A La Quinta woman is suing Riverside County and a former sheriff’s deputy who she alleges used law enforcement databases to pursue her romantically under the color of authority.

The federal lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Riverside on Aug. 26 by Briana Ortega, is the second civil suit in a month against a former law enforcement official in Riverside County accused of using department resources to pursue women they encountered while on duty.

Ortega, 29, alleges she first met Deputy Eric Piscatella at a festival in Coachella in September 2023. He was with a group of other deputies, handing out stickers to children, including Ortega’s children, when he struck up a brief conversation with her and asked her for her name, according to the lawsuit.

Then, in late January 2024, Piscatel

See Full Page