The public weighs in to support the creation of a sheriff's oversight committee.

It's a potentially long and unclear road to creating an oversight board and/or inspector general's office with authority over the Monterey County Sheriff's Office, but the process is underway. 

Assembly Bill 1185, which took effect in 2021, grants authority to counties to create such oversight bodies that oversee elected sheriffs and their departments. The Monterey County Board of Supervisors convened an ad hoc committee in 2023 to explore what the options are. And the ad hoc committee—composed of two supervisors, Wendy Root Askew and Glenn Church—held its first public meeting on Wednesday night, July 26, to provide a broad update on options and hear from the public with initial feedback. 

The public feedback presented at the meeting was overwhelming in support of oversight. Of roughly 25 speakers, every person who weighed in urged the supervisors to create some kind of oversight board. 

They spoke sometimes on deeply personal terms, sharing stories of loved ones who have been incarcerated in Monterey County Jail (overseen by the office of the sheriff), or of making reports to the Sheriff's Office about alleged crimes that they said were not taken seriously. 

Chris Barrera, president of a Salinas chapter of LULAC, said, "A civilian oversight committee needs to be put in place."

Several speakers reference the administration of the former sheriff, Steve Bernal, who clashed with the Board of Supervisors—and they also referenced the current sheriff, Tina Nieto, who pledged to work with the board. 

"This is a perfect opportunity for Sheriff Tina Nieto to build a bridge between community members and the sheriff's [office]," said Airam Coronado, a coordinator for the nonprofit MILPA, which strives to reform the criminal justice system. This is an opportunity to not just check the box."

One speaker noted that even if Nieto builds and maintains public trust, creating an oversight board goes beyond one elected sheriff. "A mechanism like this is supposed to go beyond the best intentions of a particular administration."

While it's too soon for the county to have a proposal about the specific nature of what might ultimately be, Susan Blitch from Monterey County Counsel's Office presented on possible configurations allowed by AB 1185. The county could create an oversight board; an office of the inspector general; or both. 

The size composition of an oversight board—whether certain seats would be designated for certain people with different backgrounds or areas of expertise—remains to be determined. (One speaker, a retired police officer, suggested an oversight board should have at least some police officers to bring investigatory training and expertise to bear; the local chapter of the ACLU submitted a proposal that would exclude former or current law enforcement professionals from being appointed.)

Blitch spoke about the legal uncertainty of how much power an oversight entity could hold. Existing state law says the Board of Supervisors shall not interfere with the duties of the sheriff; what the boundaries are of a future committee remain to be tested. In addition, there are legal protections—such as the Peace Officers Bill of Rights, or POBR—that could clash with a new board. 

Nieto spoke briefly, but said that she attended the meeting mostly to listen, rather than provide specific comments about a potential oversight entity or its composition, but she did reference the importance of how it is organized.

"I support transparency, and depending on how something’s structured, I do support oversight and I’m not afraid of it," she said.  

She added that she is committed to putting more reports from existing oversight entities on the department's website for easy public viewing. For example, she said she plans to release a report conducted just last week by the Bureau of Corrections of the county jail, which she said the department passed; last year, she said the Monterey County Sheriff's Office failed the audit, something she didn't even know about until she began the job, because it hadn't been publicly shared. 

"I want to commend you to being so open to having this conversation with us. I really appreciate being able to have an open dialogue with you," Askew said to Neito at the end, after some harsh criticisms from members of the public. 

"What’s really important is to have a fair and effective system. That’s what we are trying to put in place," Church said. 

Next steps and a timeline remain TBD, but county officials are continuing to gather public feedback on the potential creation of an oversight board and/or inspector general. You can complete an online survey, or send an email to cob@co.monterey.ca.us, in English or Spanish.