Riverside County Superior Court clerk who joined coworker in mishandling case docs sentenced

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) - The second of two former Riverside County Superior Court clerks who mishandled privileged information connected to a criminal case was sentenced today to one day in county jail, but after receiving credit for time served, she walked free.

Michelle Valdez, 59, of Thousand Palms pleaded guilty in October to felony conspiracy. The plea was directly to Riverside County Superior Court Judge Joshlyn Pulliam -- over the objections of prosecutors, who opposed it.   

In exchange for Valdez's admission, the judge reduced her offense to a misdemeanor.

During the defendant's sentencing hearing at the Riverside Hall of Justice Tuesday, Pulliam received confirmation that Valdez had already completed 90 days of community service as a condition of her pre sentencing agreement with the court. Afterward, the judge imposed a term of one day of incarceration in county jail, but then credited Valdez with time she had already spent behind bars immediately after she was arrested, permitting the defendant to go free.

Her co-defendant, 49-year-old Angela Franz of Thousand Palms, was sentenced in December by Superior Court Judge David Gunn under a similar arrangement that resulted in ``terminal disposition'' -- no probation, community service or other requirements imposed on her.

Franz's plea had also been directly to the court, and as in Valdez's case, the judge reduced her conspiracy charge from a felony to a misdemeanor. The District Attorney's Office objected to the deal.

According to prosecutors, the two women were assigned to the Larson Justice Center in Indio when the offenses occurred in January 2020.   

Prosecutors said a law enforcement officer submitted a search warrant request and asked that the documents remain under seal due to confidentiality concerns and to prevent the investigation from being compromised.   

A judge signed the warrant the same day and ordered it sealed, according to the D.A.'s Office.

"Franz pulled the warrant from the court system, printed it, and then provided it to Valdez,'' according to an agency statement released after an indictment against the pair was unsealed. ``Both defendants had been court clerks for several years and would know that reviewing, printing and sharing a sealed court document in this manner would be against the law."  

A possible motive was not disclosed.   

The case was taken before the 19-member county grand jury in June 2022, resulting in the indictment against both women, neither of whom had prior misdemeanor or felony convictions.

Soon afterward, their state employment ended.