On January 30, 2007, The United States Department of Justice notified the Orange County Sheriff’s Office of its intention to investigate the use of electronic control devices (ECD’s) by Orange County Deputy Sheriffs.  Law enforcement experts/consultants working on behalf of the DOJ conducted two multi-day on-site visits of the Sheriff’s Office during June and November of 2007.  During those on-site tours, the DOJ representatives reviewed all relevant Sheriff’s Office policies, audited agency training classes, participated in ride-alongs with agency field personnel, and conducted extensive interviews with a cross-section of Orange County Sheriff’s Office command staff, supervisors and deputies.

On August 20, 2008, the DOJ issued a Technical Assistance Letter to then Sheriff, Kevin Beary, which recommended certain practices and procedures to improve the Sheriff’s Office written policies, training, and accountability processes pertaining to the use of ECD weapons.  Since the receipt of that letter, the Sheriff’s Office has worked diligently and cooperatively with DOJ to revise and improve the existing policies and procedures on the use of ECD's.

I am pleased to be able to report that since taking office on January 6, 2009, the Sheriff’s Office has made considerable improvements to its policies, training, and accountability process as they pertain to our use of ECD’s, and I am confident that DOJ will ultimately determine that we are in full compliance with their recommendations.  I remain personally committed to providing excellent service to the citizens we serve, to protect the rights of those we serve, and working closely with our community and government partners.  In the spirit of transparency, I have made the documents associated with the DOJ review of your Sheriff’s Office available to you on this portion of our web site.

Thank you,

Jerry L. Demings

Sheriff of Orange County