SLO County correctional deputies won't endorse Parkinson — but they don't say why

The union representing San Luis Obispo County's correctional deputies and dispatchers quietly voted last month to not endorse their current boss nor his opponent in the heated race for sheriff.

Sheriff Ian Parkinson is seeking a third term and is facing a challenge from former San Luis Obispo police officer Greg Clayton in the June 5 Primary Election.

Correctional officers and other jail staff have come under scrutiny following the death of 36-year-old Andrew Holland at the jail last year, as well as a series of other high-profile inmate deaths in the past five years. After The Tribune published video of Holland's death in which a correctional deputy is seen laughing, the Sheriff's Office says custodial staff at the jail received death threats.

For nearly two weeks, the Deputy Sheriff's Association; its president, Senior Correctional Deputy Lars Luther; and its legal counsel have ignored repeated requests from The Tribune for comment about their endorsement.

But emails Luther sent April 30 confirming the non-endorsement — including one to a member of the Clayton campaign — were forwarded to the newspaper Thursday.

In them, Luther wrote: "After completing a second vote, the DSA, the association representing employees other than patrol division deputies, will not be endorsing any candidates in the current races for sheriff or DA."

It is unclear why the union voted twice, or what the first outcome was.

Luther did not respond to a final request for comment Friday, and the union has not mentioned the race nor responded to messages on its Facebook page.

However, the Sworn Deputy Sheriff's Association, the union that represents the patrol deputies, has voted to endorse Parkinson. SDSA President John McDaniel said May 1 that the union was still in the process of voting on a possible endorsement in the District Attorney's race between incumbent Dan Dow and challenger Judge Mike Cummins.

McDaniel did not respond to a request for updated information Friday.

Parkinson took office in 2011 and has a clear edge over Clayton in terms of endorsements from law enforcement; he's been endorsed by nearly all high-ranking law enforcement unions and administrators in the county and received financial support from a host of elected officials.

Clayton, on the other hand, has received a comparatively modest number of endorsements, including those from the SLO County Democratic Party and SLO Progressives, as well as a handful of elected officials.

In recent months, The Tribune has received several anonymous letters from writers identifying themselves as family members of current correctional deputies at the jail. The letters state that The Tribune's coverage of Andrew Holland's death has mistakenly focused on the line-level custody staff and ignored correctional supervisors who ordered them to place Holland in restraints.

Letter writers expressed frustration that Parkinson has promoted "inexperienced" deputies into management roles and that custody staff face reprisals if they question policy or complain. One letter stated that Parkinson is "totally oblivious or uninterested in the lack of experience of his staff who oversee the custody division."

"The morale of the custody staff overall? In the toilet. With the election of Sheriff Parkinson, all sensible promotions have gone out the window," the author states.

The letter reads: "His higher-ups are 'yes' men and women. They are not leaders. ...The line staff has nowhere to go with their concerns because if they're not part of the 'good ol' boys club,' where promotions favor inexperienced Parkinson disciples, they receive reprisals for (daring) to speak up, question policy, and/or complain."

The Tribune has not independently verified the authenticity of the letters.

Correction: This article has been updated to reflect Parkinson's financial support from several elected officials, originally misstated as endorsements.

This story was originally published May 11, 2018 at 6:33 PM with the headline "SLO County correctional deputies won't endorse Parkinson — but they don't say why."