A federal lawsuit against San Diego County filed by the family of a 43-year-old woman who was found half-submerged in a Lemon Grove drainage ditch and later died, will be allowed to move forward.
The judge agreed that the family has shown enough evidence in its claims that county first responders refused to provide care for Irma Espinoza when a neighbor called 911 to report seeing her in the ditch three days prior to her getting treatment.According to the family’s December 2025 lawsuit, Lemon Grove resident Richard Quinones saw Espinoza on July 27, 2025, near his home. At the time, Espinoza was “neatly dressed,” and the two had a brief conversation about the heat.“Ms. Espinoza was fanning her face with her hand, saying, ‘It’s hot, it’s hot,’ and Mr.Quinones gave her two water bottles,” said the lawsuit.Two days later, Quinones was walking his dogs when he saw Espinoza sitting in the dirt with her legs partially submerged in the drainage ditch. Quinones, according to the family’s lawsuit, asked if she wanted him to call for help. She told him yes. Quinones called 911 just after 8:35 a.m. that morning. When a female deputy arrived on the scene, Quinones said he saw the deputy’s patrol cruiser arrive and then suddenly leave, without checking on Espinoza. Quinones called 911 again. As he was on the phone with dispatch, the lawsuit alleges Quinones received another call from the deputy who had left earlier. The deputy, according to the federal complaint, told Quinones that Espinoza was a “transient.” The Lemon Grove man said felt intimidated and assumed someone would come check on Espinoza. Quinones said he did not see Espinoza for two days. Then, according to the lawsuit, another neighbor saw a man emerge from the area near the ditch, “acting suspiciously.”On August 1, 2025, Quinones was back walking his dogs when he heard someone moaning from the edge of the drainage pond. He checked and saw a woman, later identified as Espinoza, half-dressed, covered in ants and nearly fully submerged.“When the first responders pulled her out at about 7:07 a.m., Ms. Espinoza had agonal breathing and heavy ant activity over the entirety of her body,” attorneys stated in the court documents.Espinoza’s body was stiff, and she was suffering from hypothermia. At the hospital, doctors found numerous contusions and abrasions on her body. Espinoza died at the hospital. The medical examiner determined the cause of death was from heavy alcohol use, cirrhosis and pancreatitis. In their lawsuit, the family contends that the medical examiner failed to look at any physical injuries or whether or not Espinoza was sexually assaulted. Once the family filed their wrongful death lawsuit alleging that deputies and others violated Espinoza’s rights by not conducting a physical check after Quinones’s first 911 call, the county asked the court to throw it out, arguing that neither the county nor the deputies were at fault for her death.
In a written ruling issued Thursday, U.S. District Judge Gonzalo Curiel rejected most of those arguments.
Curiel found that the deputy may have “exposed Ms. Espinoza to a situation that was more dangerous than the one she found her in.” The judge also declined to dismiss causes of action against three of the deputy’s supervisors, who are accused of knowing the deputy failed to return to the scene and had dissuaded Quinones from assisting.In a statement to Times of San Diego, the family’s attorney, Julia Yoo, said Espinoza and her family deserved more.“Irma Espinoza was a daughter, a sister, and a mom, not a ‘transient’ deputies can discard in a ditch. Irma’s family is grateful for the opportunity to uncover the truth of what happened and to ensure all people are treated with dignity and fairness by law enforcement and the Medical Examiner.”
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