SSO update—Change of assignment discussion

Dear SSO, 

Your SSO Board, Dan Edwards, Andrew Rodriguez, Alan Cleveland, Marika Patterson, and David Rapponotti, met yesterday with Assistant Sheriff Briggs, Assistant Sheriff Balicki, Assistant Sheriff Park, and Sheriff's Executive Aide Captain McCulloch.

Per California Government Code Section 69922(b)(1), the Department has stated a need to move SSOs out of Bailiff positions in the courtrooms. This does not preclude SSOs working other assignments in the Courts including Weapons Screening and Security, and does not prevent an SSO from entering a Courtroom in an emergency. We discussed various options regarding this issue. Once we hear responses from the Sheriff's Department, we will communicate the final decisions of the Sheriff to you. For now, we cannot discuss specifics without further clarification from the Department.

What we can share is that not everyone will be moving immediately. As Academies are completed, their plan is that a portion of SSOs will be moved into the jails. The Department is looking at the entire pool of Court Operations for potential moves. The process is expected to take between 12 and 14 months, with the first wave occurring in approximately five weeks. We have not seen any specific lists of who is under consideration and final decisions have not been made.

Again, final decisions on who will be moved, when each person will be moved, and what duties will be assigned have not been finalized. Most importantly, we have been assured that every current SSO will have a position. Nobody is being laid off. There has been a lot of misinformation on this issue. Please be patient. As soon as we have the final details, including the status of our recommendations, we will share the information with you.

In Solidarity,

Aaron Peardon
Senior Labor Relations Representative

Publication Date: March 12, 2021