SAN DIEGO—A former San Diego County sheriff’s deputy who was previously sentenced for fondling and inappropriately touching more than a dozen women while on duty was booked into custody Monday after an appellate court ruled that he had been released before properly completing his jail sentence.
Richard Fischer, 36, was originally sentenced to 44 months in county jail after pleading guilty to charges that include assault under color of authority for accosting 16 women between 2015 and 2017. Prosecutors say some of the women were people he'd arrested and others were those he met after they had called the police for assistance.
Fischer was released in May of 2020 following five months in custody after being credited with 956 days for time served in pre-trial home detention.
According to the ruling from a three-justice panel of the Fourth District Court of Appeal, Fischer’s sentencing judge ruled Fischer was mistakenly awarded those credits, as home detention was not ordered while Fischer was out on bail. Fischer was instead required to be monitored via GPS and to stay away from the victims.
Fischer was ordered back to jail, but was released again last April pending his appeal of the judge’s order. The appellate court agreed with the judge and vacated the order that awarded Fischer the 956 days of credit.
