Objective
To continue to serve in meaningful, challenging and self-rewarding efforts. By providing services to my clients with credibility and experience which is based on my varied professional Corrections experience and background.
Qualifications
I have over 36 years of Corrections experience in the state of California. I served 30 years in the California State Department of Corrections, where I promoted through the ranks to Warden of San Quentin and Soledad State Prisons. While serving as the Warden of San Quentin State Prison my additional responsibilities included the administration of the prison as a Level IV maximum security general population inmate facility and the largest Security Housing Unit (SHU) operation with 1,750 inmates in maximum A custody and the largest Death row population in the United States. During my watch at San Quentin State Prison I carried out two (2) Executions of condemned inmates in the San Quentin Gas Chamber by lethal gas.
I gained an additional four (4) years of Corrections experience as the Director of corrections in service to the Santa Clara County Department of Corrections, the fourth 4 th largest county jail operation in California.
I have served as a consultant and then as Warden for Corrections Corporation of America the largest of the private corrections corporations in the United States; bringing on line the corporations first and largest 2,300 bed secure celled facility in California currently under contract to the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
Through out my career I have personally conducted hundreds of criminal and Gang related investigations and interviews of Gang members and associates. Additionally I have supervised and directed investigative units of Peace Officers in their investigations of criminal activities, internal personnel investigations and intelligence gathering efforts of Gang's and their prison and street activities. This experience has provided me with many years of specialization and the corresponding knowledge of the cultural aspects of Hispanic, White Supremacy, Asian and Black prison and criminal street Gang activities; their Gang membership characteristics, Gang tenants, their criminal organization strategies and recruiting methods. My expertise includes the classification, analysis, and validation of documentation and information developed by and utilized by Law Enforcement agencies; in their on-going efforts to control and prosecute the ever increasing challenges and activities of the Gangs. I have continued to increase and enhance my knowledge of the evolution of the Gang's; by continuing to investigate Gang cases, the review of testimony and investigative reports and documents of Law Enforcement agencies of Gang cases through out California, my personal debriefing of criminal Gang defendant's, court room testimony as an expert Witness and attending contemporary gang training seminars, as well as, being an instructor and lecturer on many occasions in the past several years on Gang issues.
I have direct hands knowledge and administrative experience in the development of corrections policies and procedures, which is inclusive of operations from minimum to maximum custody and Security Housing Units (SHU) and county jail operations.
I have a vast amount of consulting experience in the field of Corrections since 1986 gained from consulting assignments through out the United States; in the many facets of contemporary Corrections issues facing the Corrections agency officials. And of cases of attorney's involved in litigating complex prison and jail cases involving civil rights, Habeas Corpus issues, Gang validation issues, conditions of confinement issues, death in custody/injury issues and pre-conviction issues in Capital cases and Gang enhancement charges.
I have extensive experience providing Expert Witness Court room and deposition testimony on a broad spectrum of issues. Including but not limited to prison gang membership/associate validation by prison officials and Law Enforcement agencies prosecution of California Penal code 186.22, Criminal Street Gang prosecution enhancement charges, conditions of confinement, death in custody and medical and mental health issues practices and follow through, classification issues, application of codified rules, regulations, and policies governing prison and county jail operations.
Education
1966-1971
Attended San Bernardino Valley College, received Associate of Arts Degree in Sociology/Criminal Justice.
1972-1975
Attended California State University Cal-Poly Pomona, CA involved in undergraduate studies in Social Welfare.
1978
Attended Lassen Community College instruction classes and received Life time, half time, California State Credential for Community college Instructor in subject matters: Corrections Principles and Management, Correctional Practices and Programs, Organizational Structure and Organizational management.
1998-2000
Attended The National Hispanic University San Jose, CA completing undergraduate studies in Business Administration.
Relevant Experience
1986 to present
I have been self employed as Principle Consultant/Sole proprietor of my consulting company 'Corrections Consulting & Investigative Services'. I provide a variety of expert corrections consulting services and investigative services to private attorneys, court appointed attorneys and Public Defender's offices, private corrections corporations, state and county government corrections agencies on issues of policy, operational issues/procedures, organizational structure, management and implementation of prison/jail policies and procedures, conditions of confinement, post conviction penalty phase of Death cases and appellate level Capital Cases, Gang enhancement felony charges, death in custody, injury and use of force in custody. My fees include $125.00 per hour, expenses incurred for lodging, meals, POV mileage @ .49 cents per mile, $20.00 per hour travel time and $800.00 per day deposition and/or court testimony.
January 1998-June 2000
California City Correctional Center/Corrections Corporation of America P.O. Box 2590 California City, California 93504. I was employed initially as a consultant for the corporations' plans for expansion development in California. I then served as a prison Warden to the first and largest CCA prison located and constructed in the high desert community of California City, CA. I began my assignment involved with the community and county, state and federal government representatives as their interest in privatization began to develop and as the prison was being constructed. The prison was built to house 2,300 medium custody inmates in hard cells and classified as an Adult Correctional Center. I managed the initial hiring and training of the prisons first staff for the prisons start up which took place in August 1998, initially housing up to 500 U.S. Federal Marshal Prisoner's from the Los Angeles District Headquarters office. The prison is currently under contract with the Federal Bureau of Prisons housing over 2,300 illegal aliens serving federal prison sentences and awaiting deportation. I choose to voluntarily leave CCA employment not wanting to accept an offer as Warden in an out of state assignment.
June 1994-June 1998
Director of Corrections, Santa Clara County Department of Corrections, San Jose, CA.
I served as the Director of Corrections for the Santa Clara County Department of Corrections the 4 th largest County Jail operation in the State of California, with a daily average prisoner population of 4,800 and an annual booking of between 75,000 and 80,000, arrestees. The Santa Clara County jail system was very unique in that the jail operation was not under the traditional control of the County Sheriff's Department. I was a civilian administrator with vested and limited Peace Officer status; in charge an approved staffing pattern of 1,200 total employees with an approximate yearly budget of $100,000,000 million dollars; as a County Department head I reported to the County Board of Supervisors. Despite the size of the organization and because it was totally focused on Corrections (not having to divide staff efforts to street Law Enforcement as in the traditional jail operation) a considerable number of beneficial inmate programs were developed. The following will briefly outline some of the inmate programs developed that were unique to the Santa Clara County Jail:
- Professional Compliance and Audit Unit: responsible to investigate and evaluate staff's actual compliance in practice to Departmental policies developed and in place as required by state law, government code and good penological practices.
- Sobering Station: was developed with a mental health evaluation component. This program was initially a joint effort involving only the San Jose Police Department; to provide a central location which was clean, efficient, and safely operated for the patrol officer's to drop off their 647F PC (Public intoxication) arrestee's. The individuals were was cared for in a non-custodial setting sobered up a minimum of 4-5 hours, baseline information was gathered for each participant, they were provided with limited counseling followed by a referral (with later follow up) to a community substance abuse treatment program in their community. An additional and important program criteria was it's performance requirement to return the Police patrolman back to their Beat within 15 minutes from their arrival with their detainee. The program was operated under contract with a local community organization and funded by the Board of Supervisors. The programs ultimate success resulted in county wide participation by all the county Law Enforcement agencies.
- •Equal Employment Opportunity Facilitator: this unique program involved department staff selected by command staff from the field to assist the organization effectively deal with Human Relations issues which were an out-growth of an individual staff's concern that he or she maybe experiencing some form of employment protected discrimination. The program was created to maintain the counties policy of a work environment free from discrimination and/or harassment based on Race, Color, National Origin, Religion, Age, Sexual Orientation, Marital Status Medical Condition, or Disability. The program was supported by the County Board of Supervisor's and the County Office of Equal Employment Opportunity that also provided the training required of all staff Facilitator's.
- Departmental Academy Training: developed in conjunction with the local community college Criminal justice department to provide all our state required 832PC and State Board of Corrections training for newly hired Correctional Officer's. This program allowed for a savings of $450,000 dollars of the counties general fund per class which were on-going at least one (1) class quarterly per year.
- Regimented Corrections Program: transformed from a formally all female prisoner "Boot Camp" program, to a co-ed program with less emphasis on military regimentation marching to multi-courses of educational enhancement requirements upon the individual; to include anger management, job development health educational programs and a substance abuse program involvement commitment that transitioned from incarceration to mandatory participation upon release from jail custody. The participants were monitored for relapse to drugs or alcohol or re-arrest as a follow up for one (1) year. The program enjoyed the support of the County Superior Courts, Probation Department, State Parole services in the county and the County Board of Supervisor's.
- Management Information Services: a program of utilization integration of county automated information systems in place augmented by the Corrections Department's computerized information data bases and enhanced with various offender/arrestee characteristic resulted in a network that was beneficial for the organizations management team in developing programs and projecting or anticipating expenditures or savings.
- Joint venture Program: the first of its kind Joint Venture employment program designed for the short term county jail prisoner population. The program was a commitment from local community based industry to come into the jail and set up a part of their manufacturing operation and to hire the qualified inmate as a paid employee. The inmate was required to pay room and board, state and federal taxes from his salary, victim restitution and to develop a savings account to assist him upon his release from jail custody.
December 2001-2002.
I was appointed at the West-Tec Academy Shafter, CA. I was an In-Service-Training Instructor for employees of various private Corrections corporations and those individuals who were putting themselves through the required State of California 832PC training required for all employment in corrections in county city jails or private corrections. The training I provided was in the following subject matters: prison/street gangs, California Department of Corrections Classification system, disciplinary system, report writing, professional ethics, games inmates play.
January 1994-June 1994
I was appointed as the Warden, at the California State Prison Soledad, Soledad, CA. Soledad State Prison is a tri-facility meaning that it was comprised of three (3) separate facilities under one Warden each comprised of facility heads two (2) Chief Deputy's and one (1) Associate Warden who commanded the facilities and reported to the Warden. Two (2) of the facilities were Level III operations of high medium custody inmates housed in hard cells. The remaining facility was a level I of Minimum to medium custody inmates that were assigned to various work crews which under staff supervision assisted the operation of various activities; farm industry, the institution fire house, yard care and landscaping, the maintenance department support and the garage vehicle and equipment repair and maintenance. The institution also operated a smaller Administrative Segregation Unit of maximum custody inmates' total population of 108 cells. The prison housed a total of 6,700 inmates with a staffing pattern of 1,500 staff including both Correctional Peace officers and other ancillary staff; the institutions annual budget allocation was $104,000,000 million dollars. As Warden I was ultimately responsible for managing the prison under all applicable classification and disciplinary policies and rules and regulations of the State Department of Corrections, including federal and state laws as they pertain to incarcerated individuals. I was also responsible for the supervision and directing of the institutions Internal Affairs and Criminal Investigations and Gang Intelligence Unit. I left the Department of Corrections for higher compensation and to assume the duties of Director of Corrections for Santa Clara County. The Santa Clara County was governed by the same retirement system as the state; the State Public Employee Retirement System (PERS).
December 1983- December 1993
I was appointed as the Warden of the California State Prison at San Quentin, CA. My appointment as the Warden of San Quentin State Prison in 1993 began a ten (10) year assignment. The prison was the oldest having been established in 1853; and was the largest maximum/close custody Level IV and Security Housing Unit operation in California and the nation. The prison had also been designated by Departmental policy a Departmental Security Housing Unit (SHU) mission; and housed the largest Maximum A custody prisoner population numbering 1,750 inmates in Maximum A custody. The inmate population included the nations largest Death Row and Level IV general population of which over 50% were serving Life Sentences. During my watch as the Warden of San Quentin State Prison I carried out two (2) Executions by Lethal Gas in the San Quentin prison Gas Chamber. The first Execution in twenty five (25) years by the State of Robert Alton Harris was carried out in 1992. And in 1993 the Execution of David Edwin Mason who successfully fired his attorney team and volunteered for his own Execution.
Under my leadership the institution successfully met the court challenges which included two (2) Special Court Masters one appointed at the Superior Court level for the case titled Wilson v Dukemejian, and a Federal Court Master in the case titled Toussaint v McCarthy. During my watch at San Quentin the prison under went a significant mission change from one of housing Level IV maximum custody inmates to the largest Reception Center in the Department of Corrections. Serving 37 of the states 58 counties jail systems by receiving the counties new felon convictions, Second or Third Strike convictions and parole violators ordered returned to custody. Several of the institutions security functions had to be reinvented; due to the new challenges the institution faced in receiving thousands of convicted felons from over 50% of the states county jails. The Investigation and Gang Units had to begin to interface with the county jail staff to identify those individuals that posed the greatest security and custody challenges to the institution when they were received for housing and processing. My first experience with an experimental "Boot-Camp" program began at San Quentin as a first "Boot Camp" program was developed through special legislation; the program was very successful and served me with knowledge gained to expand on a variation of such a program in my later experience in the Santa Clara County Department of Corrections. I was also responsible for the supervision and direction setting of the institutions Criminal and Gang Investigation Unit.
1980-1983
I served in three (3) capacities during this my second tour of duty at the Correctional Training Facility-Soledad State Prison. I arrived for my second tour of duty at Soledad in 1980 as an Associate Warden, an in-grade transfer from the California Correctional Center Susanville, CA. My initial assignment was Associate Warden for the Departmental Inmate Appeals system a policy driven and established program that provided the inmate population with the right to file an Appeal on issues and/or decisions that in their opinion effected their status or program assignment while incarcerated. I handled for the Warden the institutions first and second level of the Appeal system before an inmate could appeal the final and third level of appeal which was the Director of Corrections office.
My second assignment included a promotion to Deputy Warden and I was in charge of North and Central facilities until my promotion to Chief Deputy Warden appointing me as second in command of the prison reporting directly to the Warden. The duties were essentially being responsible for the prison's administration fiscal/budget control, personnel matters from contract negotiations with the various employee unions, to personnel discipline, inmate programs security custody, and care, providing short and long term planning assistance to the Warden for budget change proposals or new programs development. I further served as the acting Warden of the prison for one and one half (1 ½) years just prior to my promotion and transfer to San Quentin State Prison as Warden.
1975-1980
I served in two (2) management capacities at the California Correctional Center Susanville, CA prison. Initially I served as a Program Administrator of a 600 inmate housing unit, responsible for inmate programming, classification, disciplinary and/or reassignment. Additionally I was responsible for the supervision of the correctional counseling staff and security staff assigned to my unit. I was then promoted to Associate Warden and assigned to the positions of Associate Warden Custody and Security and then to the Associate Warden Administration responsible for inmate self-help programs and the inmate appeal system explained in the section above. I remained at the Correctional Center until my transfer-in-grade as Associate Warden and the beginning of my second tour of duty of three (3) at the Soledad Prison.
1973-1975
I started my first tour of duty at Soledad State prison. My assignment was as the Classification & Parole Representative responsible for all the inmate counseling staff and their casework. The institutions classification system and the records office responsibility for the safe keeping of all the inmates central-files records who were housed at Soledad prison and the legal status tracking of changes to the inmates legal status as a result of term changes from the courts or the decisions of the Paroling Authorities in their decisions effecting the term of imprisonment of the individual inmates under their jurisdiction at that time of the states Indeterminate Sentencing laws. Additional duties involved assisting the prison administration in the gathering of intelligence information dealing with the prison Gangs and their members housed at Soledad prison. I remained at Soledad until my promotion to Program Administrator and transfer to the Correctional Center at Susanville, CA.
!973-1975
I was appointed as a Special Agent in the Departments first efforts at the gathering of intelligence information against the threat of the emerging threat of the prison Gangs and street Gang alliances endangering the safety and security of the prison, staff and inmates. I was assigned out of the Los Angeles and El Monte, CA offices and covered the entire state. I was also responsible for the training of staff of the characteristics of the prison and street Gangs and the recognition of the Gangs identification, codes, membership, recruiting methods and assisting the institutions in investigating Gang crimes and in their criminal prosecutions. I was also responsible for internal investigations of crimes and illicit activities of staff and inmates.
1969-1973
I was promoted from the Southern Conservation Center prison in Chino, CA to Parole Agent I and a short time later promoted to Supervising Parole Agent II. I was assigned to the Ontario, CA district offices supervising initially civil committed drug addicts then to the supervision of a felon caseload. I worked very active and large caseloads of parolees in the communities including Pomona, Fontana, Rialto, Colton, San Bernardino, and Redlands, CA. As an Assistant Unit Supervisor I assisted the Unit Supervisor in the supervising of other unit office assigned case carrying Parole Agents assisted the agents in meeting their casework responsibilities and the filing of parole violation charges and the return to prison of parolees charged with new crimes or violations of their conditions of parole. It was in this assignment that I initially began to learn of the prison Gangs and the threats they were beginning to become to the safety and security of the California Department of Corrections and our communities.
1965-1969
I began my Correctional career as a Correctional Officer at the Conservation Center a medium to minimum custody conservation training center in Chino, CA. I worked at the Camp Pilot Rock Conservation Center in Crestline, CA and the Conservation Center in Chino, CA. It was in this assignment that I began to learn the concepts of casework and continued to learn and experience casework and classification when I was promoted to Correctional Program Supervisor I a classification that involved custody and security duties along with the casework responsibilities for a caseload of 20-30 inmates assigned to you for all their casework needs.
1961-1984
I served in the U.S Army and in the Military Police units both in over-seas and United States posts for three (3) years; and was Honorably Discharged in 1964.
Other Experience
I supervised the Criminal/Internal Affairs and Investigation Units and Gang intelligence units in every command assignment I have held in my Corrections experience. Whenever possible I expanded the capacities and Law Enforcement agency and contact exposure of the units under my command to better enhance our over-all capabilities and effectiveness in crime prevention, tracking, intelligence gathering and criminal prosecution of offenders. I conducted several hundreds of Gang investigations and interrogations and was responsible for the arrests and assisted in the investigations and convictions of numerous Gang members for a variety of offenses including Homicides. I was one of the original founders of the California Prison Gang Task Force still active and in operation to the present-day. I continue to present-day investigating and working Gang related cases and debriefing known prison and street Gang Members and attending prison and street Gang training.
As a result of my varied experiences and assignments in Corrections including extensive Corrections consulting through-out the United States and numerous Court Expert Witness testimony; I can provide a unique prospective and level of experience and creditability to any consulting assignment. I have interviewed thousands of inmates and Gang involved offenders through the state of California. I have interviewed inmates from county jails to every level I through IV prison including inmates on Death Row; reviewing their individual Central Files to serving their Death Warrants, to carrying out their Executions.
I have classified tens of thousands of individual inmates in my career to present-day experience of classification. I have extensive experience with the Department of Corrections Prison missions, classification procedures Director's Rules and Regulations and policies. I have extensive experience in the classification and testing of reliability of confidential Gang member/affiliation validation information and criteria of the Department of Corrections California Code of Regulations Title 15, and the Departmental Operations Manual. Having a unique base of my many years past and present day experience of both Prison and Street Gang activities I understand the challenges that the Corrections agencies and community based Law Enforcement agencies face in dealing with the threat of the Gang phenomena in our communities. And also have first hand knowledge of the serious errors of judgment and practices of many California Law Enforcement agency's in their investigations and criminal charge practices in the prosecutions of Gang enhancement cases.
My past experiences include:
• Member of the California State Board of Corrections, eight (8) consecutive 1976-1984.
• Past member of the American Correctional Association
• American Jail Association
References Available Upon Request
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