SB county unaware mental health specialist had felony record

A county mental health specialist who worked with traumatized children and adults had a prior prison stint and four felony convictions when the Department of Behavioral Health hired her in February 2006.

[PrayerAngel]

I find it hard to believe that this person did not have access to confidential information of the clients in order to make her referrals....it sounds like cover thy ass time....to even have someone with all these felony convictions working in any capacity in this county without a DOJ background check is ludicrous...she would still have access to the confidential information that brought about the crisis, whatever that may be....stop blowing smoke county officials and fix the problem....

[Who you kidding]

Just the usual preferential hiring treatment given to ethnics. Lower the standards and look the other way.

[MTZ]

Is anyone surprised?

San Bernardino County Government is slowly caving in. Too bad it doesn't just crash so we can start over.

[California Sun]

Who you kidding,
So true.

[Public Safety]

That ain't nothing. Supposedly the City of Colton has a convicted felon working as the Asst. Finance Director. No wonder Colton is in such bad shape!

[Local Resident]

One has to ask was there a background check really accomplished on this individual? If so, by whom? I now challenge ALL the other background checks that have supposedly been accomplished from the time this individuals was performed forward. There now are big indications that something is really broken within the County Government and who or how security / background checks are preformed. Whomever within this Agency (Division Head or higher) is responsible/accountable must provide a full, open and complete explanation to the public. If this is not performed PDQ, then we should call for the resignation (not retirement) of this Division Head as he/she has now demonstrated an inability to function in that capacity.

The County Supervisors should monitor this issue and act accordingly. Someone must be held accountable and be responsible (other than the lowest individual) for this total failure/breakdown of this portion of the Security System which is inexcusable. This demonstrates poor monitoring and supervision of subordinates ace and through positive corrective actions must be taken at the earliest. The public needs to know what actions have or will be taken as our faith in the way the County Government has demonstrated itself is now challenged as being in the best interest of the public in which they serve.

[Anonymous]

They are covering their @#$, as they always do, because I know for a fact they have access to dates of birth and social security numbers, amongst other information.

PrayerAngel wrote:

I find it hard to believe that this person did not have access to confidential information of the clients in order to make her referrals....it sounds like cover thy **** time....to even have someone with all these felony convictions working in any capacity in this county without a DOJ background check is ludicrous...she would still have access to the confidential information that brought about the crisis, whatever that may be....stop blowing smoke county officials and fix the problem....

[Friend]

The individual in question undoubtably made some wrong choices, but she was a very good worker. In the field we are in she went into many situations to prevent children from killing themselves, or kept them from hurting someone else (Which happens more often than many people realize). Her previous problems allowed her to connect with clients in a way that I never could, becasue she had been through "hell". As far as no one knowing, of course they knew! We all knew becasue she never tried to hide it. She went throught the background check, and was always open about her past. Her previous felony records have been expunged, and as far as this current charge, she was in the wrong place at the wrong time. She is in fact out of jail now (If she did the crime, she would not be out and would have been in prison rather than jail). I am not defending the choices that she made, she knows very well that she "screwed up", but do not believe everything you read, especially from the Sun (or should I say, The Enquirer).

[TBT]

No matter how much lipstick you put on this Wert, it's still a pig. No access to the private information, ok... How about narcotics. She is a convicted drug dealer, isn't she?

[Who You Kidding]

Friend wrote:

The individual in question undoubtably made some wrong choices, but she was a very good worker. In the field we are in she went into many situations to prevent children from killing themselves, or kept them from hurting someone else (Which happens more often than many people realize). Her previous problems allowed her to connect with clients in a way that I never could, becasue she had been through "hell". As far as no one knowing, of course they knew! We all knew becasue she never tried to hide it. She went throught the background check, and was always open about her past. Her previous felony records have been expunged, and as far as this current charge, she was in the wrong place at the wrong time. She is in fact out of jail now (If she did the crime, she would not be out and would have been in prison rather than jail). I am not defending the choices that she made, she knows very well that she "screwed up", but do not believe everything you read, especially from the Sun (or should I say, The Enquirer).

Wrong choices? There was only one wrong choice made here and that was the one that hired her.

[California Sun]

Who You Kidding,

Who hired this felon? They should lose their job.

[here we go again]

Looks like Werts is Moon-Walking like MJ.Maybe he can get on Dancing with the Stars , he's good at getting around the problems.I have friends at SB county and they say there is so much waste and lack of accountable responsbility that they will go broke in a year or less.Oh maybe the county supervisors will some how get"reimbursed" for the time they "work".

[bootsysmom]

"unpaid administrative leave" for this woman??? Huh? She obviously lied on her application when asked for felony conviction info - that is an offense that warrants dismissal.

[Tax Fiend]

Wert is incorrect and appears to be misleading the county residents. The county has been doing the DOJ finger printing prior to 2006 when this person was hired. The job requires interaction with children so it is/was a requirement to do the background check which includes the Department of Justice fingerpriting check. Sounds more like Mark Uffers county cronies AGAIN get caught with their pants down NOT doing their jobs, what a shock, this time in Human Resources. You can't blame the Dept of Behavioral Health since they do not do the screenings and background checks for hiring of employees.

[mr-henry]

Wow. Honestly I can't see how a felony more than a decade ago can now ruin her job. She's paid her debt yet all the underqualified morons are mad because she has a good job making good money and doesn't have to lead a life of crime.

It is a sad day when the real criminals get off and people who have a history but now are clean can't keep there jobs even when they are able as her.

Sad.

America is turning into a cracpfest because of all of these dumb drug laws.

[get over it]

This is seriously a good show of how hateful america has become. This woman did some dumb things 10-15 years ago. She got punished, did time, as society says you should, then got out and kept clean long enough to expunge those things.
She now went on to get her life together, and instead of turning back to old ways, used her past struggles to try and help others through their pain in their time of need. Personally, I believe we should stand and give this woman her due. She turned lots of negative into positive, and you all are so worried about past mistakes??

To keep someone down their whole life because they messed up is wrong. I bet some of you have gotten a traffic ticket before. Should you never be allowed to drive again because you messed up?? Have you missed work unnesassarily?? Well then, you should never be allowed to work again! See how that is??
People are too often judged by mistakes, and not the fact that they can turn around and help other people regardless of past blunders.
I bet if your child had been attempting to take their own life and she had helped talk her down, you would not have the same opinion you do now!!!!

[get over it]

bootsysmom wrote:

"unpaid administrative leave" for this woman??? Huh? She obviously lied on her application when asked for felony conviction info - that is an offense that warrants dismissal.

If they are expunged (which they were) you do not have to answer yes on your app. That is another problem with the justice system, you can have your record sealed, but it can be re opened for no reason at all???? That's like paying a fine, then 15 years later the courts decide to charge you again

[Isaac Oon]

She was arrested in September 2009 on suspicion of participating in a home invasion robbery. Ya think she'd been rehabilitated? Ya gonna tell us it was just another "mistake"? A violent person with a violent history.
Give her her due? Oh yeah, she'll get that for sure.
Could've been your home she was robbing.

[KVA]

get over it - lets talk either apples or oranges...if your record is not sealed, and you commit ANOTHER felony, it can be brought to light, they aren't charging her for all crimes in the past, just the most recent. Why do you think some ex-felons have a hard time re-entering the workplace? SOCIETY can be unforgiving, even if the courts are....but it's not the same as paying for the same crime twice.

[GANGSTER]

Isaac Oon wrote:

She was arrested in September 2009 on suspicion of participating in a home invasion robbery. Ya think she'd been rehabilitated? Ya gonna tell us it was just another "mistake"? A violent person with a violent history.
Give her her due? Oh yeah, she'll get that for sure.
Could've been your home she was robbing.

Hey retard, if you read up on it, she is no longer in custody, and the charges were dropped. Now she is violent?? Since when was drug possession and forgery violent crime???? Just another case of cops having a hard-on for people who have committed crimes in their past, and trying they're best to ruin their lives.