🚨 MEMBER ALERT 🚨 False Claims Allegations Exposed – Unions Demand State Intervention

Brothers and Sisters,

A major article published by the Los Angeles Times on March 25 has confirmed what many of us already knew: serious questions are now being raised about false claims tied to the County’s $4 billion settlement.

Let that sink in.

Four billion taxpayer dollars.

Careers put at risk.

Reputations damaged.

And now, the integrity of the entire process is under scrutiny.

This is not just a headline. This is a turning point.

WE TOOK IMMEDIATE ACTION

Today, your unions, AFSCME Local 685 and SDPOs/Teamsters Local 986, sent a joint letter to:

• Governor Gavin Newsom

• Attorney General Rob Bonta

• Legislative leadership

Demanding:

• A full forensic audit of the $4 billion settlement

• Legislative hearings into how this was allowed to happen

• Immediate attention to the staffing crisis destroying this department

• Protections for due process so no officer is ever put in this position again

Click here to read the full letter and to see the LA Times article.

LET’S BE CLEAR ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED

This did not happen by accident.

For years, the Board of Supervisors:

• Froze hiring

• Refused safety retirement

• Allowed staffing to collapse

• Pushed policies that weakened sworn staff

• Shifted responsibilities away from peace officers

The result?

• 700 vacancies

• ~30% staffing shortage

• A workforce where over half of field staff are nearing retirement

• A hiring system so broken it brought in just 88 hires out of 8,588 applicants

That is not a resource problem.

That is a choice.

AND THEN CAME THE SETTLEMENT

Under former DA George Gascón, the County rushed into a sweeping $4 billion settlement:

• No depositions

• No evidentiary hearings

• No meaningful vetting

• No due process for officers

You were never given the chance to defend yourselves.

And now, with allegations of false claims emerging, the question must be asked:

Did the Board of Supervisors sacrifice our reputations to advance a political agenda to civilianize and privatize probation – and ultimately all but eliminate probation – using $4 billion in taxpayer dollars without due process?

Whether intended or not, the result is undeniable:

👉 The work of probation professionals has been broadly discredited

👉 Dedicated professionals have had their reputations put at risk

👉 The entire department has been weakened in the public eye

THIS IS WHERE IT LEADS

The system is now so strained that:

• The court is actively considering receivership of the juvenile division

• A hearing is scheduled for tomorrow, March 27

Let’s be clear:

This is what systemic failure looks like.

WE ARE NOT BACKING DOWN

Rank & file officers and Supervisors, you do one of the hardest jobs in public service.

You protect the public.

You rehabilitate youth.

You hold the line in increasingly dangerous conditions.

And you deserve:

• Due process

• Respect

• Safe staffing levels

• Leadership that does not sacrifice you for politics

We are taking this fight to Sacramento because it is long past time for accountability.

STAY ENGAGED. STAY UNITED.

More updates are coming.

For now:

• Read the attached letter

• Share accurate information

• Stand together

Because this moment matters.

And we are going to see it through.

In Solidarity,

Curtis Chambers, President

L.A. County Deputy Probation Officers Union

AFSCME Local 685

Regino Torres, Jr., President

Supervising Deputy Probation Officers Union

Teamsters Local 986