Voice of OC (https://voiceofoc.org/tag/orange-county-sheriff/)
After recent protests calling for reforms on law enforcement spending, it appears even the most routine of police contracts at OC’s public meetings are coming under public scrutiny.
In a letter to Gov. Newsom, OC Sheriff Don Barnes said he might punish people for “egregious violations” of the statewide mask order.
Sheriff officials say the flag was raised for an annual commemoration of law enforcement. Critics say the flag was tone-deaf amid nationwide protests.
In a letter sent last Thursday, Sheriff Don Barnes threatened to cancel the city’s contract with the department, stating their interests were no longer “mutually aligned.”
In a letter sent Friday, Sheriff Don Barnes pointed to the council’s inability to take action on fence blocking access that led to eight arrests at a protest last Thursday.
Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes has said protestors who trespass or vandalize the fences will be arrested.
At the request of District Attorney Todd Spitzer, police chiefs and the Sheriff are working on a policy for all departments to uniformly handle the new state law that creates transparency in law enforcement discipline records, but is opposed by many police unions.
Barnes, who has so far received 57 percent of votes to 43 percent for his opponent, Duke Nguyen, declared victory Wednesday afternoon. The Registrar of Voters still has 418,600 votes to count.
The election comes after years of controversy and scandal for the retiring Sheriff, Sandra Hutchens.
Republican Undersheriff Donald Barnes and Los Angeles District Attorney Investigator Duke Nguyen, a Democrat, are vying to replace retiring Sheriff Sandra Hutchens on Nov. 6, in a contest that will test whether years of scandal and controversies have affected how voters view the embattled department.