The family of Mohd F. Hijaz, a 32-year-old man who died following an encounter with San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies in March 2024, files a wrongful death lawsuit against the city of Rancho Cucamonga and the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department. The lawsuit alleges that deputies used excessive and unjustified force during the incident, ultimately leading to Hijaz’s death.
According to the lawsuit, the incident takes place on March 19, 2024, when deputies respond to reports of a man acting erratically in a residential neighborhood in Rancho Cucamonga. They locate Hijaz, who is unarmed and reportedly seated on a curb. The suit claims that after Hijaz begins moving toward two female deputies despite commands to stop, both deploy their tasers multiple times. When two additional male deputies arrive, the suit alleges they strike Hijaz with batons and violently slam his head onto the pavement.
Hijaz reportedly goes into cardiac arrest at the scene and is later pronounced dead at a local hospital. The lawsuit asserts that Hijaz was in the middle of a mental health crisis and posed no serious threat to the deputies, raising questions about the department’s approach to crisis response and use-of-force policies.
The plaintiffs, including Hijaz’s mother, widow, and minor child, claim his death was preventable and accuse the deputies involved of violating civil rights under California and federal law. The family is seeking unspecified damages for pain, suffering, wrongful death, and violations of Hijaz’s constitutional rights.
Neither the city of Rancho Cucamonga nor the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department has issued public comments on the ongoing litigation. The case adds to growing scrutiny of law enforcement practices in Southern California, particularly in how officers handle encounters involving individuals experiencing mental health challenges.
The death of Mohd Hijaz echoes broader national debates over police accountability, use of tasers, and excessive force. Civil rights advocates and legal experts are closely watching the outcome of the lawsuit as another potential benchmark for police reform and oversight in high-profile fatal encounters.
Source Links:
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-04-17/san-bernardino-sheriff-deputy-lawsuit-mohd-hijaz-rancho-cucamonga
https://www.aol.com/news/deputies-beat-tased-unarmed-rancho-100038114.html
https://www.yahoo.com/news/deputies-beat-tased-unarmed-rancho-100038429.html
https://www.sehatlaw.com/news/mohd-hijaz-died-in-custody-after-arrest-in-rancho-cucamonga/
https://sbcsentinel.com/2024/03/man-dead-in-encounter-with-sheriffs-deputies-in-rc-2/
https://sbcsentinel.com/2024/03/rogers/
https://www.yahoo.com/news/socal-man-accused-assaulting-sheriff-172506038.html
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-03-22/rancho-cucamonga-man-dies-after-allegedly-assaulting-a-san-bernardino-county-deputy
https://youtu.be/7wvZO7202lg
