Deputy to provide drug, violence diversion education in Placentia-Yorba Linda school district

A deputy sheriff is scheduled to begin work this week in Yorba Linda's public and private schools in a program to provide drug and violence diversion education to 5^th through 12^th grade students.

The deputy's assignment will supplement the existing School Resource Officer program, assist in homeless liaison efforts and be available for operations conducted by the North Orange County Public Safety Task Force.

Funding for the new position comes from a $20 million state appropriation to the task force, which was formed by Anaheim, Brea, Buena Park, Cypress, Fullerton, La Habra, La Palma,

Placentia, Stanton and Yorba Linda.

Yorba Linda's share of this year's outlay is $224,000, with use limited to youth violence prevention and intervention, offender re-entry programs and homeless outreach and intervention. Officials expect additional funds to be appropriated through June 2021.

The $20 million has been assigned to the north Orange County cities by the California Board of State and Community Corrections, a five-year-old independent state agency that provides oversight to the adult and juvenile criminal justice systems and administers grant funding.

One requirement is that the money be disbursed through a community-based organization. Yorba Linda's City Council has selected the non-profit Drug Use is Life Abuse organization created in 1987 to coordinate community responses to youth substance abuse and violence.

The city's $224,000 portion of the $20 million allotted to the 10 north Orange County cities goes through many hands before ending up in Yorba Linda, starting with the state's Board of State and Community Corrections receiving the money appropriated in the state budget.

That board passes the money to Stanton, which acts as administrator for the funds the board has assigned to the north Orange County cities. Stanton then passes the cash on to the Drug Use is Life Abuse organization the city selected to receive its funding.

Finally, Yorba Linda invoices the latter group in monthly installments and passes the funds on to the Orange County Sheriff's Department to pay the deputy, the deputy's benefits and other costs associated with the deputy's services.

Those costs will be $221,921 in the Dec. 8 through June 30, 2018, period, with $137,395 in deputy compensation and $83,526 for other indirect costs, including equipment and vehicle.

The newly assigned deputy will join 26 other full-time deputies allotted to Yorba Linda under the current contract with the Sheriff's department: 21 on patrol, three on motorcycle, one for community support and one school resource officer.

Fourteen other full-time employees and 12.9 regional and shared positions are assigned to Yorba Linda under a contract amendment approved by the council in May for policing costs of a bit more than $10.4 million.

The city's first five-year law enforcement agreement with the county runs through June 30, 2018.