Plan - Tina Nieto for Sheriff

Focus the office to prioritize consistency, fairness, and procedural justice to build a foundation of trust and legitimacy among our communities. Doing so can open the door to community-wide conversations about policing standards, transparency and inclusiveness, race relations, and social equity, so we can work toward the mission of better serving all communities in our county.
Bring a collaborative spirit to the Sheriff’s Office. Improve communication across all jurisdictions within the county, including local police, social services, health providers, mental health professionals, and homeless services professionals. The organizations Tina has led have been widely praised for demonstrating “best practices” in collaboration and communication.
Improve the relationship between the Board of Supervisors and the Sheriff’s Office. Tina will be a Sheriff who regularly attends Board of Supervisors meetings and works collaboratively and effectively with all Supervisors, even when they disagree.

Establish clear base metrics to bring the Sheriff’s Office in compliance with the Hernandez Settlement Agreement it has been under since 2015, due to poor health, safety, and mental health conditions in the County jail. Every year the Sheriff fails to make the changes mandated by this court order, it costs taxpayers millions of dollars.
Establish a Transformational Change Program like the one Tina implemented in the City of Marina to address staff morale and wellness challenges at the Sheriff’s department.
Conduct an audit of current recruitment and training processes to ensure the Department is hiring recruits who are reflective of our diverse community so the Sheriff’s Office can better connect with underrepresented groups in our community.

Establish an “accountability deputy” in designated areas in the county, responsible for local quality of life issues.
Improve response times by placing more deputies on duty to cover the larger unincorporated areas in our county. This lack of Sheriff’s Office presence has led to brazen property crimes like agriculture theft and burglaries.
Establish community police advisory boards that are geographically specific to different areas in the county to address unique concerns.
Refocus the office on reducing illegal dumping and addressing abandoned vehicle issues.

Establish partnerships with community organizations to address recidivism, with an emphasis on re-entry, wraparound, and permanent supportive housing services for formerly incarcerated people experiencing homelessness and mental Illness. The formerly incarcerated deserve the support they need to re-enter society productively. This reduces recidivism and leads to safer communities.
Work with the inmate population to identify effective programs to reduce recidivism and create opportunities for change.

Currently, there are no metrics in place to determine what success looks like in the Sheriff's department. Without these metrics, it is impossible to be truly unaccountable to the public. Metrics must be put into place to establish proper assessment and accountability.
Create a new strategic plan with clear, measurable goals around crime reduction, community engagement, and jail standards. This will lead to a more effective, efficient, transparent department, and retention of high-quality leadership and officers.
Conduct a top to bottom audit of the office to determine new opportunities for efficiency and effectiveness in the areas of Safety, Security, Order, Care, Program & Activity, Justice, Administration & Management as recommended by the American Correctional Association.