Sheriff accuses councilman of using CSO’s death to promote car seat event

Stanislaus County Sheriff Adam Christianson has accused Modesto Councilman Tony Madrigal of exploiting the recent death of a Sheriff’s Department community service officer for political gain.

CSO Raschel Johnson died May 13 in a single-vehicle crash. Deputy Jason Garner — who was driving the patrol vehicle — also died.

Madrigal — along with community partners, sponsors and volunteers — on Saturday held the annual event at Los Amigos Tire Pros on Crows Landing Road promoting the correct use of child safety seats. Madrigal founded the event four years ago, and this year he renamed it in honor of Johnson.

Christianson took exception with Madrigal’s flier promoting the event, though Johnson’s parents said they were not offended. Johnson’s husband could not be reached for comment.

“You specifically told me (in a phone conversation) this event was to ‘honor’ Raschel yet when I went back and reviewed your (flier) again, I did not find the word ‘honor’ anywhere,” Christianson wrote in a Thursday email to Madrigal, which the sheriff copied to other city officials. “... I did not find any language that promotes this event as a means of honoring Raschel.

“What did stand out, was your name, political title, district you represent and contact information, which leads me to believe that this is nothing more than political exploitation for your personal political gain, again something I mentioned to you in our telephone call.”

The top of flier says: “Tony Madrigal, Modesto City Council Member, District 2, cordially invites you to the first annual Community Service Officer Raschel Johnson Child Safety Seat Check event.” The flier includes what appears to be a Sheriff’s Department photo of Johnson.

The sheriff also wrote he would no longer support these events if they involved Madrigal. The councilman said he did not intend to promote himself but said he would remove his name from the flier in future years.

“That is the furthest thing from the truth,” he said. “My intent was to honor her by renaming an event she was passionate about. This is an event we have been doing for four years now to the benefit the community. If he (Christianson) wants to interpret it that way, that is his choice. But I got permission from both her parents and her husband. They were excited because they knew she was passionate about child safety.”

Johnson’s father, Ron Weiss, said he and his wife, Sharon, have seen the flier and don’t have a problem with it.

“When Tony approached us, my wife and I considered it an honor that Tony would honor our daughter that way,” Ron Weiss said. “We were 100 percent for it. This is something she was so passionate about, the safety of the child.

“I’m sorry if he (Madrigal) is getting flak for this. ... It’s for her to be remembered. Every year, when this comes up, it will bring back her memory for other people. If the sheriff thought it was being used for some unforeseen reason, I can’t talk for him. But for me and my wife, we are OK with what Tony did.”

Christianson did not return an email seeking comment.

But in a Tuesday email to Madrigal, the sheriff said the councilman failed to get permission to use Johnson’s photo and the Sheriff’s Department name and logo on the flier. Christianson wrote that he was seeing the flier for the first time. “While we have partnered with you in the past,” he wrote, “the authorization to do so was approved by me and in this case, I don’t recall you asking my permission.”

Madrigal said he apologized to the sheriff but said he thought because the Sheriff’s Department was sending a child safety seat technician to the event that permission had been granted. Madrigal said the department was a sponsor in all previous years.

Volunteer technicians conducted 88 child safety seat inspections Saturday, and 76 seats were replaced because they were broken, too small for the children and for other reasons, according to Rena Lepard with Safe Kids Stanislaus, which participated in the event.

This story was originally published June 24, 2017 at 3:35 PM with the headline "Sheriff accuses councilman of using CSO’s death to promote car seat event."