This issue of our newsletter highlights peer support services available for SFSD staff with a spotlight on recognizing some precursors of possible suicidal ideation. It also includes articles about important work by medical students that is impacting the lives of our women inmates, about two deputies providing positive reinforcement to elementary school children, and about great opportunities provided to underserved youth through the Sheriff's Garden Project. Finally, the speech given by the keynote speaker at the recent Five Keys Charter School in-custody graduation is reprinted for its simple, but authentic message.

In January, during my swearing-in ceremony, I spoke about my vision for the department as one which includes a professional, well-trained, compassionate, dedicated staff of public servants.  Public servants who perform their duties with an understanding of the balance between criminal justice and social justice. Public servants, who are led by someone who holds herself accountable and will also hold each of them accountable. Public servants who meet or exceed expectations. At the conclusion of my remarks, I invited attending law enforcement staff to confirm their dedication to the Law Enforcement Code of Ethics by reciting it with me. In the following days, I received an outpouring of positive comments on the significance of that moment, and I discovered that many in the audience that day had not been familiar with the tenets set forth in the code.

It is clear from recent events that the public is demanding, rightly, more transparency and accountability of its public servants -- especially those in law enforcement. One way to ensure we meet their expectations is for each member of the Sheriff's Department, no matter what their position, to ask themselves in each situation, "Am I performing my duty to a standard I would approve of as a member of the public?"  In other words, "Can my behavior be held up to the light of transparency and accountability as a source of pride to my fellow employees and the department as a whole?"

There is no doubt that the overwhelming majority of people employed by the Sheriff's Department work very hard to be professional and accountable in meeting this test. For those of us who are sworn, this self-check may go a little deeper -- especially when we are faced with challenging circumstances that may require more reflection. In those moments, we might ask ourselves, "What does the Code say?" Every deputy sheriff has recited the Law Enforcement Code of Ethics at some point in his or her career. I believe it is a code that our non-sworn staff of public servants can adopt as well. We are reprinting the code here, as a reminder to our deputies, as a guide for our other employees, and as an introduction for members of the public who may not be familiar with it. The language may seem a little outdated, but the message of integrity and commitment to "doing the right thing" continues to resonate.