CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO

JUVENILE PROBATION COMMISSION

JUVENILE PROBATION COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING

Regular Meeting Minutes

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

5:30 p.m.

City Hall, Hearing Room 408

#1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place

San Francisco, CA 94102

Commissioners

Rebecca Woodson, President

Katharine Albright, Vice President

Dirk Beijen

Julian Chang

Ellouise Patton

Sarah Ching Ting Wan

Meeting Minutes

1. Roll call

• The Commission President called the meeting to order at 5:37 p.m. Commissioners Beijen, Chang, Wan and Woodson were present. Commissioner Albright was excused. Commissioner Patton was not present.

2. Public Comment

• Alejandra Rojas, Mission Neighborhood Center Home Detention Program, introduced herself to the Commission and will be taking the lead role in Families Understanding the System.
• No further public comments.

3. Review and Approval of the Full Commission Meeting Minutes of December 9, 2009 (ACTION ITEM)

• Motion to approve the Full Commission Meeting Minutes of December 9, 2009 by Commissioner Chang, second by Commissioner Beijen, and approved by the rest of the Commission.
• No public comments.
  
  

4. Report to the Commission (DISCUSSION ONLY)

a. Chief’s Report

Budget Update by Sue Wong

• Sue Wong, Finance Director, said that “due to the low count in Juvenile Hall for the past couple of months, the $1 million deficit, mentioned at prior meetings, is now down to zero. This shows how the salary budget is really tied to kids that come into custody.” JPD is hoping it stays low, however, the population has jumped into the 90’s and the costs are being monitored.
• The governor released his state budget proposal last Friday and JPD is not impacted.

• In regards to the mid-year cut proposal, the Mayor cut $42,000 from JPD’s budget in December. Small professional services contracts were cut, however, the Mayor will be issuing layoff notices in the next month and a half. The admin positions will be cut. Of the five positions listed, one was vacant and another position shifted funding from general to grant funds. Three positions are filled and two will now be part-time. The third position will be a layoff. The probation services positions are not part of this first round of layoffs.
  COMM Chang asked if the probation services layoffs are anticipated in the future. Ms. Wong stated that the Mayor’s Chief of Staff requested a meeting with Chief Siffermann this week and JPD will have a better sense of the layoffs after the meeting.
• COMM Woodson asked how the low count in the Hall correlates to getting rid of the salary deficit. Ms. Wong stated that the low count enabled JPD to close a unit.
  
  

JJC Census Report by Garry Bieringer

• Mr. Bieringer stated that JPD has seen a decline in the Juvenile Hall population for the past five months. In December, the population in the Hall was at 78. This is due to four main factors: system partnerships; strategic program changes; trainings; and the roles of stakeholders. The population in the Hall is currently at 88.
• COMM Woodson asked if the referrals to ICE affect the population. Mr. Bieringer said that “if the new policy was put into practice, it would definitely have a major impact.” Allen Nance, Assistant Chief Probation Officer, said that “some of the youths ICE had taken into custody and were deported, were returning to SF and were being rearrested. For those kids not being deported, the federal authorities were reuniting some of them with their families. As a result, the courts stated that if and when these youths returned to SF, they were expected to comply with the orders of the court.”
• Mr. Nance said that he and Chief Siffermann, along with the City Attorney’s office, met with representatives from the Department of Human Services, the Office of Refugee Resettlement. Young people are turned over to this office after ICE has taken them into custody and the office has a legal mandate to reunite the youths with their parents/guardians.
  COMM Woodson asked when Mr. Nance and Chief Siffermann had this meeting. Mr. Nance said “three weeks ago.”
  COMM Woodson asked if the law changed, if JPD was required to wait until the youth were either adjudicated or if it was decided that they would be prosecuted as an adult, would that change the population. Mr. Bieringer said that “adult issue is one of age and there was suspicion that many of the kids were over the age of 18.” Mr. Bieringer said that “if this new policy, the amendment passed by the BOS, was put into practice, JPD would see the case processing dissipate. JPD would get back to longer continuances, which would increase the population in the Hall.” Mr. Bieringer stated that this is only his opinion.
• COMM Wan asked if the detention alternative programs have longer wait lists. Mr. Bieringer said “no.” Mr. Bieringer does not think that the “alternatives to detentions have any more openings than they had before. They are maintaining at the level that they have always been at.”
  
  

Department updates by Allen Nance

• Huckleberry CARC has moved to 44 Gough Street.
• JPD will participate in Functional Family Therapy (FFT) which consists of 12 to 16 sessions within the next month. This will be available to all youths at JJC, except for minors in a locked facility. Multi-language therapists will be available.
• Allison Magee, Director of Administrative Services, has been recognized by SPUR for her leadership in excellence and has been selected as a recipient of the 2010 public managerial excellence award. The ceremony will be held in City Hall on February 22^nd.

b. Committee Reports

Programs

• COMM Beijen stated that the Programs Committee did not meet since the last Full Commission Meeting because the task was to investigate the Young Father’s Program at Juvenile Hall. COMM Beijen attended two sessions and spoke with the facilitators, Mr. Tanner and Ms. Brown, and they would like to develop a more formalized curriculum and establish their procedures further.
  COMM Woodson stated that she went to the Young Father’s Program on a Sunday morning and encourages the other Commissioners to attend.
  COMM Beijen stated that due to the Sunshine Ordinance, the Commissioners should attend the meeting one at a time.
  
  

Finance

• COMM Wan stated that the next Finance Committee Meeting will be held on Thursday, January 21, 2010 at 3:30 p.m. at JPD to discuss the budget cuts.
  
  

5. Future Agenda Items (ACTION ITEM)

Announcements

• The elections for Commission President and Vice President will be up for discussion and action at the next Full Commission Meeting.
• Under Chief’s Report, a full briefing on the meeting that Mr. Nance and Chief Siffermann had with DHS regarding any outcomes and/or future meetings will be up for discussion at the next Full Commission Meeting.
• The Federal Promise Program, a resolution passed by the BOS, will be up for discussion at the next Full Commission Meeting in case the Commission would like to do a similar resolution on supporting Promise.
• COMM Beijen stated that the Commission is supposed to have meetings in the community twice a year and suggested the next Full Commission Meeting be held at Huckleberry CARC’s new location at 44 Gough Street.
• Public Comment
  Joanna Hernandez, Families Understanding the System. Would like to give an update at the next meeting.
• No further public comments.
  
  

6. Adjournment (ACTION ITEM)

• The meeting adjourned at 6:20 p.m.