Husband Accused in Prostitute Slayings : Deputy’s Wife Claims Harassment by Police

The wife of Rickey Ross, the L.A. County sheriff’s deputy accused of murdering three South-Central prostitutes, complained Monday that investigators have been conducting a campaign of harassment against the family.

Sylvia Ross also said she believes that her husband is innocent.

In a telephone interview with The Times, she said that officers repeatedly have staked out the Ross home, shining flashlights in her face when she returned at night from visiting her husband at the Los Angeles County Jail. Other officers, she said, have followed a pattern of telephone harassment, calling the house on numerous occasions to try to speak to her son--even after being told he did not want to talk to them.

On Friday, she said, LAPD officers threatened to beat her 21-year-old son, Tony, unless he posed for a photograph while officers searched their Rialto home. Tony Ross could be a witness, but is not considered a suspect in the case, said Deputy Dist. Atty. Bill Hodgman, who is prosecuting Ross.

“They’ve been watching us and harassing us ever since this case has been going on,” Sylvia Ross said. “We don’t know why. We haven’t done anything. . . . Why are they still harassing my family? Give us a break here, this is America.”

The LAPD’s chief spokesman, Cmdr. William Booth, denied the accusations and said officers had served a search warrant on the Ross’ San Bernardino County home Friday without incident.

He said the search turned up eight firearms that Ross had confiscated in the line of duty, but failed to properly turn in to the department.

Ross was arrested on Feb. 23 when his county car was stopped by officers on a South-Central street. The 40-year-old deputy, a narcotics investigator who had 18 years with the department, allegedly had been smoking cocaine in the company of a prostitute when detained.

Two guns were found in the trunk of Ross’ car. Police ballistics experts said they tied one of the weapons to the murders of three prostitutes. The second gun was not connected to any crimes, officials said. A preliminary hearing is scheduled April 28 for Ross.

Leave of Absence

Since the arrest, Sylvia Ross said, she has taken a leave of absence from her job as an airline flight attendant and spends most of her time working in the yard of the couple’s home and visiting Ross in jail.

“My husband is not guilty,” she said. “He will be proven not guilty. I stand behind him 100%, and I love him dearly. My husband is a good person. My husband didn’t do these things.”

Of the allegation of additional guns found at the house Friday, she said: “It’s not true. The truth will come out later.”

Sylvia Ross said officers have been trying to interview her son and her brother, whom she declined to name. Family lawyers have advised both men that they do not need to answer investigators’ questions.

About 9 a.m. Friday, LAPD officers, Los Angeles sheriff’s deputies and a deputy from the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department arrived at the Ross home with a search warrant for guns, Sylvia Ross said.

While most of the officers were upstairs, she said she was ordered to remain downstairs with a deputy. A short time later, her son came down and was confronted by two LAPD officers, according to both Sylvia and Tony Ross.

Request Refused, He Says

Tony Ross said one of the officers wanted to question him. Because family lawyers had said he did not have to answer police questions, Ross said he refused.

The officer, whose full name is unknown, replied ‘ “Fine, we’re going to take a picture of you,’ ” Ross said. Another officer then “grabbed me by my wrist (and said) ‘We can either make this easy or make this hard. I could beat your ass or (you can) be still and I’ll take the picture.’ ”

Ross said he allowed the picture to be taken because he feared the officer would beat him.

According to police spokesman Booth, “While we were there, we did photograph a young man who was there, but (there were) no beatings, no threats of beatings, no confrontation.”

However, Booth refused to say why investigators wanted to take the picture.

Asked about Sylvia Ross’ accusations about harassment, Booth said: “Step by step, I can’t re-create every word, every conversation. If Mrs. Ross has made a complaint to anyone, I’m not aware of it. I think a lot of us have some feeling for the amount of stress that Mrs. Ross must be feeling right now. I don’t want to hammer on her at all.”