Riverside County Coroner - Public Administrator

10/22/2026

The Riverside County Public Administrator participated in Wear It Pink and Breast Cancer awareness month. Supporting awareness for new discoveries, better treatments and cures for breast cancer. We stand in support and Wear Pink proudly.

08/28/2026

Congratulations to Sergeant N. Rissi for twenty years of service!

Captain Roberts presented the well deserved service pin in honor of this milestone.

Here’s to continued excellence and many more years of honorable service.

08/20/2026

Click here for full press release:

https://rivcoda.org/rebecca_mcmahan_1974_cold_case_victim_identified

After more than 50 years, a 1974 cold case homicide victim has been identified as Rebecca Jean McMahan.

Rebecca, 19, was last seen in Bell Gardens in June 1973 and told family she planned on traveling to Palm Springs. Her partially buried body was discovered in the open desert of Desert Hot Springs the following January. Investigators are now seeking information about what happened to Rebecca.

Read the full news release here: https://rivcoda.org/rebecca_mcmahan_1974_cold_case_victim_identified

07/15/2026

Jane Doe identified after 45 years.

On November 28, 1981, a passerby gathering firewood in the mountainous area discovered a shallow grave containing the remains of a severely decomposed female. Due to the condition of the remains, investigators were unable to establish her identity despite extensive investigative efforts.

For more than 40 years, she remained unidentified until now …

To read the full press release visit:

https://www.riversidesheriff.org/m/newsflash/Home/Detail/7246

07/15/2026

John Doe from 1978 Identified

On June 2, 1978, a Volkswagen Beetle carrying five teenage passengers was traveling westbound on Arlington Avenue in Riverside when the driver lost control and struck a sport utility vehicle. The driver was the only survivor of the crash and told investigators at the time that he had met the male passenger only the day before, knowing little about him.

The three other victims were identified at the time, but their families had no information about the fifth passenger.

Despite years of investigative efforts, the victim remained unidentified until now…

To read the full press release visit:

https://www.riversidesheriff.org/m/newsflash/home/detail/7245

06/30/2026

Riverside County Sheriff Public Administrator Bureau would like to thank and congratulate Deputy Public Administrator Kelsey Dotson and Estate Investigator Jonathan Valencia on their 5 years of service.

Captain Roberts presented these service pins in recognition of their 5 years of service.

Wishing them both continued years of dedicated service and excellence within the Public Administrator Bureau.

06/30/2026

The Riverside County Sheriff’s Coroner Bureau is proud to have Sgt. Escobar, Sgt. Ball, Deputy Coroner Newman, and Deputy Coroner La Crue attending the SLOFIST Fire Investigation Training in San Luis Obispo.

Thank you for your dedication in expanding your knowledge and expertise to better serve the families and communities we represent.

06/21/2026

We are proud to congratulate our very own Coroner Sergeant Roberts who represented the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office while competing in co-ed and women’s softball 🥎 at the 2026 United States Police & Fire Championships (USPFC) this week.

The USPFC is an annual, Olympic-style, multi-sport event that brings together thousands of active and retired first responders from across the nation. Open to law enforcement, firefighters, and public safety personnel, the event features more than 35 sports.

Sergeant Roberts has been participating at the USPFC since 2016, and has been coaching the RSO team since 2018. The co-ed team played 10 games over two days, and the women’s team played 4 games in one day. We are excited to announce that both the Co-Ed Softball Team and the Women’s Softball Team took 2nd Place, earning Silver Medals! 🥈🥈

Congratulations, Sergeant Roberts! Way to represent the Coroner’s Bureau, RSO, and the first responder community with pride! “Commitment, Camaraderie, Competition”

06/04/2026

Thank you, RSA and RSA chow shack for the wonderful lunch! We truly appreciate the time, effort, and care that went into preparing such a delicious meal for everyone at the Coroner’s Office.

05/26/2026

Coroner Incident Response Team🚁

Riverside County Coroner developed a specialized team within the Coroner's Bureau to conduct death investigations in remote or difficult to reach locations. The team trains regularly in helicopter hoist training, repelling and other techniques for reaching decedents in remote locations. From remote desert canyons to mountainous cliffsides, our team members go above and beyond to ensure a thorough death investigation is conducted and the decedent is recovered under our care.

Thank you to RSO aviation staff for providing this invaluable training to our team!