Californians deserve a new type of sheriff in town
Last month I participated in a news conference with state Sen. Scott Wiener and several criminal justice reform activists, in support of SB 271 — the Sheriff Diversity and Democracy Act. If enacted, SB 271 would return California to its original constitutional criteria for candidates seeking the office of sheriff by removing a 1988 requirement that sheriffs must have law enforcement experience.
From 1850 until 1988 — a period of 138 years — there was no law enforcement requirement for sheriffs in California. However, that changed when Michael Hennessey, a prisoner right’s attorney, was elected San Francisco’s sheriff in 1980. Fearful that Hennessey’s election would encourage other progressive-minded individuals to run for sheriff throughout the state, the California State Sheriff’s Association successfully lobbied the Legislature to mandate that sheriffs must possess law enforcement experience. Sheriff Hennessey was reelected seven times, becoming the longest tenured sheriff in California history, respected for implementing progressive policies for incarcerated people.
This law enforcement requirement is a problem, best illustrated by what happened when I chaired a blue ribbon commission in Santa Clara County. On Aug. 27, 2015, Michael Tyree was beaten to death by three jail guards at the county’s main jail. In the aftermath of his murder, the commission evaluated jail operations. We found several problems that seriously jeopardized the welfare of people held in our jails. More than five years later, our many recommendations have yet to be implemented. And to this day, the sheriff continues to resist efforts by the jail’s civilian monitor to institute reforms.
The Law Foundation of Silicon Valley recently determined that the county’s jails do not provide minimally adequate protections to incarcerated people against COVID-19. Jail conditions have been described as unsanitary and potentially unconstitutional. One incarcerated person with COVID-19 symptoms was forced into a “hellhole” infirmary with nine others who were sick and to bathe with a sock and a shared bucket.
Sheriffs frequently resist transparency in operating their jails. Sacramento Sheriff Scott Jones refused to allow the county’s inspector general access to the department’s buildings and records. Contra Costa County Sheriff David Livingston denied the request of Richmond’s mayor to tour the jail.
Powerful elected officials, sheriffs rarely face contested elections. In 2014, only 19 sheriffs out of 58 faced contested reelections because the law enforcement requirement limited the field of candidates. In California, 84% of sheriffs are white males, none are African American, and four are women. The lack of representational diversity of those who occupy sheriff’s offices throughout the state is appalling. Anyone 18 years of age and older who is registered to vote should be able to run for sheriff — just the way it was for nearly 140 years.
It is time for a shift in the culture of sheriffs, away from a strictly law enforcement mentality to the current progressive reformist approach. Californians deserve a new type of sheriff in town, committed to providing adequate mental illness and health care services to those held in our jails, and to taking seriously the obligation to provide for the welfare of the incarcerated. With SB 721, voters will have meaningful opportunities to elect their sheriffs and hold them accountable, once again.
LaDoris Cordell is a retired Santa Clara County Superior Court judge and former Independent Police Auditor for San Jose. She was the first African American female judge to serve on both the Municipal and Superior Court circuits in Northern California.