Sonoma County probation sweep jails 7, offers social services to dozens more

A law enforcement sweep designed to clear Santa Rosa’s streets of criminal offenders who violate their probation or jail-release conditions landed seven local men back in custody this week, police said.

A total of 17 people were cited or arrested in the multi-agency operation. Those booked into the Sonoma County Jail were taken in for a variety of suspected drug offenses, arrest warrants and other violations, authorities said. The remaining 10 were released after being ticketed for minor crimes, police said.

In addition, dozens of people were contacted by representatives from social service agencies who accompanied law enforcement personnel in hopes of referring anyone who needed help with housing, educational programs and medical, substance abuse or mental health assistance.

The operation reflects a countywide effort to keep tabs on offenders deemed at high risk of breaking their release conditions but also a desire to provide assistance that some might need to get their lives back on track, Santa Rosa Police Lt. Ray Navarro said.

About 20 law enforcement personnel participated, accompanied by a half dozen representatives from the mobile support team for the county’s Behavioral Health Division, the countywide Community Intervention Program, and Catholic Charities of Santa Rosa, Navarro said. Police contacted more than 60 people over more than six hours, he said.

The Tuesday night compliance check was funded by a grant from the California Board of State and Community Corrections as part of the state’s recent criminal justice realignment program. It involved multiple social service partners because so many offenders out of jail list no permanent address and appear to be homeless, Navarro said.

As law enforcement officers, “there’s not much we can really do for them,” he said. “Having these service providers allows us to give them almost direct referrals to services they might need.”

“We were very excited to be there,” said Jennielyn Holmes, homeless services and housing manager for Catholic Charities, which participated for the first time. “We came across a lot of people who were homeless.’’

The state’s criminal justice realignment, adopted in 2011, shifted responsibility for criminals with nonviolent, less serious offenses to local jurisdictions once they are sentenced and when they are released. The program also provides funding to local government to address the impacts of shifting that burden, including grant funding for compliance checks of probationers and those subject to post-release community supervision.

In Sonoma County, law enforcement chiefs are taking a countywide approach to such efforts, Santa Rosa police said.

Tuesday’s operation resulted from several months of discussion and planning, Navarro said. Agencies represented in the Tuesday operation included Santa Rosa, Sebastopol and Sonoma police departments, as well as Sonoma County Probation.

You can reach Staff Writer Mary Callahan at 521-5249 or mary.callahan@press?democrat.com.