Rift Deepens Between O.C. Sheriff, Judges

Deepening a rift in a law enforcement turf battle, Orange County Sheriff Brad Gates on Wednesday lashed out at county judges who dismissed a proposal to place courtroom security under his authority.

Gates estimates the county could save as much as $19 million over five years if he took control of the functions of the court’s marshals. Judges, however, contend that there would be no cost savings and have even questioned the efficiency of Gates’ own department.

In a harshly worded letter to county Chief Executive Officer William J. Popejoy, Gates expressed disgust and disappointment that the judges were rejecting the proposal even before it had been fully analyzed.

“Apparently, this is a case that (the judges) don’t want to go to the jury,” Gates wrote to Popejoy, who had asked the sheriff and other officials to examine merging the county’s two law enforcement agencies.

Gates’ letter, which was dated April 25 but released Wednesday, angered court officials and seemed to escalate the friction between Gates and Orange County Marshal Michael S. Carona over who should provide security at the county’s courthouses.

“I think the letter is a classic example of why the court would not feel comfortable with allowing the sheriff to handle the responsibilities of security and court services,” said Superior Court Presiding Judge James L. Smith.

Relations between Gates and some of the county’s judges have been strained over the years because of the jail overcrowding problem. The sheriff is under federal court order to alleviate the problem and has had to release thousands of inmates early, to the frustration of local judges.

Sheriff’s officials said Gates wrote to Popejoy because he wanted to respond to a letter sent last week from judges to the CEO rejecting the merger proposal as unworkable. In their correspondence, the presiding judges of the Superior and Municipal courts predicted that no savings would result from merging the two departments and accused Gates of failing to effectively manage his budget.

“I seriously question why learned judges who deal with facts and evidence on a daily basis failed to understand the complexities of the budgeting process,” Gates wrote in his letter. “It’s a disappointment for all of us who expected more from people who deal with complex legal issues on a daily basis.”

Carona was out of the office and unavailable for comment Wednesday.

Capt. Don Spears, a spokesman for the marshal’s office, said he had not seen Gates’ letter, but was dubious of the savings Gates said he could achieve.

“It came as a surprise to us when Popejoy said he was going to restudy the issue,” Spears said. “We don’t think you’re going see any savings.”

The Board of Supervisors merged some sheriff’s functions into the Marshal’s Department in 1984 to eliminate the duplication of services. County officials said the action saved more than $1 million.

Currently, Carona supervises 460 employees and manages a budget of $30 million. Gates employs about 2,400 workers, including about 1,360 sworn deputies, and controls a budget of $180 million.

Gates disputed that the board’s action in 1984 created large savings. But he said that even if it did, that should not prohibit the county from re-evaluating the issue to see if any larger savings could be made. He noted that officials in 48 other counties in the state put marshal functions under the sheriff’s jurisdiction.

“Many things have changed during those intervening 10 years, most notably the bankruptcy, which demands we look at how we provide service,” Gates stated in his letter. “Where the economies of scale result in significant savings, I believe all elected and appointed people in this county owe it to the taxpayers to work diligently toward the realization of those savings.”

Gates added that just because the marshal and his staff “have done a good job doesn’t preclude them from cooperating in the development of a plan which may help them to do a better job at reducing costs in the future.”

Popejoy could not be reached for comment Wednesday. But he has repeatedly said in the past that he wants all cost-saving proposals examined for their potential worth in recovery from the bankruptcy. In addition to the merger of Sheriff’s and Marshal’s departments, he is also looking at consolidating the Environmental Management Agency with Integrated Waste Management.

Board of Supervisors Chairman Gaddi H. Vasquez and Supervisor Marian Bergeson said they believe the marshal operates a financially tight department, but they favor studying the cost ramifications of a merger.

“We should leave no stone unturned,” Vasquez said.

Bergeson acknowledged that Gates’ proposal was controversial, but said everybody involved should keep an open mind.

“I think everybody has to be objective in this, whether it’s the sheriff, the marshal or the judges,” Bergeson said.

Even though Gates predicted a merger could save millions of dollars, his letter to Popejoy did not outline where those savings would be found. He admitted, however, that his estimate was only a preliminary figure based on a “unilateral” study within his department. He did not seek information directly from the Marshal’s Department, he said.

Assistant Sheriff Dennis LaDucer said the majority of savings would come from privatizing functions of the marshal’s office, such as serving civil court documents and eliminating staff positions.

But one high-level court official, who asked to remain anonymous, said Gates’ projected savings were “a pipe dream.”

“There’s no way he can do that,” the official said. “Such cuts would be Draconian.”

Superior Court Judge Robert B. Hutson, who chairs the Joint Marshal’s Personnel Committee, could not be reached for comment. But in the April 14 letter that he and the other judges sent to Popejoy, he not only accused Gates of ineffective budget management but also criticized the Sheriff’s Department for being administratively top-heavy.

Gates disputed that allegation in his five-page response, which included another 10 pages of attachments, charts and graphics. In fact, he claimed his manager-to-staff ratio was lower than Carona’s.

Gates’ letter also struck a personal tone, accusing Hutson of bias against the Sheriff’s Department. Without elaborating, Gates said his problem with Hutson “centered” on a Sheriff’s Department case over which the judge once presided.

Finally, Gates indicated that he was “angry” with the judges for including an attachment with their letter to Popejoy containing the Social Security numbers of many sheriff’s personnel. The information was included as part a review of the staffing levels between the two departments. He said his employees “are very upset” that personal information was released.

“They work very hard under very difficult circumstances and they are constantly mindful of the need to protect their families,” Gates wrote.

* SHARING COSTS: County may bill for some law enforcement services. A20