El Dorado County Grand Jury 2013-2014 South Lake Tahoe Probation Office Case Number Gj-13-14

The cliques that currently exist exacerbate an already toxic environment. Response: The respondent disagrees wholly with this finding. The “Discussion” section of the Grand Jury report indicated that some staff who are in a non-favored “clique” are overly scrutinized (presumably by supervisors and managers) and cited, without detail, the types of scrutiny received. All of the examples cited involved activity that would generally be considered reasonable supervision of staff.

Unfair discipline, undeserved job promotions, making employees feel badly about their performance, harsh criticism and relegation to a shunned status is construed as bullying and harassment. It should not exist for many reasons, both legal and moral. Response: The respondent disagrees wholly with this finding. The Grand Jury cites staff claims that, due to low morale, there is impact to the mission of the department in the enforcement of court orders and the quality of written work to the court. In discussing this perception with the Court in South Lake Tahoe, it appears the opposite is true in that the Court believes that the general quality of written work coming from the Probation Department is high and effective. According to partner agencies in law enforcement the supervision work of the department is also of high quality. The Grand Jury cited several beliefs as to why the cultural environment in the South Lake Tahoe office suffers. Specifically, the Grand Jury identified insufficient training in the areas of harassment, discrimination and retaliation for managers and supervisors. In fact, supervisors receive annual training, including various leadership and professional development courses that include discussions in each of those topics. Supervisors in the South Lake Tahoe field office have completed a combined total of over 650 hours of professional development training.

It seems incomprehensible that working from the office is preferred to working in the field. Response: The respondent disagrees wholly with this finding. Only one specific criticism was levelled at the department’s policy, in that it was alleged that deputies are encouraged to stay at their desks rather than conduct “field” work to supervise cases. In fact, the opposite is true. The department insists that deputies conduct field work in order to adequately supervise cases. Instances where individual deputies are asked to remain in the office may generally be attributed to training issues related to officer safety. In that case, officers receive training to improve their field safety skills until they are better prepared to conduct field operations.

The supervisor/manager to worker ratio appears out of balance. Response: The respondent disagrees wholly with this finding. The Grand Jury indicated there are eleven managers and supervisors overseeing thirty-three line workers (roughly a 3:1 ratio and, presumably including the Juvenile Treatment Center). The structure of the South Lake Tahoe Field Office includes one office manager, two supervisors for twelve deputies and one clerical supervisor for two clerical staff. In the South Lake Tahoe Juvenile Treatment Center (JTC) there is one on site manager and four supervisors, each one responsible for five staff, who cover the facility twenty-four hours per day, 365 days per year. The management and supervision structure of both the field office and JTC are according to best practices in the Probation industry and, in the case of the JTC, state regulations.

The Grand Jury is hopeful that the new Chief will come to understand the dysfunction in the South Lake Tahoe office and will institute changes that result in positive results. Response: The respondent agrees with this finding. With the introduction of a new administration, the Probation Department has conducted, through a third party, a department wide cultural assessment. The findings of the assessment, combined with focus group discussions, will result in a cultural improvement plan for the entire department. The focus of the plan will largely be in the areas of communication and in the promotion of the professional values of the staff and administration. The Chief Probation Officer has met with the entirety of the SLT office and discussed ways to overcome past challenges and introduce new business practices to improve the professional environment for all staff.