Gary Redman’s Calaveras County sheriff appointment interview

Board Chair Cliff Edson: Welcome, and thank you for applying for our Sheriff's position. I'd like to start by giving you an opportunity to introduce yourself to the public, and then we'll start asking questions.

Gary Redman: My name is Gary Redman, and I have been a resident of Calaveras County for a little over 18 years. My civilian law-enforcement career is a little over 20 years. I was in the Air Force for four years as a security policeman; that's where I began my law-enforcement career. I got out of the Air Force and went to LAPD for two years, where I went through the academy. I'm originally from Los Angeles. My wife and I decided to move up to Calaveras County; she's originally from Tuolumne, which is what brought me this way. We've made Calaveras home for the last 18 years. During that time I started with the Amador County Sheriff's Office and have been there ever since.

Board member — identity not verified: We have a list of 20 questions that were submitted by the public and the Board and vetted through County Counsel and Human Resources. I'll start with number one: Can you please tell the interview panel about your management and executive-level experience and how this experience has prepared you to serve in the role of one of California's 58 sheriffs?

Gary Redman: I've got just over 20 years of law-enforcement experience. The last 15-plus years have been at least in a supervisory role, and the last five to five-and-a-half years in an executive role at the Amador Sheriff's Office. I was a patrol lieutenant after serving as a sergeant for several years, then became a captain, which I've been for about three-and-a-half years. I've run both major divisions of the Sheriff's Office: custody and operations/patrol. I've run the Amador County Jail, including civil and the bailiff function, and for a little over a year I've been on the operations side overseeing patrol, dispatch, special teams and investigations. I've been fortunate to experience almost every position in our Sheriff's Office, from boating deputy to patrol. I was also on SWAT for more than 17 years, the SWAT team leader for the last eight of those years, and I'm currently the SWAT commander.

Board member — identity not verified: Captain, you've probably been doing a little research on the Calaveras County Sheriff's Department. Given the current staffing levels, how would you change or not change the existing beat structure in the county to ensure safe and proper law-enforcement performance with the resources we have?

Gary Redman: Now I don't know if I would necessarily go in and just make start making changes with the current beat structure um you know to to me as a as an administrator you you've got to come in and look at how efficiently are we deploying the resources are we efficiently deploying those resources uh where can we best manage some of the resources what are the problem areas that we're dealing with also looking at uh statistics time of day night day of week are to me an important factor and an important issue that you've got to uh look at when making those decisions um you know it uh like I said I don't know if I necessarily just come in and start start changing the beat structure but more do a global look at how efficiently is the Sheriff's Office running can we pull people from other positions uh can do we have to add people to different positions such as investigations you know are are there diff are there areas within the Sheriff's Office we can we can pull those people from so that's one of the first things I would uh one of the first things I would take a look at did that answer your question sir

Board member — identity not verified: What awards or other recognition have you received for your law-enforcement work?

Gary Redman: I don't know if I've really received any awards in my law-enforcement career. I've been recognized by outside groups for some of the work I do. One I'm particularly proud of is NAMI in Amador County. As jail captain, it became evident that mental-health issues inside the jail and on patrol have a huge impact on resources and time. Working with NAMI, we obtained Crisis Intervention Training for the entire agency, including jail staff and dispatchers, and I was recognized by the group for those efforts.

Board member — identity not verified: What have you done to familiarize yourself with the needs of Calaveras County and the Sheriff's Office's ability to fulfill those needs?

Gary Redman: Obviously living here uh being with Amador County and working with the Sheriff's Office over the last 18 years you know our just because we're separar separated by a river doesn't mean our our investigations our our lines don't cross you know I've been embedded with Calaveras and the deputies I know quite a few the deputies I've worked on operations with the deputies um I just worked on an operation a couple weeks ago involving uh some of our deputies some of their deputies you know th those quite frequently cross um I've also trained with them um so I've gotten to know them over the years I don't really consider myself or look at myself as an outsider of the uh the the Sheriff's Office because I've been involved with so many of them and so many different investigations and operations and trainings over the years so with that I think I've got a fairly decent handle or decent idea of some of the problem issues of what what what the Sheriff's Office is facing um and with those in mind obviously comes a plan of action of how to address some of those

Board member — identity not verified: As Sheriff, you'll be responsible for maintaining partnerships with non-law-enforcement agencies or departments throughout the county and state. Please describe what experience you have building relationships with other agencies and what specific tasks or projects you were directly responsible for within the scope of these duties.

Gary Redman: That's extremely important, and I pride myself on having a proven track record of building relationships and lines of communication with non-law-enforcement partners. As jail commander I developed working relationships with the public defender's office, probation, the district attorney's office and other groups. I'm also a member of the child-abuse council, domestic-violence abuse council and NAMI. HR is another example: a Sheriff's Office doesn't have all the answers or resources, so you have to cooperate with other groups and community partners and tap into their resources. I've got a proven track record of doing that and work very well with other groups.

Board member — identity not verified: Do you feel a healthy working relationship exists with public agencies and departments within the county, and what would you do to improve those relationships?

Gary Redman: From my perspective, based on what I've seen and dealt with, I don't think the relationships are as good as they should be, can be, or need to be. As Sheriff, one of the priorities would be reaching out and establishing those relationships, making sure we're all in this together as county agencies with one common goal: serving the people of Calaveras County. I truly believe in that; otherwise I wouldn't have spent 20 years of my life, plus four years in the Air Force, doing that. It's important that we work together toward that common goal. As Sheriff, that's absolutely one of the top priorities.

Board member — identity not verified: Could you explain your program to retain and hire deputies if additional resources and funding become available? Given the current understaffing and limited resources, how would you retain deputies, recruit new deputies, and improve recruitment?

Gary Redman: I think Calaveras has done a really good job of trying to recruit from qualified applicants within the county if you can get the Homegrown the people that live here they're sort of faser uh less likelihood of them leaving to different agencies uh with that being said we we do the same same thing in Amador I've been involved in the hiring process of deputies uh for 15 plus years um and the Recruitment and Retention is it's an issue across the board uh Calaveras is not unique to that and no agency is really immune from those effects but with that said I I think Calaveras has done a pretty good job of trying to recruit the the the people from Calaveras and that's where you want to start and as far as re retention and the continued recruitment it's not all about the money it's not all about the pay benefits of of of the job those those are important to a certain extent I came to Amador County and took a fairly significant pay cut because of the quality of life and where I wanted to live and the things that Amador County had to offer me and I think there's a lot that the Sheriff's Office can do that doesn't cost money um it's the the the programs the uh the other involvement that the deputies can can get in and it's getting them vested not only in the Sheriff's Office but in the community it's also the attitude from the sheriff down of how these deputies feel and view themselves are they important do they feel that like they're important and you know to me that's that's a very very important aspect and something that I've tried very hard at Amador and as a manager for the last sever several years I had a really good track record with our DSA the uh deputy sheriff's Association uh because of how I treat them my expectations it doesn't mean that they they get to kind of willy-nilly do whatever they want but it's all about respect it's about all how how they feel treated and a lot of the programs that that uh we we offer them training I mean all all these kind of come into a play and an atmosphere that is Created from the top down.

Board member — identity not verified: Please describe your familiarity with the county budget process and specifically what you know about the Sheriff's Office budget.

Gary Redman: I took a look at the uh one of the first when I applied for this position I took a look at the uh the Sheriff's Office budget specifically um and to be honest it's a little little cumbersome it's a little different than what what I'm used to you know I currently manage over a $35 million budget when I was in the jail I managed a uh a little bit more than that so I I am familiar with managing budgets and being accountable for that looking at the Sheriff's Office budget um it it's from what I could tell it's not not real great great shape uh there's a lot of and a a Sheriff's Office it's not a money maker most government isn't you're not in a business to make money um it it is kind of a black hole that uh it it takes money to run a Sheriff's Office there's certain things you can do to mitigate that there's certain aspects of bringing in a little bit of income but it can't be looked at as a money maker uh so with that being said there's a lot of my view there's a there's a there's a lot of grant funding um being brought into the Sheriff's Office which I think is a good thing yet uh yet grant funding always isn't there you've got to be real careful with that grant funding and those those extra funding uh sources um to make sure the money money is there to cover when when it's when it's not there because that's not always going to be around so that's kind of what what I've seen from the Sheriff's Office uh in

Board member — identity not verified: Following up on that, given our budget constraints, how would you stretch taxpayer dollars and still deter crime?

Gary Redman: It goes back to efficiency: are we running the Sheriff's Office as efficiently as we can? It's looking at the programs we're involved with, the extra duties and the funding sources, and asking whether we're getting all the funding we can. There's a lot of funding in Community Corrections that I don't think Calaveras is tapping into. Public safety remains an extremely important factor—making sure our people are on patrol and have the tools and capabilities they need. It comes back to strategically looking at the data and asking whether we're doing it the best possible way.

Board member — identity not verified: What kind of corrections funding are you talking about?

Gary Redman: Out in Community Corrections, there's program funding that can augment or supplement the corrections side—trying to get people out of jail and into programs and keep them from repeat offending. It can also save money in the long run. Fewer people in jail means fewer bed days and lower costs for food, housing, insurance and medical bills. That's the kind of funding I'm talking about; there's quite a bit out there.

Board member — identity not verified: As Sheriff of Calaveras County, what would your top three priorities be, and why?

Gary Redman: My number one priority would be to stop the hemorrhaging of deputy sheriffs and that's that's really what I see with Calaveras County right now is the the the number of people that are leaving left and right and like I said it's uh it's not always about money no agency is immune from this uh Calaveras really isn't that different um from other agencies some agencies are better able to manage that than than others and I really believe that stop that starts from the top down it's the whole attitude it's the whole there's a legitimacy in law enforcement that people talk about the legitimacy of of whether this agency is legitimate in the eyes of the community and extremely important um and there's been studies and and and all sorts of information done on that but there's also an internal legitimacy that goes along with that do the deputy sheriff's believe in and will they follow the Command Staff of the Sheriff's Office and it starts with respect it starts with with how you treat the people what uh you know like I said it's not just about the pay and benefits it's really kind of a whole attitude shift of being able to provide an environment where they feel appreciated and they want to work when you provide that environment and they're happy coming to the coming to coming to work they're going to go out and provide a much better level of service to the citizen in Calaveras um it's just you know the the studies the studies Pro that so that's one of the one one of the top priorities second is dealing with the budget uh is taking a global look an overall look at the budget and all the programs were involved with all the funding resources and are we efficiently doing that uh third I think is is healing the Sheriff's Office and by that what I mean is during the last election uh there was a huge division within the Sheriff's Office uh I saw it I I think anybody would have would have seen that and I believe it still exists today um there's still kind of a divide going on in the Sheriff's Office so unifying them bringing them together um sort of healing them is to me is also an important

Board member — identity not verified: You indicated there's a divide in the Sheriff's Department. Could you explain what type of division and in what area?

Gary Redman: With the election, there were two camps that popped up: the current sheriff, Sheriff Kuntz, and the sheriff candidate Pat Gahan. That really caused a rift within the Sheriff's Office. This is my opinion and my perspective from viewing it and knowing a lot of people within the Sheriff's Office. I believe there is still somewhat of this division between those two camps.

Board member — identity not verified: What do you feel the sheriff's role is within the community and its organizations?

Gary Redman: To me, the sheriff is the person at the command of the ship—steering the Sheriff's Office and setting its tone, providing excellent services and making sure the organization is going where it should. In today's law enforcement, if you're not changing and adapting, you're dying. You have to forecast and look into the future. As a patrol captain I can look at statistics and issues and decide something is important, but community members may identify something completely different. It's important to reach out, find out what matters to the community and where they want the Sheriff's Office to go.

Board member — identity not verified: How would you reach out to the community and find out what they're thinking?

Gary Redman: You go back to Community Corrections: there's actually funding for doing surveys for that exact thing. I think surveys are one way to do it. Having forums—almost town-hall-style meetings—to get people's input is another. People need to feel involved with a Sheriff's Office. You need to be approachable and accessible. There's nothing secretive about a Sheriff's Office; there's nothing really secretive about what we do. You've got to create an environment where people feel comfortable saying what they want to see, going to different groups and communities and asking for that information. Surveys and social media are also avenues that can play an important role.

Board member — identity not verified: Will you follow state laws regarding concealed-weapons permits, and what are your views on that?

Gary Redman: My personal opinion is 100% for the Second Amendment. Anybody who is legally qualified to possess and carry a gun and wants to carry it should be able to. As Sheriff, I see no reason not to continue that; as long as they are legally able to carry a firearm, they should be able to carry a firearm.

Board member — identity not verified: Are you in favor of deputies wearing body cameras?

Gary Redman: Yes, I am. As a Sheriff's Office, there's nothing secretive about what we do. We currently have video cameras in all of our vehicles at the Amador Sheriff's Office, and we also require deputies to record all of their contacts. There's a video camera that records and a personal recorder issued to every deputy, so they're supposed to be recording their contacts. What I've seen is that it affects both the deputy's behavior and the citizen's behavior when they know they're being recorded. I think body cameras are going to happen regardless of how I feel about it. At some point the state of California will demand that peace officers wear body cameras. There are funding sources out there, so let's get ahead of this, make it happen, and use state money to make it happen.

Board member — identity not verified: Can you tell us about Senate Bill 178, the new Electronic Communications Privacy Act, and what its impact will be on Sheriff's Office investigations?

Gary Redman: We deal with this. My lieutenant and investigators deal with it more than I do; as a captain, I don't get involved too much with the investigative aspect. I'm not very familiar with it except that it is very problematic for us in the sense that cell phones are pretty much off limits. We went to DOJ trying to get a clear answer about what they would download for us even if we had a search warrant, and what language we needed in the warrant. DOJ, which we use for forensics, couldn't even tell us. It's a little up in the air. We're writing warrants trying to get that information, but whether we're actually going to get it, I can't really tell you at this point.

Board member — identity not verified: Can you explain the new law under Assembly Bill 71, criminal-justice reporting, and what fiscal impacts it will have on the Sheriff's Office?

Gary Redman: I'm not familiar with 71. I've probably heard of it; I don't really know things by Assembly bill numbers.

Board member — identity not verified: Can you explain what impacts Proposition 47 felony reduction has had on the community and the Sheriff's Office?

Gary Redman: The impacts for the Sheriff's Office were, from the jail perspective, obviously good: we saw a reduction in the number of inmates. Our jail was routinely over capacity and had many of the same aging-facility issues Calaveras had. The fiscal and jail-capacity impacts were good. The impacts on the community were still being debated. Arrests for certain crimes, mostly narcotics-related arrests, were down. I couldn't say at that point that I'd seen a rise in burglaries or thefts because of Proposition 47; I thought it was too early to tell. From a fiscal standpoint, it reduced our jail numbers, although they were beginning to increase again.

Board member — identity not verified: I'm not familiar with Amador's jail situation. Do you have a new jail?

Gary Redman: No, we do not. Our jail was built in, I want to say, 1982. It's designed for 76 inmates; routinely I was at 100 or 105 and outsourcing. I spent a lot of money sending people to other jails and had contracts with other jails. I tried for over a year to get a contract with Calaveras; eventually we were able to negotiate one. I used CCP money for that because we weren't spending our CCP money, so we could use it to pay for bed space at other jails. We still contract out and have some people in El Dorado and Nevada counties. We're working with SB 863 money on an addition, which will definitely help.

Board member — identity not verified: You mentioned that you attempted to contract with Calaveras. What happened?

Gary Redman: We just never got a contract back. We kept asking because we needed bed space. We've always had an agreement with Calaveras that if they need to house somebody in Amador, we would house them, and vice versa—essentially a one-for-one swap. I don't know the particulars of why it took so long.

Board member — identity not verified: Assuming that while on duty you witnessed a clear traffic violation involving one of your off-duty deputy sheriffs, would you issue that deputy a traffic citation?

Gary Redman: The answer is no. I'm not going to issue one of my deputies a traffic citation. There are other avenues for me to discipline that deputy. I can't tell you the last traffic ticket I wrote; it's probably been more than five years. It's not really a function of the Sheriff's Office. There are other avenues for disciplining a deputy for committing traffic violations.

Board member — identity not verified: The new medical-marijuana laws encourage local agencies to regulate medicinal marijuana in order to secure state permits. As Sheriff, would you comply with all local laws adopted by the Board of Supervisors in regulating medicinal marijuana and potentially legal marijuana in the future?

Gary Redman: Yes, I will. I'm not against medical marijuana. There's a reason Proposition 215 became law—providing medicine for patients under a doctor's recommendation. I'm not against growing medical marijuana for collectives and dispensaries. What I am against is anything illegal and the massive amount of profiting that some growers are doing. They're not all illegal grows, but there is a prolific issue in Calaveras, Amador and other counties of illegal grows operating under 215 and selling marijuana for massive amounts of money. It affects quality of life and it's illegal. The Board of Supervisors wants to regulate it; that's what I will enforce. I will enforce those regulations.

Board member — identity not verified: Do you support neighborhood-watch groups and feel they help bring concerned citizens together with law enforcement to make communities safer?

Gary Redman: I do. I think it's very important that the Sheriff's Office be embedded in the community. For years as a sergeant I ran our COPS program, so I was heavily involved with neighborhood watch and getting neighborhood watches established within Amador County. It goes back to creating legitimacy within the county.

Board member — identity not verified: How would you implement that given the budget?

Gary Redman: Neighborhood watches cost us nothing except time—a deputy's time. I still have a sergeant who is very good at it. To me, it's identifying people who want to do it and are good at talking to public groups and being involved in the community. The expense is really on the neighborhood-watch group that wants to establish itself, not on the Sheriff's Office. The Sheriff's Office's role is pushing information out and helping them get started.

Board member — identity not verified: What is the COPS program?

Gary Redman: Community Oriented Policing program. It's called probably a hundred different names throughout different law-enforcement agencies.

Board member — identity not verified: There's a lot of acronyms, so I wanted to make sure I understood that one. Question number 20: What would you communicate to your deputies regarding the Black Lives Matter movement?

Gary Redman: My opinion is that it's really not a viable group; I don't see an issue up here with Black Lives Matter, although it potentially could be. I understand what they're trying to say and what they want to say; I just don't agree with the way they're going about this. As Sheriff, it makes no difference to me whether you're part of Black Lives Matter or another group that I may not personally want to be part of or agree with. You have to take that aside and treat everybody with the same dignity and respect they deserve. That should be dictated by the individual, not by the group.

Board Chair Cliff Edson: That's all the questions. You answered them very well. Is there anything you'd like to add that we haven't talked about?

Board Chair Cliff Edson: We appreciate your time. Thank you for stepping up; it's a big decision.

Gary Redman: Thank you very much.