OC Sheriff Deputizes Campaign Contributors
by TChris
In a location as large as Orange County, one might expect law enforcement officers to be well-trained professionals. Instead, the Sheriff has been handing out badges and guns to his buddies and political supporters.
Shortly after he took office, Orange County Sheriff Michael S. Carona and one of his top assistants deputized 86 friends, relatives, political contributors and others, giving them badges, powers of arrest and in some cases guns — despite the fact that none had background investigations and some had not been fully trained.
Although the state's Commission on Peace Officers Standards and Training eventually decided not to recognize any of the 86 reserve deputies as legitimate peace officers, 56 still have their badges and ID cards. Some of the 86 were clearly unqualified.
Documents indicate that the appointments were rushed to avoid tougher training requirements adopted by the state and that red flags — including failed psychological exams and lying about a criminal history — were overlooked during the application process. Among the applicants were a former police officer who had been fired for lying during an internal affairs investigation, an executive who failed to disclose he'd twice been arrested and another who was identified as "psych reject."
It shouldn't be surprising to learn that some of the reserve deputies have abused their authority. One "announced he was an Orange County deputy when an Amtrak ticket taker asked him and his guests to move out of an area of a train reserved for business class passengers."
None of this has anything to do with law enforcement.
One of the reserve deputies, who asked not to be identified out of concern his appointment might be jeopardized, said a core group of reserves who helped Carona get elected were less interested in patrol duties than the privilege of having a badge and being part of his inner circle. "It was clear from the beginning that there was an expectation that we would financially support Carona's political campaign and his foundation," he said. "It was known from Day 1 that there was no expectation to participate in police work."
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