Stanislaus County probation chief to take Los Angeles job

It looks like Jerry Powers, Stanislaus County’s probation chief for nine years and a finalist to run the entire county, instead will run the world’s largest probation department in Southern California.

If Los Angeles County supervisors approve his $255,000 contract Tuesday, Powers would take over the department’s 6,200 employees and a $750 million budget on Dec. 5. He makes $164,000 here overseeing 250 employees and a $25 million budget.

“I think the fact they looked here is a huge compliment to Stanislaus County,” said Powers, who privately withdrew as one of five finalists for Stanislaus County chief executive officer after news broke two weeks ago that he had been offered the Los Angeles job.

Powers, 48, had interviewed a couple of years ago with Los Angeles leaders, who apparently kept a favorable impression and approached him again after he applied for the county’s top job here.

Rick Robinson will retire at year’s end after more than seven years as Stanislaus County’s chief executive officer. Powers emerged three weeks ago as the only identified candidate among five on a short list to replace Robinson, who oversees 3,440 employees.

The lure of heading a much larger, albeit troubled, probation department was too much for Powers to pass up, he said Thursday.

A 2000 grand jury report charged Los Angeles probation with overmedicating young offenders in substandard conditions, leading to an ongoing U.S. Department of Justice investigation. The department must beat a reporting deadline this month or face loss of operating control and its budget, the Los Angeles Times said.

The Times also reported that Powers’ pay would exceed that of outgoing probation chief Donald H. Blevins, a much more experienced administrator, by $28,000. And Powers would be paid an additional $25,000 in moving costs.

Acknowledging “daunting” problems with the huge department, Powers said, “I embrace that challenge.

“My question to the (Los Angeles) board was, is this a winnable job? I think it’s winnable. I think I can make a difference down there.”

The Times noted Powers’ “political acumen” as president of the state’s association of probation chiefs and his ties to the governor and lawmakers.

He took a lead role in Stanislaus’ plan to address a shift from state prisons and parole to county jails and probation. His department also piloted a partnership with Child Support Services, the first of its kind in California.

Down south, Powers will have ultimate charge over 60,000 adult probationers and 20,000 youths, including about 3,600 in county-run detention halls and camps beset by accusations of misuse of force.

“It’s a huge leap” from Stanislaus County, Powers acknowledged. “But I’ve got six people reporting to me directly here and I would have about six down there; it’s just that the pyramid gets a lot bigger as you go down. It comes down to leadership; if you’re leading 250 or 2,000, leadership principles are not hugely different.”

Powers supervised Stanislaus County Juvenile Hall for two years before becoming chief nine years ago. Before that, he worked 15 years in probation in San Diego.

He told staffers here on Wednesday that he had accepted the Los Angeles position, he said.

“It was a tough day, to finally acknowledge I’m going to leave here,” he said. “There are great people here.”

This story was originally published October 20, 2011 at 10:33 PM with the headline "Stanislaus County probation chief to take Los Angeles job."