IOLERO seeks judgement for whistleblower complaint subpoenas

The Sonoma County Sheriff contends the subpoenas violate the Letters of Agreement between IOLERO, the Sheriff's Office, and employee groups.

photo credit: County of Sonoma

There's been plenty of back and forth since its inception in 2015 over what exactly IOLERO, Sonoma County's Independent Office of Law Enforcement Review and Outreach, can and can't do.

The saga continues, and the latest chapter is playing out in the courts.

The catalyst for this dispute: a whistleblower complaint sent to IOLERO.

The Sonoma County Sheriff said IOLERO lacks the authority to investigate.

IOLERO Director John Alden has a different assessment.

" Measure P gives us the ability to look into whistleblower complaints from inside county government or inside the sheriff's office by issuing subpoenas to take testimony from people or to get records," Alden said.

Two subpoenas issued in May regarding that complaint are causing the dispute, Alden said.

"So we went ahead and did that in this matter, and the Sheriff's Office has raised a concern that they think maybe we can't," Alden said.

In a statement , the Sheriff's Office said, "under the Letters of Agreement signed by the employee groups, IOLERO, and the County, it is IOLERO’s responsibility to refer whistleblower complaints to the appropriate agency for investigation, not to investigate the complaint."

The Sheriff's Office also points out its cooperation with IOLERO on other subpoenas; instances which they said have been enumerated under the Letters of Agreement.

To settle the impasse over who handles whistleblower complaints and subpoenas, Alden and IOLERO are turning to a judge.

"Since the two of us are on different pages about how those powers are supposed to work, and because it's the first time we've had this disagreement, I think it's helpful for us to get some guidance from the courts about how we should manage this part of our ongoing relationship," Alden said.

The Sheriff's Office also noted that the union representing deputies has threatened to sue if the subpoenaed documents are released.

The plain text of the letters of agreement says members of the Deputy Sheriff's Association are "subject to IOLERO’s authority...to act as a
receiving and investigative agency for whistleblower complaints involving the Sheriff’s Office."

Alden reiterated IOLERO's belief that subpoenas and evidence gathering are a part of the agency's authority.

"The response we've gotten from the Sheriff's Office seems to indicate that they do not believe we have the ability to issue a subpoena in that kind of a case," Alden said. "So that's the core dispute that we're having right now. Does our subpoena power reach whistleblower cases or not?"

Both parties are using private attorneys due to the intra-agency nature of the dispute.

On Tuesday, July 9th, IOLERO submitted a motion in Sonoma County Superior Court seeking enforcement of the subpoenas.