Former deputy sues Shasta County Sheriff's Office for hostile work environment

REDDING, Calif. — Former Shasta County Sheriff's Deputy Pat Kropholler has filed a lawsuit against Shasta County and the Shasta County Sheriff's Office (SCSO).

The lawsuit was filed on May 11, 2022, in Shasta County Superior Court. Kropholler had worked for the department for 36 years and retired in January.

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In the lawsuit, Kropholler says former Sheriff Eric Magrini asked him to illegally search for the criminal record of Matt Pontes who had applied to become the county's Chief Executive Officer.

Kropholler also says Magrini and undersheriff Jason Barnhart mocked his German heritage and Magrini drew a "Hitler-style" mustache on a photo of Kropholler and shared it with command staff and the Redding Police Chief.

Following an officer-involved shooting in February of 2020 Kropholler alleges that Magrini wanted the sergeant involved to be charged with a crime and ordered Kropholler to pull his investigative report after he found out it included information that cleared the sergeant of wrongdoing.

Kropholler says he refused and the sergeant was eventually cleared by the DA's office.

KRCR did reach out to the county counsel and they said they cannot comment at the moment. We also reached out to Magrinia and Barnhart for comment but have not heard back yet.

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