Man arrested with guns near Trump rally sues sheriff, says he was falsely called a threat

(This article has been updated to add additional information.)

The man who was arrested by Riverside County sheriff’s deputies on suspicion of illegally possessing guns near former President Donald Trump’s Coachella Valley rally has filed a lawsuit against Sheriff Chad Bianco.

The man, Vem Miller of Las Vegas, accuses Bianco of knowingly defaming him by falsely saying he was a threat and that Miller may have even planned to kill Trump.

The lawsuit filed Tuesday in federal court alleges Bianco spread those lies in several media appearances he made touting the arrest because he wanted to falsely portray himself as a “heroic sheriff” who had saved Trump from another assassination attempt.

“Defendants intentionally, knowingly and with a wanton disregard for Miller’s constitutional rights used the media to spin a false and malicious narrative and unlawfully disclosed and disseminated said information for the purposes of humiliating him and destroying his livelihood,” he said.The lawsuit also names Riverside County, a deputy it refers to as “Deputy Coronado” and ten unnamed staff members of the sheriff’s department. Coronado is described as the deputy who conducted what Miller calls “an unlawful and unconstitutional search” of Miller’s car after he told officers at a parking lot checkpoint near the rally that he had firearms inside his vehicle. Miller alleges he intended to keep the firearms in the vehicle, not do any harm with them.

“The evidence will establish that the officers were trained to act in precisely the manner they acted and, thus, were trained to do precisely the wrong thing,” the suit states. “If the officers had been properly trained in the fundamental principles of search and seizure and safekeeping private information, this incident would not have happened.’

In a statement Wednesday, the sheriff's department's Media Information Bureau said the department acknowledged the lawsuit and "takes such a matters seriously," but could not comment on the specifics as the matter is pending litigation.

"We are committed to transparency and will cooperate fully with the legal process," the statement continued. "Our priority remains the safety and well-being of the community we serve. We appreciate your understanding as we address this matter."

Bianco himself did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Desert Sun.

Miller's lawsuit makes several claims, including failure to train, defamation, invasion of privacy and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Filed in U.S. District Court in Nevada, it seeks compensatory and punitive damages, the immediate termination of Coronado, a declaration from the court that the defendants violated his rights and a court order for the sheriff's department to implement new training, policies, accountability systems and hiring practices.

Two men both Trump supporters

Miller was placed in a patrol car for hours following the search of his vehicle and that was not allowed to relieve himself when he asked to do so, according to the complaint.

Miller was eventually brought to a sheriff's station in Thermal to be interviewed by Secret Service and FBI agents, but brought to an Indio jail about 25 minutes later, the lawsuit alleges, after the federal agents decided not to question him and left the sheriff's station.

"Even after being notified by both United States Secret Service and Federal Bureau of Investigation that they did not believe Miller was a threat and declined to interview him, Defendant Bianco, continued to make preposterous allegations against Miller, holding press conferences perpetuating his delusional and false narrative," the suit states.

Miller's lawsuit calls many of the accusations made by Bianco and the sheriff's department in a Sunday press conference and elsewhere "preposterous," including the contention that he was in possession of fake passports and a member of a "sovereign citizens group."

The suit appears to pit two ardent of supporters of Trump against each other. It states that Miller served as a Trump caucus captain during the 2024 Nevada primaries and is a registered Republican who is a member of the Central Committee of the Clark County Republican Party. That's Nevada's largest county, home to Las Vegas and more than 70% of the state's population.

Bianco endorsed Trump several months ago, saying it was time to "put a felon in the White House" during a controversial video he made while wearing his sheriff's uniform and posted to social media. He also spoke at Saturday's rally, saying the upcoming election was about "the fate of the free world and the choice between personal freedoms and socialism" and calling Trump "the one candidate for president who will keep the public safe and the only one who will protect the Constitution."

According to Miller's lawsuit, the two guns he had in his car were a Glock 19 handgun and a shotgun. He was booked into jail on suspicion of illegally carrying a firearm in public and possession of a large capacity magazine, both misdemeanors. He was not booked for conspiracy to commit murder or any similar crime. Bianco speculated during his Sunday press conference that his deputies had prevented Trump from being shot.

"If you're asking me right now, I probably did have deputies that prevented the third assassination attempt," he said during the press conference.

The suit, however, alleges that Bianco's statement was a lie because Bianco had been notified by the Secret Service and FBI that they did not view Miller as a threat.

"Instead of apologizing to Miller for the false accusations made against him, Defendant Bianco compounded Defendants' misconduct, perpetuated a boisterous and delusional narrative that has caused irreparable harm to Miller’s character and reputation," the suit reads. "Defendant Bianco’s acts of holding repeated press conferences perpetuating a false narrative against Miller continues to shock the conscience and exceed the bounds of decency."

Paul Albani-Burgio covers growth, development and business in the Coachella Valley. Follow him on Twitter at @albaniburgiop and email him at paul.albani-burgio@desertsun.com .

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Man arrested with guns near Trump rally sues sheriff, says he was falsely called a threat