Board Cuts 82 Vacant Jail Jobs in Rift With Sheriff : Government: The supervisors hope to use drug seizure funds to restore cuts in time for 192-cell facility to open.

SANTA ANA —  In a rift with Sheriff Brad Gates, Orange County supervisors cut 82 vacant jail positions Tuesday, a move that the Sheriff’s Department warned could delay the opening of a jail expansion in Orange.

But county officials say they hope those jobs will be restored by the time the 192 new cells at the Theo Lacy Branch Jail in Orange open later this year, if the federal government allows them to use $1.9 million in drug seizure money.

The decision by the supervisors came without discussion, but it could have a major impact on what has become the county’s most pressing priority: finding more jail beds to curb overcrowding.

By eliminating the vacant jail positions at least temporarily, the county hopes to impress upon the federal government the need for approving the $1.9-million allocation--and to send Gates a message, officials said.

“This shows Brad (Gates) that we’re in a serious fiscal situation, that we can’t afford these 82 employees without this drug forfeiture money,” said County Administrator Ernie Schneider, who has been at odds with Gates on the issue.

The $1.9 million would come from the county’s sale last year of international marijuana smuggler Dan Fowlie’s remote 213-acre ranch in southeast Orange County, called Rancho del Rio. The Girl Scouts bought it for $2.4 million to use as a camp, despite Sheriff Gates’ proposal to turn the site into a regional drug-training center.

County officials say drug-forfeiture law may require Gates to sign off on the use of the money, so they have been trying to get the sheriff to write the U.S. attorney’s office on the matter. But Gates has balked, saying he thinks it might be illegal to use the money for a jail expansion since the project predates the seizure of the land.

Assistant Sheriff Walter Fath said Tuesday that Gates’ position on the issue has nothing to do with his past disagreement with the supervisors over the use of the land.

“That’s done, that’s history,” Fath said. “All he wants to do now is make sure this (use of the money) is legal.”

Fath added that the department believes county officials are penalizing Gates through the loss of 82 positions and $3.1 million in salaries simply because of his position. “That’s the way I read it,” he said.

In the meantime, Fath said, the opening of the second phase of the Theo Lacy expansion, which was to begin by early December, may be delayed indefinitely--despite assurances from county officials.

Assistant U.S. Atty. Leon W. Weidman, who has been handling the issue in Los Angeles, said in an interview that his office will act “promptly” to see if Orange County’s request meets federal guidelines for use of drug money. Supervisor Don R. Roth, whose district includes the Theo Lacy project and has led debate on the issue, could not be reached for comment.

Dean Olsen, his chief aide on the jail issue, said the supervisor “is most anxious, most anxious, to get (the expanded jail section) open and utilized.” If the drug forfeiture money does not come through, he said the county may have to consider using its own general funds, or other options, to avoid having jail cells that cannot be filled, as happened in San Diego.

In other business Tuesday, county supervisors:

* Approved a resolution commending former Brea Mayor Ronald E. Isles for his community service and his “innate ability to bring people together.” Isles pleaded guilty last month to criminal conflict-of-interest charges and is on probation, but Supervisor Gaddi H. Vasquez said his work deserves credit.

* Gave the county’s Washington lobbyist, James F. McConnell Jr., an extra $40,000 for each of the next two years, an increase of 20% over his current salary of $192,000. The extra money is to be used to hire more lawyers in Washington to work on environmental regulation.