Over 1,000 CAUSE / CSLEA members, all sworn Peace Officers, have had their affiliates placed in “trusteeship” and their dues seized by CAUSE / CSLEA, who use a secretive set of operating rules not voted on or made available to the general membership.  The Peace Officers alleged violation?  Using the 1^st Amendment to voice their opinion that a Peace Officer - Only union would benefit them.  No revolution, no attempt to destroy CAUSE / CSLEA - merely voicing opinion.

 

P.O.C. will never allow such aggression against members – P.O.C. is run by and for the members, and the consolidation of power is strictly prohibited by safeguards within the P.O.C. Bylaws.  Due$ money cannot be seized, time-release cannot be hoarded, the finances are translucent, and every single member has an equal vote.

 

What exactly are the CAUSE / CSLEA leaders protecting?  Taking a look at Controller Ricardo Sanchez’s role proves illuminating.

 

The largest CAUSE / CSLEA affiliate isn’t like the rest – it is the “catch all” group of Unit 7 members, formerly known as “CAUSE-Only,” who CAUSE / CSLEA rounded up into this group.  They call themselves the California Association of Law Enforcement Employees (CALEE), even though the majority of their members are not Peace Officers – a signal of CAUSE / CSLEA’s carpet-bagging tendencies.  The Due$ income from the CALEE members, meant for use specifically for CALEE, exceeds $10,000 per month.

 

Who did this affiliate elect as their President?  Nobody.  The President of CALEE is Ricardo Sanchez, CAUSE / CSLEA Controller, who was appointed by President Barcelona.  Sanchez is, on paper, a DMV Investigator – that’s what his monthly paycheck from the state says.  But he hasn’t done that sort of work in a long time – he is on full time release from CAUSE / CSLEA, a benefit earned by the members to benefit the members.  He receives a cop paycheck and cop retirement benefits for shoveling CAUSE / CSLEA’s paper.

 

There’s more.  As CAUSE / CSLEA Controller Sanchez receives a minimum monthly stipend of $1500.  Sanchez has an expense account that cannot be reviewed.  He also oversees CALEE’s $10,000 per month in Due$ money, with no CALEE board to oversee how that money is used.

 

$18,000 per year minimum as a stipend.  A seemingly bottomless expense account.  Unregulated control over $120,000 per year in CALEE Due$.  All on top of a state salary and a retirement formula meant for people who risk their lives, not a paper cut, in the course of their daily duties. 

 

A sitting affiliate President board member of CAUSE / CSLEA requested to review Sanchez’s expenses – the request was denied, and the affiliate was placed into “trusteeship” by CAUSE / CSLEA.  The person named as trustee over that and other affiliates totaling over 1,000 sworn members is Ricardo Sanchez.

 

President Barcelona effectively controls the seven CAUSE / CSLEA officer positions, including that of Controller Sanchez.  Barcelona refers to himself as a DOJ Special Agent in some CAUSE / CSLEA publications, and his monthly state paycheck confirms that he is at the top step in that classification and receives full Peace Officer benefits.  Barcelona entered office as a DMV Investigator and was later somehow appointed a Special Agent while already on full time release.  Could this appointment be somehow related to the $156,000 in CAUSE / CSLEA PAC funds given to the Attorney General by President Barcelona back then?  You decide for yourself and take a look at the contributions listed below:

 

THE LOCKYER COMMITTEE	CONTRIBUTION	$50,000.00
THE LOCKYER COMMITTEE	CONTRIBUTION	$50,000.00
THE LOCKYER COMMITTEE	CONTRIBUTION	$26,000.00
THE LOCKYER COMMITTEE	CONTRIBUTION	$10,000.00
THE LOCKYER COMMITTEE	CONTRIBUTION	$10,000.00
FRIENDS OF BILL LOCKYER	CONTRIBUTION	$5,000.00
THE LOCKYER COMMITTEE	CONTRIBUTION	$5,000.00
THE LOCKYER COMMITTEE	CONTRIBUTION	$2,500.00

 

http://cal-access.sos.ca.gov/Campaign/Committees/Detail.aspx?id=1221953&session=2001&view=expenditures

 

http://cal-access.sos.ca.gov/Campaign/Committees/Detail.aspx?id=1070224&view=expenditures&session=2001

 

Is this how you want your union to work and spend your hard earned Due$ money?  His total compensation package from CAUSE / CSLEA, including expense account, stipend, and other forms of payment, has never been revealed but has been the subject of much speculation.

 

Over the years a variety of activities at CAUSE / CSLEA have been questioned by various members, and answers have consistently been denied.  Why did CAUSE / CSLEA lose an alleged $1 million in a failed candy store scheme?  Was this simply a horrible business decision or something worse?  Why did CAUSE / CSLEA spend some $900,000 of member’s Due$ in an attempt to unionize a Campbell’s Soup factory, and what does that have to do with representing state cops?  Why was nearly $60,000 spent on the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s race, supporting a candidate with few law enforcement endorsements whose opponent received 62% of the vote?  How did that benefit state cops?

 

These and other questions have been posed during President Barcelona’s tenure, and the answers remain elusive.  Aggressive questioning leads to punishment including fines and expulsion from the union, with the loss of essential legal defense fund access.

 

Will Special Agent Barcelona and Investigator Sanchez fit in leading a new CAUSE / CSLEA that has lost the Peace Officers?  They would have to change to non-sworn classifications to do so.  Could Barcelona and Sanchez take over the new Peace Officer unit?  Not with P.O.C.   See why they’re so interested in maintaining the status quo?

 

With P.O.C. the members have the ultimate say.  Each affiliate gets their share of Due$ money and release time, and nobody can take that away from you.  The President is elected by all the members, and has no over-reaching authority – the fairly elected board is the decision making body.  All P.O.C. financial records will be free for any member or media interest to inspect.  You will have a union that you can be proud of, and that is proud to have you as an equal partner.