Juvenile Probation Placement Unit

Angela Vasquez, Javier Diaz, Maixong Cha, Peter John Grassi

During the past year, the Juvenile Probation Placement Unit worked tirelessly to find ways to support justice-involved youth and their families who were experiencing challenges previously not seen by staff such as severe social isolation, financial difficulties, food insecurities, and the general unknown of what was coming next. To ensure that youth and families were receiving the highest level of services during this past year, the Placement Unit staff committed to focusing on four areas--increasing youth and family involvement in Child and Family Team Meetings, developing a referral process for youth committed to a Secure Youth Track Facility program that would ensure family participation and regular visitation to connect youth and families, increasing collaboration with community partners including the reentry navigators who are part of the Stable Transitions After Reentry grant, and ensuring regular in-person visitation to their assigned youth who are participating in Short Term Residential Therapeutic Programs throughout the state. Because of the tireless efforts of this team, our county’s youth and families were supported during an incredibly challenging year.

Sheriff's Office Records Team

Maggie Brophy, Erica Carmona, Colleen Dobbs, Catherine Gross, Jennifer Lloyd, Joy Magi, Andrea Marie Rodriguez-Rocha, Polly Schultze Elser, Lisa Vandien

As the custodians of records for the Sheriff’s Department, the Records Team is responsible for the maintenance of all records generated by Sheriff’s Department law enforcement, as well as managing all warrant and restraining order records for the whole of Santa Cruz County. The Records Team is also responsible for ensuring DOJ compliance with how law enforcement records are kept, reported, and released including processing and preparing arrest cases for the District Attorney’s office. Santa Cruz County Deputies rely on timely and accurate information from the Records Department to help make the life and death decisions that are required to ensure public safety. The Records Team strives to maintain the highest standards of professional ethics and personal integrity, and their role in supporting the Sheriff’s Department is invaluable.

Trunk or Treat Community Event Team

Gina Castaneda, Linda Perez, Joe Hernandez, Laura Espindola, Kimi Miller, Heather Abbott, Marilu Martinez

In 2021, employees from the Santa Cruz County Probation Department and District Attorney's Office hosted a large-scale Trunk-or-Treat event at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds that would allow children and community groups the opportunity to interact and celebrate Halloween in a fun and COVID-safe manner. The team was able to get 36 organizations including non-profits, businesses, community groups, and a number of government agencies to commit to participating in the event. Each participating organization decorated the trunk of a vehicle and handed out candy to children and community members as they drove by. Due to the hard work of the Trunk-or-Treat Team, the event was a complete success, and the Watsonville community was able to come together to enjoy a festive Halloween experience.