Information For Vote

Members,

Our job has changed significantly since I started with MCSO over a decade ago. The type of inmates we have in custody, new laws regarding police accountability, and the increased scrutiny we endure have all added to our already high stress and exposure to liability. I want to propose something to our membership as an added benefit to help protect us, and explain why I believe this is something we as an association need.

Your current membership dues help to cover our expenses as we negotiate contracts, review new policies, represent members during IAU investigations, author IAU rebuttals, enforce our contract through the grievance process, take grievances to arbitration when necessary to hold the County accountable for the contract we mutually agree to.

Occasionally, when a member is forced to navigate the criminal justice system for incidents that occur during the course of our duties, we provide legal defense through our criminal or labor attorneys up to the point that the member is indicted by a Grand Jury. If the member is indicted for a crime, this coverage stops, and the member is forced to cover the expense of their defense from that point on. Any fines, fees, or assessments will have to be paid by the member. If they are found to be within policy and have been cleared through IAU, and an inmate sues the County, then the County attorney protects them from liability.

Criminal Defense attorneys can charge between $200-$700 an hour.

The DSA (MCSO LE) and PPA (PPB) use a legal defense plan for all their critical incidents which is called PORAC (Peace Officers Research Association of California). This legal defense plan has now has been offered to our membership, and our lawyers have strongly recommended that we look into joining. The rate is $7 per member per month and the participating lawyers are top notch.

MCCDA would need to enroll as an association, and the plan would require everyone in our Association to participate and be covered.

Here are the weblinks for the PORAC Legal Defense Plan:

https://poracldf.org/

https://poracldf.org/plans-and-rates/

https://poracldf.org/ldf-providers/attorneys/

The minimum plan our lawyers recommend is Plan II, which covers scope of employment criminal investigations by providing legal counsel and payment for expenses such as experts. The lawyer benefit carries past grand jury up through and including trials and appeals.

The Plan also provides a lawyer in scope of employment civil cases where the County declines to or reserves rights to defend/indemnify.

I also asked the Board to vote if they supported this insurance plan for our membership and it was a unanimous vote in favor. This will be coming out for all of you to vote on in the next election cycle. Please reach out to the Board if you have any questions.

Respectfully,

Nicole