Seats shuffle in two county departments
Two county offices are getting makeovers as their department
heads finish up their first 50 days in office.
Candice Hooper, elected as San Benito County’s district
attorney, met with the Board of Supervisors to give an update on
her first two months in office and to ask for a reorganization of
her office staff. Joe Paul Gonzalez, county clerk/recorder/auditor,
also asked for some staff changes that would make his department
run more smoothly. The Board of Supervisors approved all changes to
staff positions at their Feb. 27 meeting.
Seats shuffle in two county departments
Two county offices are getting makeovers as their department heads finish up their first 50 days in office.
Candice Hooper, elected as San Benito County’s district attorney, met with the Board of Supervisors to give an update on her first two months in office and to ask for a reorganization of her office staff. Joe Paul Gonzalez, county clerk/recorder/auditor, also asked for some staff changes that would make his department run more smoothly. The Board of Supervisors approved all changes to staff positions at their Feb. 27 meeting.
“I’ve had 50 days in office and we’ve mended some bridges,” Hooper said. “I met externally with law enforcement and we are reorganizing internally.”
One change for the office is that the Victim/Witness Assistance Center will now be located in the same building as the District Attorney. Currently the office is housed on San Felipe Road, near the Health and Human Services Department.
“Victim Witness will be back in the office,” Hooper said.
Hooper shared some other changes including a grant to work on welfare fraud and additional money that will be collected for vehicle registration.
Money for registration of off-road vehicles will now be coming to counties that have off-road parks, such as Hollister Hills.
“The money is going to where the parks are so that is $50-60,000 a year,” Hooper said.
But in order to make the programs work Hooper requested three new staff positions for her department. The office has three attorneys – including Hooper – and one of the key positions she asked the supervisors to add to her office is another deputy district attorney. The office is currently interviewing for Hooper’s old position as assistant district attorney. The total attorney staff would be five when hiring is complete.
“I have weekly staff meetings and one asked to have an ‘attorney of the day,'” Hooper said. “It would be someone in the office to answer legal questions every day.”
Now the attorneys spend much of their time in court and cases are becoming backlogged.
“One thing that is most concerning was the backlog,” Supervisor Anthony Botelho said, of a visit to the office. “Candice showed me a pile of folders and then she showed me a closet more.”
The county is in a position to assist the office now,” Botelho said.
One other position Hooper asked for includes an investigative aide. The aide would allow the office to move more quickly on discovery, Hooper said.
“So far the courts have been patient with us,” Hooper said. “But we don’t want them to lose patience.”
In addition Hooper asked for a half-time receptionist.
“It rubs me the wrong way that the office is closed certain hours,” Hooper said. “The staff needs support to get their work done. There is nothing worse than concentrating and having to stop to address calls or direct traffic.”
The Board also approved the deletion of one full-time paralegal position that has been vacant since 2006.
To meet the new salary needs, the supervisors approved a budget augmentation of $39,753.
