Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: John D. Nibbelin, County Attorney
Subject: Consideration of Procedures for Removal of Sheriff Pursuant to Charter Amendment
RECOMMENDATION:
title
Consider and provide direction on draft procedures for conducting a removal proceeding pursuant to Section 412.5 of the San Mateo County Charter.
body
BACKGROUND:
On March 4, 2025, the County held a Special Election on Countywide Measure A, to amend the San Mateo County Charter to grant the Board of Supervisors authority, until December 31, 2028, to remove an elected sheriff for certain enumerated causes (“Charter Amendment”).
The full text of the Charter Amendment provides as follows:
412.5. Removal of Elected Sheriff for Cause
a. The Board of Supervisors may remove a Sheriff from office for cause, by a four-fifths vote, after a Sheriff has been:
(1) Served with a written statement of alleged grounds for removal; and
(2) Provided a reasonable opportunity to be heard regarding any explanation or defense.
b. For the purposes of this Section 412.5, “cause” shall mean any of the following:
(1) Violation of any law related to the performance of a Sheriff’s duties; or
(2) Flagrant or repeated neglect of a Sheriff’s duties as defined by law; or
(3) Misappropriation of public funds or property as defined in California law; or
(4) Willful falsification of a relevant official statement or document; or
(5) Obstruction, as defined in federal, State, or local law applicable to a Sheriff, of any investigation into the conduct of a Sheriff and/or the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office by any government agency (including the County of San Mateo), office, or commission with jurisdiction to conduct such investigation.
c. The Board of Supervisors may provide for procedures by which a removal proceeding pursuant to this Section 412.5 shall be conducted.
d. This Section 412.5 shall not be applied to interfere with the independent and constitutionally and statutorily designated investigative function of a Sheriff.
e. This Section 412.5 shall sunset and be of no further force and effect as of December 31, 2028 unless extended by voters of San Mateo County.
Measure A passed overwhelmingly, with approximately 84% of the votes cast in favor of the Measure.
The results of the election on the Charter Amendment were certified by the County’s Chief Elections Officer on April 3, 2025, and the Board of Supervisors will take action on confirming the these results at its April 8, 2025 meeting. Pursuant to Elections Code Section 9122, the Charter Amendment takes effect 10 days after the Board acts to confirm the Measure A election results; i.e., on April 18, 2025.
DISCUSSION:
Section 412.5.c. of the San Mateo County Charter states that the Board “may provide for procedures by which a removal proceeding pursuant to this Section 412.5 shall be conducted.” Staff retained the Hanson Bridgett LLP law firm to develop draft procedures and a copy of the draft procedures that the firm has is Attachment A to this Memorandum.
A summary of the material terms of the draft procedures is as follows:
• The Board may initiate the removal process by issuing a written Notice of Intent to Remove, which shall contain the alleged grounds supporting removal and a notice to appear at a pre-removal conference to occur within five (5) calendar days.
• At the pre-removal conference before the Assistant County Executive or their designee, the Sheriff will be given an opportunity to respond to the alleged grounds supporting removal, and the Assistant County Executive or their designee will make a recommendation to the Board as to whether or not to uphold removal.
• The Board will then consider the recommendation and, if the decision to remove is upheld, issue, upon a four-fifths (4/5) vote, a Final Notice of Decision, which shall contain (among other information) (a) the specific cause(s) under Section 412.5.b. that the Sheriff is determined to have violated, (b) notice to the Sheriff’s of the right to appeal the decision to remove, which right to appeal must be exercised within five (5) calendar days and must include the bases for appeal, and (c) notice that, if the Sheriff fails to timely exercise the right to appeal, the decision to remove is final and binding.
• Any hearing of an appeal of the notice to remove requested by the Sheriff will be open to the public unless the Sheriff, within five (5) calendar days, objects in writing to an open hearing and requests a closed hearing.
• Upon receipt of a timely appeal, a list of at least three (3) neutral hearing officers with experience in public safety officer disciplinary matters will be proposed to hear the appeal and one hearing officer from the list will be selected by the parties.
• Before the appeal hearing, the parties will each have the right to propound written discovery, which must be narrowly tailored to avoid an unreasonable burden, harassment, remoteness, and/or production of irrelevant or cumulative evidence.
• The Sheriff must appear at the appeal hearing, where each side will have five (5) days to present its case through live witness testimony and which must be completed within 60 days of the date the hearing officer was notified of their selection.
• Either party may request that the hearing officer issue administrative subpoenas, limited in scope, and relevant and material to the allegation(s) in the Notice of Intent to Remove, and the standard of proof at the hearing is by a preponderance of the evidence.
• Once the appeal hearing concludes, the hearing officer will have 30 calendar days to issue an advisory opinion regarding removal of the Sheriff to the Board, which, upon receipt and consideration of the hearing officer’s advisory opinion, shall make a Final Post-Hearing Decision for Removal, which will be final and binding. A decision to remove the Sheriff shall require a four-fifths (4/5) vote.
An attorney from the Hanson Bridgett firm will be available at the April 8, 2025 Board meeting to present the draft procedures, to address questions from Board member, and to receive Board and community feedback. It is anticipated that the final removal procedures reflecting and incorporating direction provided by the Board at its April 8th meeting will be presented for approval at the Board’s April 22, 2025 meeting, by which point the Charter Amendment will be effective.
COMMUNITY IMPACT:
Development of procedures governing the Board’s potential removal of an elected sheriff for cause, pursuant to Measure A, which was approved by San Mateo County voters, is consistent with the County’s dedication to responsive, equitable, responsible, and accountable governance.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact associated with consideration of the draft procedures by which a removal proceeding shall be conducted pursuant to Section 412.5 of the San Mateo County Charter.