Jury finds ex-PCSD Sgt. Ricky Garcia not guilty of sexual assault, but guilty of 2 lesser charges

A jury on Friday found former Pima County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Ricardo “Ricky” Garcia not guilty of the sexual assault of a coworker in 2022, but guilty of the lesser charges of two counts of attempted sexual assault and two counts of sexual abuse.

Friday marked the last day in a two-week-long trial, during which the victim, a Pima County sheriff’s deputy and a subordinate of Garcia’s, testified that Garcia assaulted her at a holiday party at his home after she drank to the point of unconsciousness, Arizona Public Media reported.

The jury, which deliberated Friday after closing arguments were heard Thursday, delivered the verdict just before 4 p.m. as a visibly upset Garcia listened with his lawyer’s arm around his shoulders.

After the verdict, the jury heard further testimony regarding potential aggravating circumstances in the case. The victim, who the Sentinel is not naming, testified through tears that the situation has “tremendously” affected her career by damaging her relationship with other officers, adding that before the alleged assault, Garcia was somebody she “thought (she) … trusted.”

“Deep down inside I still wanted to be a cop, so I had to be strong for my community,” she said.

Garcia’s defense attorney Louis Fidel argued that Garcia and the victim were not on-duty as a sergeant and a deputy at the time of the alleged assault, which instead happened “at home” and “in the context of a broader relationship.”

The jury found three aggravating circumstances were proven beyond a reasonable doubt: the victim suffered physical harm and emotional harm, and the defendant was in a position of authority over the victim.

Aggravating circumstances do not alter the convictions but will affect Garcia’s potential sentence.

Garcia faces up to 2.5 years in prison on each count of sexual abuse, with 2 to 8.75 years possible on the attempted sexual assault charges. The judge could choose to sentence him to probation on any of the counts.

A conviction on attempted sexual assault requires the violator to register as a sex offender in Arizona. A sexual abuse conviction only creates that requirement if the victim is under age 18.

Sentencing is scheduled for January 29.

Outside the courthouse, Deputy Santa Cruz County Attorney Mathew Cannon told reporters that the victim in this case was “very brave.”

“She had a lot of things to consider and a lot to lose,” Cannon said. “She’s a brave voice for women.”

Attorneys from Santa Cruz County handled the prosecution in the case so as to avoid a potential conflict of interest because both victim and defendant were Pima County employees.

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has come under fire for his handling of the case, though he has repeatedly denied any misconduct.

The Pima County Deputy’s Organization, a union representing nearly half of the department’s deputies, claimed that Nanos not only failed to investigate the situation, but promoted a chief who was present on the night of the incident to oversee internal affairs in order to cover up the alleged crime.

An investigation from the Arizona Attorney General’s Office in September found “zero criminal wrongdoing” in Nanos’ handling of the incident, but did note four internal policy rules the department may have violated.