This in from Sergeant Dan Daniels with the Explorer of Post 449: 

The Orange County Law Enforcement Explorer Advisor Association (OCLEEAA) sponsored the 2010 Winter Explorer Academy.  The event was held at the Boys Scouts Irvine Ranch Outdoor Education Center February 11 through February 15.

Ø  Carson Aprato

Ø  Jessica Arredondo

Ø  Katya Baker

Ø  Roger Carrasco

Ø  Celeste Casillas

Ø  Gabriella Chico

Ø  Michael Cotugno

Ø  Sarah Dear

Ø  Kory Demille

Ø  Brittany Douglass

Ø  Jacob Fleming

Ø  Matthew Fitch

Ø  Miles Gagnon

Ø  Reiber Gomez

Ø  Armando Gonzalez

Ø  Kevin Gordinier

Ø  Matthew Gray

Ø  Michael Kahn

Ø  Kellen Kramer

Ø  Kimberly Le

Ø  Scott Maris

Ø  Alex Mendoza

Ø  Jairo Moran

Ø  Erica Ontiveros

Ø  Matthew Overmeyer 

From Sheriff Sandra Hutchens:  

Moving in the Right Direction

The department restructuring I announced on February 5th became effective this morning. The fifteen individuals who accepted these interim promotions and the increase in responsibility without an increase in pay - and without a promise to maintain their interim position in the future, demonstrate the level of true leadership we have within the Orange County Sheriff's Department.

Because of leaders who are willing to pitch in for the good of the department, we can continue the progress, with even greater momentum. We have come a long way from the time I joined the department in June 2008. When I came to this department I found an organization of professional, dedicated personnel who had been neglected. The former Sheriff failed to keep this department in step with modern law enforcement practices and procedures. In particular, structures of accountability and risk management were never fully implemented to safeguard those who put their lives on the line.

We have adopted new standards of ethics, training, accountability and oversight and when I'm out speaking to the public, I hear that they are pleased with the direction our department has taken. Each and every one of you, by virtue of the excellent work you do every day have contributed to the trust and respect our residents have in the Orange County Sheriff's Department.

We are headed in the right direction, but we all know that challenges remain. We've already faced the impacts of the $28 million budget reduction for FY 2009-10. Due to continuing declines in Prop 172 revenue, we need to cut an additional $24 million the first six months of this year.

Beginning July 1st of this year, we will be faced with a $65 million shortfall in FY 2010-11. Overall, our goal remains the same: Reduce operational costs while minimally impacting front line public safety.

We will continue to do all we can to protect our personnel, increase accountability at all levels, and build and strengthen relationships throughout the county - all while ensuring the least impact on public safety.

We will get through these challenging times - but only because of the extraordinary sacrifices each and every one of you is making on a daily basis.

Thank you for your leadership and your support of this great department.

SANDRA HUTCHENS

Assistant Sheriff Mike James reassigned to Field Operations and Investigative Services

Commander Tim Board, Acting Assistant Sheriff, assigned to Professional Services Command. 

Commander Jay LeFlore, Acting Assistant Sheriff, assigned to Custody Operations and Court Services Command.

Commander Dave Wilson assigned to Custody Operations and Court Services Command.

Captain Mark Billings, Interim Commander, assigned to Field Operations and Investigative Services Command.

Captain Librado Trujillo, Interim Commander, assigned to Professional Services Commmand. 

Seven Lieutenants were given interim promotion to Captain. [more]

Captain Don Barnes, South Operations Division 

Captain Toni Bland, Training 

Captain Tom Gallivan, North Operations Division

Captain Bill Griffin, Investigations Division

Captain Mike Hiller, Court Services 

Captain Steve Kea, S.A.F.E. Division

Captain Mike Krueger, Musick Correctional Facility  

Captain Linda Solorza, Professional Standards Division

The following Lieutenants will have new assignments or have been placed in new Commands:

Lieutenant Paul Fuzzard, Field Operations Command  

Lieutenant Dottie Ronan, Sheriff's Executive Aide

Lieutenant Tom Slayton, Emergency Communications Bureau

Lieutenant Gary Smith, North Operations Division

Lieutenant Michael Toledo, S.A.F.E. Bureau

Lieutenant Charles Wilmot, South Patrol

Lieutenant Robert Wren, North Patrol

Sheriff Magazine, a publication of the National Sheriff's Association, has this article in the current edition.

In November of 1959, then Orange County, California Sheriff James A. Musick was recruiting young men with an interest in law enforcement to become Deputies.

“We found that other special interest Explorer Posts were taking our best young men from our high schools,” Sheriff Musick said in a newspaper article at the time. High schools were graduating young men at age 18 and the state would not allow them to become law enforcement officers until they were 21. In the interim, many young men who may have thought about a law enforcement career embarked on other careers where age was not a factor.

“We decided, rather than take what was left over after other fields of endeavor took the best, that we should start training young men of high school age now for a career in law enforcement,” Sheriff Musick said in the article.

Thus, the first law Enforcement Exploring Post in the nation was established.

To read the entire article, click: SH10_1_Daniels.pdf (1.73 mb)

Twelve Orange County Sheriff's Explorers competed in the 2010 Chandler Law Enforcement Explorer Tactical Competition which took place in Chandler Arizona on January 15 - 17.

Post Coordinator Sergeant Dan Daniels (Reserve Bureau) and Post Advisors Deputy Courtney Todoroff (Theo Lacy Division), and Deputy Gregg Surrell (Lamoreaux Justice Center) accompanied the Explorers.

All of the Explorers' registration fees and lodging were paid with private donations or funds raised by Explorers working paid events.

The Sheriff's team competed against over 500 explorers from Explorer Posts throughout the nation.

Due to the excellent tactical training they received from S.W.A.T. Deputies Mike Perez and Shane Millhollan,  Explorer Post 449 took a first place trophy in Tactical Scouting, a third place trophy in the Incident Command System and a fourth place trophy in the Multi Level Assault.  

Sgt. Robert Gunzel received a letter from Jennifer Mansoor of Scout Pack #113, commending Deputy Sean Howell. The letter read: "I just wanted to send a quick note of thanks to the department for allowing Deputy Howell and Janssen to come and talk with my cub scouts. Deputy Howell was very personable, interesting, professional and worked well with the kids and their many questions. Of course, K-9 Janssen was the star and did very well too! Further, Deputy Howell went above and beyond a canine demonstration by explaining about crime prevention, crime detection and evidence gathering, and ways for citizens to safely assist law enforcement. The kids and adults, alike, loved it. Both Deputy Howell and Janssen represented your department very well. Great job to them both!"

Deputy Kevin Mitchell of the Intake Release Center Classification Unit was commended by Officer Dave Leber of the La Habra Police Department. Officer Leber arrested a subject in a gang area where shots were fired, possibly at an officer. During the interview process, the subject denied being a gang member, but displayed tattoos indicative of being a gang member. They were unable to verify the tattoos due to their computer being down. Officer Leber called the IRC and spoke to Deputy Mitchell and gave him the information he had at the time. Deputy Mitchell was able to verify the subject's full name, the gang he belonged to, his moniker and past criminal history. The subject ultimately admitted to lying to officers. Officer Leber wrote: "I personally know how busy Friday nights can be, particularly for classification deputies, and for Deputy Mitchell to take time to assist an outside agency in a criminal investigation, he should be commended."

Sheriff Hutchens recently received a letter of commendation from Julie Stedman and Peter Kleist of Orange County Probation. The letter read, in part: "We want to commend Special Officer Cliff Barnard for his ongoing excellent assistance at the Westminster Probation Department. The Westminster Probation Department sees approximately 800 adult probationers every Tuesday. Each probation officer can see up to 40 high risk probationers during a day. During this time many arrests are done and often the CAT team is called due to crisis with our mentally ill offenders. Most recently, Officer Barnard coordinated and assisted Anaheim Police Department in the safe and successful apprehension of a 187PC suspect. Officer Barnard is always willing to assist and standby by when probationers become difficult or belligerent. Often, he diffuses situations before they become problematic. He maintains order in a very crowded and often hostile lobby. He works cohesively with the deputies to insure the safety of everyone in this building. Officer Barnard truly embodies the epitome of an effective, collaborative relationship between the Sheriff's Department and the Probation Department, his assistance is consistently above and beyond reproach. Please accept our sincere thanks for the excellent performance of your highly trained staff. We look forward to the ability to continue to work with this great officer."

Lieutenant Paul Fuzzard, Reserve Bureau Commander, received a letter from Bill Sandoval, Parks and Recreation Supervisor for the city of Stanton. Mr. Sandoval wrote to commend Orange County Sheriff's Explorer Post #449 for their assistance with the Stanton's Christmas in the City event on December 5, 2009. Mr. Sandoval wrote: "The visual impact of the explorers assisting the public with parking and security added to this event. The members of your group demonstrated a professional attitude and courtesy before, during and after the festivities. Take pride knowing that your contribution was an integral part of the total team effort in providing the Stanton community with quality events." The following members of Post # 449 assisted in the event: Explorers: Frank Salgado, Eddie Pena, Christina Colima, Kyle Springer, Omar Soriano, Ricardo Lopez, Jordan Tornow, Eddie Mancilla, Adriana Chavez-Garcia, Joshua Cherney, Daniel Jimenez, Nicolas Dorantes, Julio Guillen, Samuel Ayala and Oscar Serrano. Advisors: Deputies Anton Pereyra and Maria Mendoza.

Captain Mark Billings received a letter from two Rossmoor residents who wrote, "This letter is written to send a big 'Thank You' to the many members of the Orange County Sheriff's Department that answered our calls. My Husband and I recently called on the OCSD several times to handle an ongoing civil dispute with an unruly lodger, which has finally been resolved. We are extremely thankful for the high level of professional service we received. Each Deputy was well prompted and briefed on the background of our situation. It was a relief for us not to have to repeat our story each time as if we were a number. In addition, our friend who is a LAPD officer was with us on multiple occasions as a witness to our situation. He commented that the response time was outstanding and that the follow-through and mannerisms of the deputies was excellent. Each officer handled our calls with the utmost care and empathy while remaining objective and unbiased. The level of service was local, having a strong community feel. We felt we were visited by the neighborhood deputy that cared for  the local citizens. Again, we are truly thankful to the many deputies that helped us. The "perp" in this case ruined our Thanksgiving, but the OCSD contributed to saving our Christmas." The following Deputies have responded to the couple's residence in the past two months reference this incident: Deputy Aaron Brady, Deputy Ali Pahlavan, Deputy Bill McKeague, Deputy Catherine Geary, Deputy Randy Taylor, Deputy Ryan Pierce, Deputy Scott Steinle, and Deputy Tim Kozma.

Sworn personnel and professional staff accomplished a lot in 2009, despite the unprecedented challenge of a budget-tightening that caused the first employee layoff in the Department in recent memory. 

Here are some of the highlights of 2009, as reported on the Department Blog:

1.       Deputies continued to make life tough for criminals; after all that is one of our core services. Here are a few examples of excellent police work: 

  This Week's Score: Deputies 2, Bank Robbers 0.

Quick Response to Home Invasion Robbery Nets 4 Suspects in San Juan Capistrano.

Motorcycle Deputy Arrests Bank Robbery Suspect.

2.       For criminals who managed a quick getaway, they then had to face top investigators and the best crime lab in the country and, for graffiti vandals, the innovative TAGRS program that won national recognition. Coroner’s investigators are now being trained on a life-like mannequin: 

Department's Crime Lab Breaks Its Record on DNA Hits in 1-Day.

DNA Lab Hits Again and Again and Again.

DNA Lab Honored by National Association of Counties.

TAGRS and DNA Case Management Programs Recognized.

TAGRS is Embraced by Costa Mesa Police Department.

Called Dummy by Some, Manny Helps Train Coroner's Investigators.   

3.       The Department is going from good to great and the process entails a few innovations.  Here are some of the biggest:

  The new S.A.F.E. Division  (later reduced to the S.A.F.E. Bureau due to budgetary constraints.)

Sheriff Hutchens Introduces Department's Mobile Field Force.

New Era, Big Savings.

Testing Starts for First Class of Correctional Services Assistants.

Classes for Department's First Correctional Services Assistants.

500 Apply in Latest Recruitment for Correctional Services Assistants. 

Class 1R Graduation Heralds a New Era of Training at Sheriff's Academy. 

4.       Heroism is part of the job in the Department.  Sometimes it comes with the training and sometimes it comes from a person who just has a lot of heart:   [more]

Sheriff's Explorer Saves Woman from Burning Building.

Baby Boy Born in the Central Women’s Jail. 

Department Honors 42 for Valor, Courage, Lifesaving and Meritorious Action.

Air and Ground Efforts Coordinated to Rescue Man Lost in Remote Canyon.  

5.         The County Budget crisis, coupled with an unexpected decline in the inmate population, caused some major cutbacks and changes:

 Supervisors Take Straw Vote to Impose "Draconian" Cuts in Public Safety Services.

Sheriff Hutchens Seeks Support to Cushion Public Safety Cuts.

Tents Housing Inmates are Vacated in Economy Move.

Sheriff Hutchens to the Department: Women's Jail Must Be Closed.

6.       One Division in the Department celebrated three quarters of a century of serving the public:

Presentations at Commemoration of 75th Anniversary of Communications and Technology Division.

Orange County Communications Turns 75.

7.       And new forms of communication were begun in 2009:

Sheriff Hutchens Answers Questions in Online Town Hall with Orange County Register.  

8.       For some Department members it was a year when they received national recognition for their athletic achievements:

SSO Tanya Reed Sets Three World Power Lifting Records.

Deputy Shane Ellis.

9.       The Department claimed national attention, too:

Sheriff's Department Helped Protect President Obama, Town Hall Participants.

10.    And we all took a moment to recall those we lost:

Mission To Honor Fallen Oakland Police Officers Accomplished.

Sheriff Hutchens Orders Black Bands Worn to Honor Two Fallen Firefighters.

Orange County Sheriff's Detail Will Honor Four Fallen Officers.

11.   The Jails continued to impress all of those who inspected:

Grand Jury Finds OC Jails are Well Run and in Good Overall Condition.

Statistics Show OC Jail Death Rate Lowest of 30 Largest Jurisdictions.

Chinese Delegation Tours IRC. 

12.   For pure fun, who can beat this episode, which drew international press attention:

 Ahoy: Where'd You Learn to Steer a Fireboat?  

It was also a year that saw a Swine Flu Pandemic cause a quarantine in the jail (Swine Flu Quarantine at Men's Central Jail Lifted after Six Days) and cause the death of Reserve Sergeant Kendall M. Sanders Jr., Helped Those in Need.  

Some of the honors for 2009 included:

Deputy Lance Christensen is California's School Resource Officer of the Year and the Board of Supervisors Honors Lieutenant Mullen - Command College Graduate.

SSO Jim Wallace is Bailiff of the Year and Traffic Safety Programs Coordinator Will Funk Honored.

And finally  Aviation Support Unit Welcomes Three New Fliers.

The Orange County Sheriff's Department Women’s Team captured 1st place in the 5K Women’s Law Enforcement Division in the 10th Annual Lupus Race for Life run on October 4 at LaMirada Regional Park.

They were well represented by, Denise Herstch, Susie Briggs, Jacquelyn Martinez, Jesicka Contreras and Susan Edwards.  Denise Herstch placed 1st and Susie Briggs placed 2nd in the Law Enforcement Individual 5K competition. [more]

The OCSD Men’s Team took home 2nd place in the 5K Men’s Law Enforcement Division.  They were led by Chuck Foote Jr., Chuck Foote Sr. and Craig Essex. Chuck Foote Jr. took 2nd place overall in the Law Enforcement 5K Division.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Department has been a strong advocate for Lupus International for the past ten years and continues to support the “Lupus Race for Life”.  The “Lupus Race for Life” is supported by many of our regional law enforcement stakeholders and, as a collected group, we provide logistical and volunteer support to make this event a continued success.

This year, the Reserve Bureau, along with Sheriff Explorer Post # 449, provided over 100 volunteer hours of service to Lupus International, which included the following duties; loading of supplies, food, chairs, tables, 1K and 5K course set-up, course ambassadors, water stations and assisting the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department with many other tasks. 

Thank you all for a job well done.

This year’s event attracted a tremendous amount of runner participation from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.  Class #191 of the Orange County Sheriff’s Regional Training Academy won the Academy competition by demonstrating a high level of motivation. 

The event drew over 2,900 participants.

Lupus International Executive Director, Christina Kelly, expressed her sincere appreciation to all the Sheriff volunteers and runners for their unwavering support of Lupus International and the continued success of this event. 

Sheriff's Department sponsored Law Enforcment Explorer Post 449 was honored on Friday with the William H. Spurgeon III Award. Also honored was Deputy Gregg Surrell, as 2009 Advisor of the Year and Sheriff's Explorer Oscar Gutierrez with a Meritorious Action Award. Sheriff's Explorers Adam Hack, Amanda McCarthy, Lex Ogan and Frank Salgado were honored at the Spurgeon ceremony with Young American Awards.

To view information on Post 449 click: history b Scan008.pdf (78.35 kb) and history b 2 Scan001.pdf (64.77 kb)

To view information on Explorers Hack and McCarthy click: hack and mccarthy Scan007.pdf (133.35 kb)

To view information on Explorers  click: ogan and salgado Scan006.pdf (92.00 kb)

To view information on Explorer Oscar Gutierrez click: gutierrez Scan003.pdf (89.67 kb)

To view information on Deputy Gregg Surrell click: advisor Scan005.pdf (85.96 kb)

To view a Board of Supervisors Resolution honoring Explorer Post 449 click: 50th_Anniversary_of_Explorer_Post449.pdf (26.17 kb)

To see the rest of the pictures click: [more]

Explorer Frank Salgado

Explorer Adam Hack

Explorer Lex Ogan

Exporer Oscar Gutierrez