A former sheriff’s deputy accused of on-the-job sexual misconduct involving 16 women pleaded guilty Monday to seven criminal charges that could send him to prison for up to five years.

Richard Fischer, 33, admitted to four felonies and three misdemeanors — none of them specifically charged as a sex crime, though sexual misconduct is at the core of most of the charges levied against him. The plea encompasses all 16 women listed as victims in the criminal case prosecutors filed against him.

Since 2017, numerous women have said Fischer groped, hugged or tried to kiss them when he encountered them in the course of his work as a deputy sheriff. Some accusers said the incidents occurred while they were detained or in custody. Others said Fischer had been among deputies who responded to calls for assistance, and that the encounters happened when he returned hours or days later.

All the incidents occurred between 2015 and 2017 in locations in North County and East County.


Until the deal was struck, Fischer had faced 20 counts. If he had gone to trial — the change-of-plea came on the same day trial was scheduled to start — and been convicted on all charges, Fischer could have been facing up to 25 years in custody.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, his sentence could range from probation — no jail time — to up to five years in custody.

Whether or not Fischer will have to register as a sex offender as a result of his guilty pleas will be decided when he is sentenced by San Diego Superior Court Judge Daniel B. Goldstein. That sentencing is now scheduled for Dec. 10, though it is possible it could be postponed.

Under current law, a judge can order a defendant to register as a sex offender if the judge finds that the offense came “as a result of sexual compulsion or for purposes of sexual gratification.”


Daniel Gilleon, the attorney representing several accusers in a civil case targeting Fischer and the Sheriff’s Department, issued a statement Monday that he was surprised that prosecutors had “dropped the only two sexual misconduct charges that had been filed against (Fischer).”

Goldstein has long presided over the case, and heard all 16 accusers testify at two separate preliminary hearings. On Monday, the judge said Fischer’s plea “acknowledges the veracity” of the 16 listed victims, as well as the investigation.

“This plea is in the furtherance of justice,” Goldstein said, adding that it gives “adequate sentencing parameters” to shape the punishment.

An earlier criminal complaint against Fischer had included an accusation that he engaged in a forced sexual assault on one victim — the most serious of the criminal charges levied against the deputy. That charge was not on the complaint to which Fischer pleaded guilty on Monday.


Instead, Fischer admitted in the plea deal to committing a felony against that accuser, but the charge was assault and battery by a officer. It was not charged as a sexual offense.

Fischer admitted to a total of four felony charges of assault and battery by an officer; each felony charge has one named victim.

In addition, he pleaded guilty to three misdemeanors, including one count of false imprisonment with one victim. There are also two misdemeanor counts of assault and battery by a peace officer — one count covers seven victims, the other covers four.

Fischer has adamantly denied the allegations, and at a news conference outside the San Diego Central Courthouse in July 2018, he told reporters: “The charges against me are false.”


Thirteen of the victims were at the courthouse when Fischer pleaded guilty. Several declined comment afterward.

After Monday’s hearing, none of the attorneys directly handling the case commented; at a prior hearing, Goldstein admonished the attorneys against talking to the media about the facts of the case.

However, in a statement announcing the guilty plea, District Attorney Summer Stephan said the plea deal had support of most of Fischer’s victims.

“This plea acknowledges the separate crimes committed against each victim and is accepted in accordance with the wishes of the overwhelming number of victims who agree it is a just and appropriate resolution that holds the defendant accountable for his crimes,” Stephan said in the statement.


“I want to thank the victims who showed tremendous courage by coming forward and standing up to the defendant who abused his position of trust under the color of authority,” Stephan said.

Fischer, who was a Marine reservist and was once deployed to Afghanistan, joined the Sheriff’s Department in 2011. After allegations arose, he was placed on desk duty and investigated. He was later placed on unpaid leave. In February, the department said Fischer was no longer an employee, but did not elaborate.

After Fischer’s change of plea Monday, the Sheriff’s Department issued a statement through spokesman Lt. Justin White that officials there have “the utmost confidence in the criminal justice system and support the outcome of this case.”

The department said that when the allegations surfaced, it “immediately conducted an objective and thorough investigation. From the beginning we worked with the District Attorney’s Office to ensure transparency.”


While the plea caps the criminal case, Fischer still faces numerous civil suits targeting him and the county. The county has paid out $900,000 to settle lawsuits filed by four people. The remainder of the cases have been in a holding pattern, pending the outcome of the criminal case. Not all of the accusers who filed civil suits were included in the criminal case.