Values

Ethics
We hold ourselves to the highest standard of integrity and personal and professional conduct.

Respect
We treat each other and all members of the public with dignity and respect.

Accountability
We accept a shared responsibility for ensuring sound fiscal management, operational efficiency and continuous improvement.

Support for Victims
We show compassion and understanding to the victims of crime and their families.

Diversity
We are committed to diversity, and recognize the significant and valuable contributions to our Mission from our employees and the community we serve.

Teamwork
We are committed to teamwork to achieve our mission, and acknowledge that, as employees of the District Attorney we are also members of the San Diego County Team, and we embrace its motto, “the noblest motive is the public good.”

Community Partnership
We advocate and support building strong and viable partnerships with law enforcement, all members of the criminal justice systems and the community we serve to achieve the highest level of public safety for our citizens.

Communication
We are open and forthright in our communications with each other and all those with whom we come in contact.

District Attorney’s Message

The nearly 1,000 professionals in the District Attorney's Office are pursuing justice in dozens of courtrooms around San Diego County on a daily basis. Over the last year, our office issued more than 41,000 criminal cases and maintained a 94 percent felony conviction rate, one of the highest among all counties in California. I continue to be very proud of the dedication and professionalism shown by the employees in our office.
The economy dominated the headlines during 2009 and the recession had a direct impact on the District Attorney’s Office and our employees. Responding to the economic downturn, the District Attorney's Office has been hard at work, managing operating costs while ensuring we do not compromise core and essential public safety services to the community. We rely largely on funding from state sales taxes and property taxes, both of which have decreased significantly during the recession.

The DA's Office has already cut the budget by about 10% and we continue to look for ways to "work smarter." Our budget reduction strategy for fiscal year 2010-11 includes the following possible actions:

Hold open vacant positions
Reduce travel and training costs
Maximize the use of grant revenue sources
Review and apply for new grant opportunities

In order to mitigate the impact of our reduced workforce, we created several teams of committed DA employees to proactively look at how we can improve the way we do business. All of the teams included diverse representation from all levels and areas of our organization. These teams worked hard over the last several months to come up with creative ideas and solutions to help our office "work smarter."

At the same time, we continued our mission to protect the community by working to prevent crime. Here are some of the prosecution and crime prevention highlights from the year.
During 2009, we:

Premiered a short film entitled "4 or 40: The Choice is Yours" at the Lincoln High School theater in Southeast San Diego. The film was created by the members of the District Attorney’s Youth Advisory Board and is part of a countywide campaign encouraging youths to make better life choices in difficult situations.

Along with federal, state and local officials, broke up a large bank fraud scheme run by street gang members. It was the first time a violent street gang has been targeted for its involvement in complex bank fraud in California. In what is believed to be the largest case of its kind in state history, 60 defendants were charged with 347 felony counts, including conspiracy; grand theft; money laundering; forgery and burglary.

Created a new public awareness campaign featuring 16 billboards placed across San Diego County aimed at curbing workers’ compensation fraud. Workers’ compensation fraud costs California consumers an estimated $4 billion dollars every year and the DA’s Office hopes the campaign will make people think twice before committing the crime.

Concluded a four-year investigation of Blockbuster Inc. video stores that resulted in a $ 300,000 judgment against the retail and video rental corporation in the state of California. Blockbuster was accused of charging customers more than the advertised or posted price on items when they were scanned at check-out counters.

Held a Consumer Protection Day in the South Bay where speakers addressed topics including identity theft, immigration fraud, foreclosure fraud, telephone scams, mail scams, home repair scams, and elder financial abuse. The event was in partnership with the District Attorney’s Office, County Office of Aging and Independence Services, Contractors State License Board, AARP, and the State Bar of California.

Began a new public education campaign aimed at preventing sexual assaults connected to drinking. As part of the campaign, a new website (www.KnowThePrice.org) went online aimed at educating young people about the crime of rape by intoxication. The new website aimed at youth 18-years old and younger includes compelling videos featuring interviews with sexual assault victims, a prosecutor, a police detective, a sexual assault response team doctor, and college fraternity members—all giving first-person accounts designed to educate young people about rape by intoxication.

Co-produced a new training video to educate law enforcement about domestic violence that will shown to more than 5,000 sworn peace officers in San Diego County. The new training program comes amid law enforcement concerns that a worsening economy is resulting in an increase in domestic violence.

Announced that ten people have been indicted by a Grand Jury for a huge real estate fraud scheme that stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from victims. The scam was discovered in the summer of 2008 after the suspects victimized some 400 homeowners in San Diego and Riverside Counties. The defendants preyed on mostly non-English speaking, Hispanic homeowners who were in foreclosure, claiming to offer assistance through a land grant.

Bonnie M. Dumanis

San Diego County District Attorney