Today the Coalition of L.A. County Probation Unions released the following press release to the news media in response to the L.A. Times article attacking one of our own – without even attempting to reach out to any of our labor organizations:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Thursday, June 30, 2
As El Monte Police Officers Santana and Paredes are laid to rest…
L.A. County Probation Officers, Supervisors, and Managers Demand Reforms to Field Services
LOS ANGELES, CA - On June 29, 2022, the Los Angeles Times reported that the killer of two El Monte Police Officers had not been seen “in person” by his Probation Officer in “more than six months.” As the investigation into these senseless murders continues, the unions representing more than 4,000 dedicated rank and file probation and detention services officers, supervising probation officers, and management staff in the L.A. County Probation Department consider this to be a wake up call for the Board of Supervisors to prioritize public safety over the so-called “reforms” that may well have contributed to this catastrophe.
Specifically, as Probation professionals we urge the Board of Supervisors to immediately authorize the Chief Probation Officer to make the following policy and staffing changes:
Reinstate and adequately staff the highly-specialized gang unit to facilitate collaboration with local law enforcement, while continuing to allow County social services and mental health – in partnership with community and faith-based agencies focused on restorative justice – to rehabilitate these high-risk probationers;
Rescind the policy to do phone check ins for high-risk probationers, which was instituted during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic;
Expedite the bench warrant process for high-risk offenders on the gang unit caseload; and
End the part time reassignment of field officers to the County’s Juvenile Halls to make up for short staffing of Detention Services Officers (DSOs) due to the Board’s ill-advised “hiring freeze.”
“We mourn the deaths of El Monte Officers Santana and Paredes, whom some of our members worked with day in and day out,” said Hans Liang, President of the L.A. County Probation Officers Union, AFSCME Local 685. “We urge the Board of Supervisors to take a hard look at not just how this happened, but at how the Board of Supervisors’ changes to the Department in recent years has degraded our ability to adequately monitor high-risk offenders on our caseloads and keep the public and our first responders safe.”
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The three labor organizations in the Coalition of Los Angeles County Probation Unions collectively represent more than 4,000 dedicated rank and file probation and detention services officers, supervising probation officers, and management staff in the L.A. County Probation Department:
Los Angeles County Probation Deputy Probation Officers’ Union, Local 685 – AFSCME; Hans Liang, President
Los Angeles County Probation Professional Managers Assoc., Local 1967 – AFSCME; Deborah Lares, President
Los Angeles County Supervising Probation Officers’ Union, BU 702 – SEIU Local 721 Joint Council; Jim Schoengarth, President
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