Top Cops

TOP COPS… In Squid’s undersea lair, sound moves faster than it does on land. Maybe that’s why Squid has been hearing for months about the impending departure of now-former Chief Deputy Jeff Hoyne from the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office, who has been out of the office since at least Aug. 26, when Squid first started asking. Since then, Jason Smith was filling in as acting chief deputy.

Official reality finally caught up with on-the-ground reality Nov. 18, with a notification that Hoyne was no longer with the office and Smith was the new chief deputy (plus another promotion for Veronica Olguin, a former sergeant turned commander).

“I spoke with both about the expectation of leadership roles,” Sheriff Tina Nieto said in a statement. “Both understood the responsibility that comes with their new positions, and their steadfast commitment to the personnel that make up this fine organization… We are all in this together.” Nieto, who beat Hoyne in the 2022 election then appointed him, declines to confirm whether Hoyne skipped out on his expectations lecture. Squid has heard from multiple sources that Hoyne repeatedly used a racial slur; Hoyne did not respond to a call for comment.

“I have always pledged that my executive management team will always share my values,” Nieto says. Squid hopes the second time’s a charm.

THANKS FOR LEAVING… Not long ago, a Del Rey Oaks resident sat down with one of Squid’s colleagues to make the case that the Weekly’s coverage of the city is unduly harsh – Del Rey Oaks is a welcoming community, they insisted.

So Squid set out to see just how welcoming the city is, and entered from Seaside on Highland Street, which quickly becomes Carlton Drive – the two streets did not always connect. Then Squid hung a right and oozed down Quendale Avenue, which soon turns into Portola Drive. Both run along the city’s border with Seaside, but there is only one other street that connects the cities – Tweed Street. However, it’s blocked off with barriers on the Del Rey Oaks side.

The homes are quite nice – more than an ink-stained cephalopod can afford – and as that fact set in, Squid made Squid’s way into Del Rey Farms, a cannabis dispensary on Portola Drive at its intersection with Fremont Boulevard in Seaside. As Squid was oozing out of the dispensary, Squid noticed a “no right turn” sign for those exiting the parking lot, so that they must instead turn left, toward Seaside.

Wait, what? Is it a one-way street? No. Is it more dangerous to turn left? Yes.

Squid’s colleague asked City Manager John Guertin about the sign’s provenance, but he didn’t know, adding that it’s likely not enforceable. Squid hopes it remains – at this point, it’s art.