Man arrested with guns near local Trump rally files lawsuit against Sheriff Chad Bianco and Riverside County
The man arrested with two loaded guns near the Trump rally over the weekend in Coachella has filed a federal lawsuit against Riverside County, Sheriff Chad Bianco, and the Riverside County Sheriff's Office.
In the lawsuit, Vem Miller, a 49-year-old from Las Vegas, alleges Bianco "intentionally, maliciously and with a blatant disregard for the truth, wanted to create a narrative so as to be viewed as a 'heroic' Sheriff who saved Presidential candidate Trump from a third assassination attempt."
The complaint also alleges Riverside County Sheriff's deputies "violated Miller’s First and Fourth Amendment Constitutional rights to privacy and to be free from unlawful searches and seizures."
News Channel 3 spoke to Miller about the situation. He said he was not there to harm anyone.
"The two guns I had were not even rifles," Miller said. "Even if I did have evil intentions, it would be impossible to use those to do what I was accused of doing."
Miller addressed Bianco on X shortly after the announcement that the lawsuit was filed.
You wanted attention @ChadBianco You wanted to be the mainstream media darling for your political aspirations, willing to walk all over the corpse of a man’s reputation to get there. Well, you’re going to get exactly what you wished for, but I don’t think you comprehend what that…
— notvemmiller (@notvemmiller) October 16, 2024
Bianco responded to the lawsuit in a statement to News Channel 3:
"Let me see if I have this correct: a lawsuit was filed the next business day, combined with all of these outlandish allegations and supposed evidence by the guy who had an unregistered vehicle with fake license plates, had multiple ID’s including passports from other countries in different names, with illegal loaded guns attempting to get into a trump rally after the former president had two attempts on his life. Since no one in their right mind thinks what he did is okay, this is looking more and more suspicious like it was staged, quite possibly by “someone” seeking attention. Literally the next day after getting out of jail, he and his supposed attorney were claiming second amendment violations. Everything from the social media blitz from “influencers” to the next day lawsuit certainly appears very suspect."
The Riverside County Sheriff's Office also provided a statement on the lawsuit:
"We acknowledge the lawsuit filed against the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office and take such matters seriously. However, as it is pending litigation, we cannot comment on the specifics at this time. We are committed to transparency and will cooperate fully with the legal process. Our priority remains the safety and well-being of the community we serve. We appreciate your understanding as we address this matter."
Miller is being represented by attorney Sigal Chattah. According to Fox 5 Las Vegas, Chattah is also a Republic National Committeewoman.
Miller was arrested Saturday afternoon just before former President Donald Trump arrived at the site of the rally on Calhoun Ranch near Coachella.
According to the Riverside County Sheriff's Office, Miller was stopped at a checkpoint at the intersection of Avenue 52 and Celebration Drive. Deputies said Miller was found to be illegally in possession of a shotgun, a loaded handgun, and a high-capacity magazine.
Miller was booked into the John Benoit Detention Center in Indio. He was released from custody the same day on $5,000 bail. He is set to appear in court on January 2.
On Sunday, Bianco held a news conference discussing the arrest, where he said, "We probably stopped another assassination attempt."
Bianco said the inside of Miller's vehicle was in disarray, the vehicle was unregistered and it had a fake license plate. Upon further investigation, he said deputies discovered multiple passports and drivers licenses with different names.
In the lawsuit, Miller claims he informed the deputy that he had two firearms in his vehicle and he intended to leave in the parked vehicle.
Miller claims that he was not there to harm the former president.
"Everything they said about me is untrue, provably so. Unfortunately, he (Bianco) appears to have committed career suicide," Miller told the Los Angeles Times on Monday.
"As of right this second, I could prove everything they said is untrue,'' the Times quoted Miller as saying. "It's just going to be bad. ... That sheriff is going to lose his job."
In comments to Southern California News Group, Miller said he supports Trump and only had the guns for protection.
"I'm an artist, I'm the last person that would cause any violence and harm to anybody,'' Miller told the newspaper group.
In the interview with the Times, Miller said he has received death threats in response to work he's done for his media company, the America Happens Network.
Miller told SCNG he was invited to the Coachella Valley rally by the head of Clark County's Republican Party. Miller is a caucus captain for Trump in Nevada, according to the report. He also said he had never fired the weapons and was unaware of the differences between gun laws in Nevada and California.
SCNG described Miller as a registered Republican who has a master's degree from UCLA and ran for state Assembly in Nevada in 2022.
Bianco told SCNG on Sunday that he believes Miller planned to kill Trump and that deputies arrested him after Miller presented fake VIP and press passes at the checkpoint.
"They were different enough to cause the deputies alarm,'' Bianco said.
The sheriff was dismissive when asked about Miller's claims to the newspaper group.
"We know that we prevented something bad from happening, and it's irrelevant what that bad was going to be,'' he said.
According to the sheriff's department, the incident did not impact the safety of Trump or attendees of the event.
Bianco said further potential charges against Miller would be up to federal authorities, claiming that the department had engaged with the Secret Service and the FBI.
The U.S. Attorney's Office issued the following statement Sunday afternoon:
"The U.S. Attorney's Office U.S. Secret Service, and FBI are aware of the Riverside County Sheriff's Office's arrest on Saturday. The U.S. Secret Service assesses that the incident did not impact protective operations and former President Trump was not in any danger. While no federal arrest has been made at this time, the investigation is ongoing. The U.S. Attorney's Office, U.S. Secret Service, and FBI extend their gratitude to the deputies and local partners who helped ensure the safety of last night's events.''
Trump himself had not commented on the arrest as of Monday, although campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung thanked law enforcement officials for securing the rally site, according to CNN.
"We are aware of news reports about the arrest and are currently monitoring the situation and gathering more information,'' Cheung said.
Trump was injured at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13 by a man who was subsequently shot dead by authorities. On Sept. 22, a man was arrested after the Secret Service allegedly saw him pointing a rifle from shrubbery on the West Palm Beach, Florida, golf course where Trump was playing.
