Photo: Curry James Maddox
April 30, 2020 – Ventura County – “Living in a van down by the river” may have a comedic association for fans of late comedian Chris Farley, but when law enforcement serves a search warrant on suspected parole violators, they tend to have a poorly developed sense of humor.
According to Ventura County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Captain Jose Rivera, it was the routinely humorless work of Ventura County Sheriff’s Department deputies assigned to the Ojai Valley Police Department Patrol Services unit that lead to the mid-morning arrest of 41-year-old Curry James Maddox on April 24th.
While “patrolling” public property under a State Highway 33 overpass, deputies made contact with Maddox “who was living out of his mobile trailer on the side of the road.”
Upon making contact with Maddox, deputies quickly learned that Maddox was on active parole status as a convicted kidnapper, with terms of his conditional release providing for an impromptu search of his person, vehicle, and residence.
Enforcing those terms, deputies discovered Maddox was in possession of “a loaded sawed-off shotgun, a small amount of methamphetamine, two pounds of marijuana, and numerous used syringes.”
Any one of those items found in his possession would have been enough to put him in handcuffs, and Maddos was summarily transported to Ventura County Jail, where he was booked on “numerous firearm and drug-related charges” with his bail set at $60,000 plus an additional $20,000 for violation of his parole terms.
Photo: Courtesy Ventura County Jail Booking
