Candidate for
Sheriff/Coroner/Public Administrator; County of Monterey

OFFICE OF EMERGENCY SERVICES AND COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS

The office of the Sheriff derives its authority from applicable sections of the government code. As such the Sheriff is not only the top law enforcement official in the county but is also responsible for directing and coordinating emergency operations to include mutual aid and search and rescue. Presently the County Office of Emergency Services reports to the office of ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCE POLICY (formerly IGA) which is not an operational field component of county government. Past staff studies undertaken by the Sheriff's Department have demonstrated the purpose and need for better coordinting between agencies in order to simplify, streamline and modernize emergency operations. An excellent example of how this system works is Alameda County where the Sheriff's department oversees all emergency operations. Not only will this benefit the public through better planning but it will also be a cost saving measure, which will eliminate duplication of efforts between the Sheriff's Department, OES, and County Communications.

DOMESTIC TERRORISM

The Salinas Valley is rich with its agricultural base and ripe as a potential terrorist target. The "salad bowl" of the country could easily become contaminated by terrorists bent on poisoning our food through chemical or biological means. Similarly, the Monterey Peninsula with its popular special events, tourist attractions, and recreational facilities is now a world class destination which could easily draw a terrorist attack. The FBI feels that it is not of matter of "if" but rather "when" the next major terrorist attack will hit the Continental United States. We are sitting ducks and we have done nothing to prepare. However, the good news is the department has taken steps to work towards obtaining a federal grant which would provide our personnel and Hazmat teams in Monterey County with limited funding to provide equipment for responding to chemical, biological or nuclear threats. The grant would also be the genesis for creating a threat assessment of potential terrorist targets within Monterey County. We need to establish a Domestic Terrorism unit.

GANGS

Gangs will continue to be a problem for Law Enforcement. Presently we do not have a gang unit. The team that was originally assigned to gang suppression (one sergeant and three deputies) was disbanded and absorbed into the narcotics division. We have no gang unit and the database the unit maintained has been abandoned. Without a gang unit we have no tool to deal with gang issues nor do we have the capability to assist cities requesting assistance in this area. According to the 1999 Telus/Diganos report there are an estimated 2300 gang members in the city of Salinas alone and another 1000 in the rest of the county. With population trends continuing to rise we can only expect that these figures will continue to rise. There must be a renewed commitment to deal with this important public safety issue. I am proposing a gang unit of sixteen deputies, two sergeants and a Lieutenant that will take back the overlooked task of gang suppression. Such a unit, organized similar to the Salinas Police model, would serve as a full time Violent Crimes Unit (VCU) and SWAT Team capable of responding 24 hours a day seven days a week. The unit would take on the task of supporting countywide municipal suppression efforts while employing bold new strategies such as intensified sweeps, injunctions, and gang association warrants. Furthermore, the department must renew its commitment to the Cal-Gang data base network which has inexplicably been abandoned despite San Jose Police department's offer to maintain it and provide free training.

DRUGS

This department must develop a workable drug enforcement strategy to keep pace with the fast flow of narcotics in the county while keeping tune with state and federal efforts. Increasingly our involvement and suppression efforts will be within the cities. We must be prepared to simultaneously enhance local police efforts while managing larger scale countywide operations.

RURAL CRIMES

We presently have one deputy assigned as a co-lateral assignment to rural crimes. This is not acceptable. The Salinas Valley, ripe with its agricultural and farming base, represents a major economic force vital to the County's interests. The Sheriff's Department must take the offensive in preparing for and dealing with crimes such as chemical thefts, vandalism, and rustling. We need to create a dedicated Rural Crimes Unit.

JAIL OVERPOPULATION

As we continue to deal with an ever-increasing population base we must be prepared to expect overcrowding in the jail. Not only is this an unhealthy situation but a potentially explosive one for both inmates and staff. As conditions worsen we should expect overcrowding to cause increased incidents of violence. Already we are experiencing sporadic gang violence within the confines of the facility due to overcrowding. Since Salinas is still the headquarters for the Salinas regiment of the Nuestra Familia there is every reason to expect that the NF will continue to be a driving and dominating force within our jail population. The staff recommendations to build two additional housing units are not just a nice thing to have they are absolutely necessary. Furthermore, if we do not plan for overcrowding now we could face court ordered releases as conditions worsen. This could become a potentially dangerous public safety issue.

TRAINING

Training will continue to be a major element of our operation. From Field Training to Community Policing and Ethics our needs will continue to grow. In order to limit liability and provide the best quality service our deputies must have the best training we can provide. The department has made great strides to provide training in our public safety building by bringing in qualified Instructors with excellent programs. This must continue to expand. The department must take the lead as a regional training center for all county law enforcement by providing fresh, innovative, up to date classes that are challenging, stimulating and in tune with today's needs.

BRIDGING THE GAP

With Monterey County's large Latino population this office must strive to effect better relationships with the Latino community if we are to truly provide quality public service to everybody. This means creating outreach programs to educate, meet, and deal with issues of concern with this segment of our population. Our senior staff should be meeting frequently with representatives of such organizations as the UFW, LULAC, ACLU, and the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce to address issues of interest and concern to the Latino community. We need to bridge the gap by becoming pro-active and going more than half way if we as an institution are going to gain the respect and trust of the Latino community. The creation of such a working body to meet on a regular basis, which would include the above listed components, would serve as a paragon to other counties and communities. It would also mean the department would be in a position to receive additional future federal grant monies to further the goals of such a working group. However, it is important that our representative be a senior staff official capable of making policy decisions on behalf of the Sheriff giving this group the importance it deserves.