Keeping Guns Off the Streets - Proposition 63 Designed to keep guns and ammunition out of the hands of violent and mentally ill offenders by strengthening background checks, Proposition 63, also known as “The Safety For All Act” initiative, took effect in 2018. The Probation Department now conducts investigations, reporting, and follow-through measures to inform the court if a defendant owns or has surrendered firearms to law enforcement, sold firearms to a licensed dealer, or transferred firearms to a dealer. These Proposition 63 efforts offer a powerful example of the Department’s level of commitment to public safety. Data from the Proposition 63 program showed that over 36,000 referrals were made in 2018, with an average of 144 processed daily. Of those, there were 1,025 firearms identified, representing two percent of the total volume. About one-third of all gun finds resulted in the discovery of an active protective order or mental health status, conditions that prohibit the possession of firearms in the name of community safety. Helping Probation’s Most Vulnerable Clients At-risk offenders often require an alternative approach to incarceration, one that pays off in life-changing results for individuals who have stayed in the system for years. The Probation Department’s Community Collaborative Courts (CCCs) offer these environments in the Long Beach, Compton, Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center, Van Nuys, and Antelope Valley Courthouses. By design, CCCs provide multi-disciplinary services and resources to veterans, the chronically homeless, the mentally ill, substance abusers, transitional-aged youth, and victims of human trafficking. The Probation Department serves with the collaborative team across several agencies and service providers. Most importantly, CCC Deputy Probation Officers (DPOs) assess each client’s case, collaborating and maintaining a strong rapport with involved community-based organizations, inpatient residential treatment programs, job training agencies, and other providers. CCC DPOs monitor each probationer’s progress in various programs and report to the court. Statistical totals for 2018 are listed above. Eric’s CCC Success Story Sometimes in life, it is possible to get a “do-over.” Eric, now age 51, is living proof of that. The former drug dealer and addict hasn’t only turned his own life around; he’s a role model for the Department and its Community Collaborative Courts (CCC) program. Eric’s crimes and addiction took a big toll on his early life, causing him to miss the birth of his first child and ending his first marriage. The day Eric began CCC programs, his whole trajectory changed. He used his year on formal probation to get clean from drugs through Shields for Families. At home again, Eric used the CCC program’s freedom to marry his longtime girlfriend, see his second child born, get his first full-time job, and earn early release from probation. TOTAL FOR 2018: 807 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 32 Violations 87 BWI 317 Verbal Reports 45 Supplemental 326 Progress Reports Community Collaborative Courts: Court Report Type “OPERATION SAFE HALLOWEEN” Makes Halloween Less Scary To protect neighborhoods and ensure local communities have a safe Halloween, the L. A. County Probation Department conducted Operation Safe Halloween, an effort that resulted in arrests and seizure of drugs, guns and ammunition. In fall 2018, the Special Enforcement Operations Unit conducted compliance sweeps of over 400 registered sex offenders throughout the County. A multi-agency effort, the deputies searched residences for weapons, drugs, or child pornography, all of which violate their terms of probation. “While our probation officers conduct compliance checks routinely, Operation Safe Halloween is critically important to the protection of one of our most valuable assets, our children.” — Reaver Bingham, L.A. County Probation Chief Deputy for Adult Services L.A. County Probation Department | 2018 Annual Report 43 42 L.A. County Probation Department | 2018 Annual Report