Pace of Justice: Riverside County’s justice system continues to deal with a shortage of judges

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) - A Judicial Council of California assessment places the need at 111 judges for Riverside County, but the county currently has 75 judges and 14 judicial officers, leaving it short 22 judgeships. This shortage can contribute to prolonged legal proceedings. 

At the same time, there is frustration over the pace of justice in some cases that have dragged on for years. 

Recently, a sexual abuse case against 67-year-old David Pio was resolved in a plea agreement after 14 years, and he did not serve state prison time before his release. 

Guillermina Olivas, the mother of the victims, shared their frustrations with the lengthy process. 

Olivas recounted the moment she realized one of her children was troubled back in 2012 and ultimately disclosed what had happened. 

“One of my teens was very troubled, so you know, I prayed about it and I said, there's something there and I was able to talk to him and find out what is it?” Olivas said. “You know, we finally disclosed what happened and so I had to take matters to the authorities.” 

The protracted timeline significantly affected the family. 

One of her sons, who was a victim, spoke about his struggle to move forward. 

“After 14 years, I don't know how to kind of like move like forward mentally about it, because I've tried like therapy in the past, but yeah, me, I don't know, maybe I was just too young,” he said. 

He noted that the 14-year ordeal consumed more than half of her life, as she is 29 now. 

“I just felt like I've wasted it, took a lot of, a lot of years out of my just life in general, more than half of my life, honestly, because I'm 29 now, so yeah, the past 14 years,” he said. 

Olivas says more consideration should be given to the victims, not the offender. 

Their frustrations come as the system continues to deal with a shortage of judges and courtrooms. 

Steven Harmon, Riverside County Public Defender, commented on the overall issue, not the Pio case. 

He explained that while some defendants desire a speedy trial, it is often advantageous for the accused to have more time to prepare for their case.  

“Sometimes the defendant, the accused wants a speedy trial, but actually, most times it works in the defendant's, the accused favor to have more time to prepare their case,” Harmon said. 

Hon. John Vineyard, a Family Law Judge in Riverside County, elaborated on the impact of the judge shortage on court scheduling. 

“When I was setting continuing cases this morning, if I had to set a new hearing, my next available date was September,” Vineyard said, emphasizing the long wait times. 

He added that any day a courtroom closes due to a judge's absence further slows the entire system. 

“That's a long time to wait, but every day that we're closed because of a vacation or sick day or whatever, that's a little bit farther that somebody has to wait, so it slows the whole system down,” Vineyard said. 

In 2025, Riverside County Superior Court saw rising felony filings and declining case dispositions. 

To help manage caseloads, the county utilizes temporary judges, experienced attorneys who volunteer to serve on the bench. 

Judge Vineyard highlighted their critical role in maintaining court operations. 

“They sit in for us and keep the courtroom open while we're out and so that's kind of the key is that if they're not here, if we don't have a temporary judge, courtroom goes dark when I'm not here, that's a day that people can't come to court,” Vineyard said. 

Information on the temporary judge program is available by navigating to the temporary judge program at: https://www.riverside.courts.ca.gov/general-information/attorneys-litigants

Harmon describes the justice system as an interconnected entity, noting that a breakdown in one area affects the whole. 

“They call it the criminal justice system for a reason, it's a system and every part of that system has to work properly and smoothly and quickly and if one-part bogs down or there's not enough people to carry the load for that one part, everything starts to go,” Harmon said. 

The Riverside County District Attorney declined an interview regarding the judge shortage and temporary judge program. 

However, the District Attorney's office issued a statement on the Pio case, indicating that the lengthy process was partly due to significant delays caused by the defense, as Pio was represented by eight different attorneys over the 14 years. 

The full statement from a Riverside County DA spokesperson: 

The resolution in Mr. Pio’s case came after a lengthy process that was impacted, in part, by significant delays on the defense side. During the pendency of the case, the defendant was represented by eight different defense attorneys. Each time new counsel was appointed, additional time was needed for the attorney to become familiar with the case before proceedings could move forward.

Regarding victim notification, our office's attorney team and Division of Victim Services kept the family informed throughout the process. The family was advised that the parties were working toward a plea agreement and was notified again once an agreement had been reached and its acceptance by the defendant was imminent. However, the defendant did not immediately enter the plea and instead delayed doing so over the course of several hearings. During that time, the family understood that the plea could be entered at any scheduled hearing.

When the defendant ultimately entered the plea, the family was not present in court. Our office immediately notified the family afterward and advised them of the sentencing date, their right to attend, and their opportunity to present victim impact statements. One of the victims and his mother attended the sentencing hearing and exercised that right.