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The statement, in its entirety, follows.
“Sheriff Rivero’s recent decisions to disregard department protocols and compromise officer safety put the lives of Lake County’s peace officers and citizens at risk. As the representative of Lake County’s 65 deputies and sergeants, the Lake County Deputy Sheriffs’ Association urges the sheriff to take steps to protect officer safety and follow our agency’s protocols.
“On April 18, 2011, an unidentified person called in a bomb threat to the Lake County courthouse. The sheriff failed to notify the Lakeport Police Department and on-duty sheriff’s patrol deputies of what was occurring.
“As the evacuation was happening, Lakeport Police Department learned of the incident from officers who were patrolling the area. The sheriff also failed to have emergency medical personnel respond to the scene for potential injuries. The sheriff ignored countywide protocols for notifying local law enforcement agencies and disregarded the policies for mutual aid and the evacuation of the courthouse.
“On May 14, 2011, the sheriff ordered the Lake County Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team to deploy 'Code 3' to the Napa County line to stop a Hells Angels motorcycle club from entering the county.
“'Code 3' responses – lights and sirens – are prohibited by the California Vehicle Code except for in-progress emergencies and life-threatening situations. The sheriff’s order to deploy armed officers to prevent free citizens from entering the county could violate those citizens’ rights and place the citizens, the officers and the county at personal and financial risk.
“Finally, on May 19, 2011, an armed confrontation occurred between members of the Lake County Narcotic Task Force and Clearlake police officers because Sheriff Rivero deliberately ignored established state and county protocols intended to protect the safety of officers and citizens.
“The sheriff chose not to notify the Clearlake Police Department that Narcotic Task Force officers were conducting an undercover operation in the city limits; as a result, police officers responded to the location of the operation and held the officers at gunpoint for several minutes. The sheriff’s decision placed the lives of these officers in imminent danger of 'friendly fire,' not to mention endangering surrounding neighbors and innocent bystanders had a shooting occurred.
“The sheriff’s public statement, 'You can put protocol in front of action, but that’s just not my style,' is an attitude that will get officers killed. We stand prepared to give our lives to protect the citizens of Lake County but we will not stand to lose our lives, our families and our livelihoods because our sheriff chooses to violate the rights and protocols that protect us all.”
A copy of the statement, released Monday evening, was forwarded to Rivero for comment.
In an e-mail response to the association's statement, Rivero offered the following statement.
“The safety of the public and the officers in Lake County is and always has been my top priority,” Rivero said. “The statement issued by the DSA leadership contains many inaccuracies and misquotes and appears misguided. It is disappointing they have issued this statement without the benefit of talking to me despite my having an open door policy.
“It is no secret that the reforms I am implementing, which I promised during the campaign, have been met with resistance from some of the deputies,” he continued. “Accountability, the cornerstone or my reforms, is an absolute necessity in creating a highly respected professional law enforcement agency.
That said, I understand that change can be difficult and at my first opportunity I will ask to meet with the members to discuss their concerns,” Rivero concluded.
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