Sheriff Reclassifying Inmates Despite Warning of Illegality

SANTA ANA â€”  Orange County Sheriff Brad Gates has decided to reclassify inmates to put more of them at the Theo Lacy branch jail in Orange, despite a written warning from the county attorney that doing so could violate state laws, county records show.

In a deposition Wednesday, Gates was shown a Jan. 24 letter to Board of Supervisors Chairman Roger R. Stanton in which he admitted that his actions broke a promise he made to Orange officials.

“My promise to the city was that we wouldn’t change the classification of inmates as outlined to them,� Gates’ letter states. “. . . Like most honest people, I like to keep my word. It’s discouraging when circumstances over which I have no control force me to break promises.�

Wednesday’s deposition was held by lawyers representing the city of Orange in a lawsuit seeking to reverse Gates’ actions. During the session, Gates testified, “I don’t make promises. . . . In situations like this, promises don’t really mean anything,� according to attorney Geoffrey K. Willis, who represents the city in the suit and who participated in the session.

Willis provided The Times with a copy of a Dec. 3, 1991, memo from County Counsel Terry C. Andrus to the sheriff in which Andrus warned that virtually every jail option being explored by Gates would run afoul of some state law, regulation or court decision and thus would invite lawsuits.

Andrus wrote that simply placing more inmates at Theo Lacy could lead to suits alleging the action violates the California Environmental Quality Act or violates inmates’ constitutional rights.

Gates, Andrus and Stanton could not be reached for comment.

But Willis said: “I would certainly hope that the effect of today’s disclosures would be more willingness on the part of the county officials to discuss settlement.�

The city, which is trying to block plans to add 900 beds at Theo Lacy, nearly doubling the size of that jail, also contends that the sheriff’s new classification system has resulted in maximum-security prisoners at what is supposed to be a medium-security facility.

County officials have acknowledged this is the case, Willis said.

In 1990, county officials agreed in talks with Orange officials to cap Theo Lacy expansions. But early this year the Board of Supervisors said that a desperate need for jail beds to relieve overcrowding forced them to rethink their policy.

“Now you have criminals that are more dangerous there, who were not contemplated to be housed there at the time the project was formulated, and with no review about whether that’s safe, whether the facility can handle that,� Willis said.