVRI2205313, Doe v. County of Riverside.
According to a statement released by the plaintiff’s attorneys, Doe No. 3 accepted the county defendants’ statutory settlement offer March 27, 2026. The Board of Supervisors subsequently approved the agreement, and payment was made July 21.
The settlement resolves Doe No. 3’s claims but does not establish that the county admitted liability. Other plaintiffs’ claims remain at issue, according to the attorneys.
A badge, a youth program and allegations of betrayal
According to the lawsuit, Duffy approached Doe No. 3 when the boy was approximately 13 years old, displayed his law enforcement badge and recruited him into the Sheriff’s Activities League, a program intended to provide mentorship and positive activities for vulnerable children.
The plaintiff alleges Duffy used the authority of his badge and the trust associated with the program to sexually abuse him repeatedly.
The complaint describes incidents of unwanted sexual touching and other sexual acts, including occasions when Duffy allegedly became angry after the child told him to stop.
The allegations reflect a recurring theme in lawsuits and investigations involving Duffy: that a law enforcement officer entrusted with helping at-risk children instead exploited his position to gain access to them.
Duffy had been a longtime investigator at the Hemet sheriff’s station and was widely regarded as a dedicated youth mentor before the allegations surfaced.
A retired sheriff’s employee interviewed by NBC Palm Springs in 2018 described Duffy as a respected investigator who received awards for his work with children. The former employee said the same youth outreach activities that earned Duffy recognition also provided opportunities for alleged abuse.
Duffy died by suicide Jan. 25, 2009, approximately two weeks after the department began investigating him.
According to Former Riverside County Sheriff Stan Sniff, the investigation began Jan. 12, 2009, and continued until Sept. 9, 2009, months after Duffy’s death.
Sniff said the investigation involved:
- More than 10 department employees.
- 151 investigative reports.
- 23 search warrants.
- 90 people interviewed.
- 75 potential victims interviewed.
The department said at the time, that its investigation substantiated abuse involving one victim and that the Sheriff’s Activities League program was discontinued when the investigation began.
Sniff disputed claims that investigators had been ordered not to arrest Duffy and maintained that arrest decisions were made by investigators in coordination with prosecutors.
The Riverside County District Attorney’s Office confirmed that its previous administration had been aware of the investigation but said Duffy’s death prevented criminal prosecution.
Earlier lawsuit resulted in $900,000 settlement
The latest $2 million payment is not the first substantial settlement arising from allegations against Duffy.
In 2021, Riverside County agreed to pay $900,000 to resolve an earlier lawsuit filed by former participants in the sheriff’s youth program who alleged they had been sexually abused by Duffy.
That lawsuit, originally filed in 2020, named Riverside County, former Sheriff Sniff, Duffy’s estate and organizations associated with the youth program.
The plaintiffs alleged that county officials had concealed Duffy’s misconduct and failed to protect children despite having information about his behavior.
According to reporting by The Press-Enterprise, the settlement was finalized in July 2021.
Together, the two reported settlements total at least $2.9 million in taxpayer-funded payments arising from the Duffy allegations.
The settlements do not establish how many children Duffy abused, but they underscore the continuing financial and legal consequences of allegations involving an investigator who joined the Sheriff’s Department in 1982.
Female plaintiff alleges abuse began when she was 15
The current litigation also includes allegations from a woman identified as Jane Doe No. 1, who says Duffy began sexually abusing her when she was a 15-year-old police cadet in San Jacinto.
Her allegations became public during the renewed scrutiny of the Duffy investigation in 2018.
At a July 2018 news conference, Bolanos disclosed that a female accuser had come forward alleging sexual misconduct involving Duffy when he was a San Jacinto police officer.
Attorneys representing the plaintiffs now accuse the county’s legal team of minimizing her experience.
According to the attorneys’ statement, county counsel characterized the alleged abuse as a “teenage love affair” in court filings.
“Calling an adult police officer’s rape of a 15-year-old girl a ‘teenage love affair’ is outrageous,” said attorney Jim Quadra of Quadra & Coll LLP.
The characterization and the attorneys’ objections are described in the plaintiffs’ statement. The underlying briefing has not been independently reviewed for this report.
The attorneys also criticized testimony from Dr. Marc Cohen, a psychiatrist retained by the county to examine plaintiffs.
According to their account of his deposition, Cohen suggested that children subjected to sexual abuse might experience sexual gratification and that the plaintiffs’ failure to describe such experiences or related confusion was, to some degree, inconsistent with genuine abuse victims.
The attorneys contend the testimony reflects an approach that minimizes the trauma reported by survivors.
Attorneys call for accountability
Quadra said the payment should also prompt the county to address the claims of other alleged victims.
“Doe #3 deserved protection when he was a child. As we allege in the complaint, the County failed to provide it. We hope this resolution marks a step toward accountability for the remaining plaintiffs in this action and other Duffy victims.”
