Editor,
Thank you for covering the revelation that the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office has acquired more than $2 million in military grade equipment in your April 20 edition. It was revealed only because there is new legislation requiring this disclosure.
Also, as the article mentioned, the sheriff introduced a new Military Equipment Use Policy to the County Board of Supervisors on April 19. The board voted 4 to 1 to approve the policy, with only Warren Slocum voting no. Thank you Supervisor Slocum. The policy was not even read out, let alone offered for public comment.
We need transparency from our sheriff and we don’t currently have it. San Mateo County deserves a sheriff who will prioritize support of deputies with proper training and less lethal equipment options over spending millions on new and bigger guns and shiny new office buildings.
Vote June 7 for Christina Corpus. We need to move the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office into 21st century policing, and she will be a sheriff we can trust.
Anne K. West
Redwood City
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(7) comments
Sheriff Carlos Bolanos is by far the most qualified candidate to be our next Sheriff.
Ms. West, perhaps you could provide a track record of Ms. Corpus’ achievements to compare against those of Sheriff Bolanos and why you think Ms. Corpus is a sheriff we can trust. As for military equipment I’d rather the “good” guys get the more firepower and weapons than the “bad” guys. With lax crime and punishment enforcement that CA has foisted upon her residents, we can only count on more crime and less punishment. It’s too bad he didn’t spend more than $2million. A tank would have been nice, but probably not needed, except as a tourist attraction. People of all ages would happily pay a small fee to sit inside a tank (perhaps even recouping the cost of the tank).
I hope people DO take a look at Christina Corpus and her incredible journey and track record. christinacorpus.com/meet-christina She has been serving in law enforcement since 1995, rising to the position of Chief in Milbrae.
Thanks for the link, Mr. Wiesner. A little further research indicates Ms. Corpus has only been Millbrae Police Chief for less than a year. Although Ms. Corpus has been serving in law enforcement since 1995, Sheriff Bolanos has over 40 years in law enforcement, in addition to almost 6 years as SMC Sheriff.
Tenure doesn’t exactly relate to effectiveness, as lifetime politicians have shown, so are there quantifiable results for these two candidates? Unfortunately for Chief Corpus, I couldn’t easily find any quantifiable results for Millbrae. For Sheriff Bolanos, a quick search finds crimegrade.org rates San Mateo County an overall crime grade of A, along with associated categories of grades ranging of A- to B-. This site also provides comparisons of SMC crime ratings to nearby counties and counties with similar populations, indicating SMC is doing much better than these other counties.
Are we willing to give the job of SMC Sheriff to a non-experienced Chief Corpus with no track record, or are we willing to stick with an experienced Sheriff Bolanos who has a track record better than all neighboring counties and almost all counties with similar populations? I realize the data from crimegrade.org may not directly show the effectiveness of just the SMC Sheriff’s office, but it’s the best I can find. Nobody else, letter writer or commenter, has provided any quantifiable results, just accolades and endorsements. Unfortunately, accolades and endorsements don’t translate to effectiveness in crime prevention.
Sadly, Terence, it seems that our current Sheriff shares your misplaced priorities. As indicated by the fact that the department has a gap of 100 deputies, and periodically one of our residents is tasered until they are dead. Deputies deserve better support, training, non-lethal options, proper policy guidance, etc, and this is so much more important to modern policing than firepower.
Westy, thanks for your response. A reading of the April 20 article details a list of “military equipment” that lists mostly non- or less lethal weapons. The article goes on to say Mr. Slocum voted against the policy because he had concerns about calling the equipment “military equipment” because the equipment isn’t technically affiliated with the military. It doesn’t appear Mr. Slocum objected to the equipment itself (not that it matters, since this $2million is not new – but existing inventory).
Better support, training, guidance, etc., is needed to support this equipment, if SMC hasn’t already done so, so that usage doesn’t result in death. As for a shortage of deputies, why would any deputy-to-be join the Bay Area (or other Dem-lead cities) when the state of CA has prioritized increasing the number of felons on the streets, when district attorneys are unwilling to charge people, and when career criminals are released quickly back into the wild, after being arrested? And if you only have one example of a lethal incident among thousands, if not tens of thousands of arrests, the status quo is doing quite well.
I would think you would be glad the SMC Sheriff’s office spent most of the money on non- or less lethal weapons, instead of lethal weapons. Again, I would prefer potential revenue in selling tickets to sit inside a tank (it’s pretty awesome); perhaps an additional fee for a ride inside the tank (perhaps rolling over some cars at the salvage yard-even more of a thrill). BTW, any word on a track record of Ms. Corpus’ achievements and why you think Ms. Corpus is a sheriff we can trust? After all, she has less than a year of experience as a police chief, and no track record (of which I can find). For now, it appears the known is better than the unknown.
Chinedu Okobi's family does not agree that the status quo is "doing quite well." Sandra Harmon's family does not agree that the status quo is "doing quite well." They are dead. The incumbent Sheriff is unwilling to investigate incidents, change poilices, upgrade deputy training, or reveal his use of force policy. We are all at risk because of this. We need Christina Corpus. I want a Sheriff I can trust.
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