ABOUT US

About Juvenile Probation Department

Our mission

It is the mission of the San Francisco Juvenile Probation Department to serve the needs of youth and families who are brought to our attention with care and compassion; to identify and respond to the individual risks and needs presented by each youth; to engage fiscally sound and culturally competent strategies that promote the best interests of the youth; to provide victims with opportunities for restoration; to identify and utilize the least restrictive interventions and placements that do not compromise public safety; to hold youth accountable for their actions while providing them with opportunities and assisting them to develop new skills and competencies; and contribute to the overall quality of life for the citizens of San Francisco within the sound framework of public safety as outlined in the Welfare & Institutions Code (WIC).

Our goals

  1. Reimagine how the City addresses juvenile crime and delinquency – from referral through reentry – in collaboration with community and government partners; emphasizing research, evidence-based and best practices, and innovation; and sustainably addressing pervasive racial disparities throughout the system.
  2. Prioritize diversion and connection to appropriate services and responses at every stage of the youth’s contact with JPD. Ensure youth are returned home as quickly as possible, whenever appropriate, and that families are provided comprehensive support. Maximize the utilization of community-based services that provide high quality, adequately-resourced, care for all youth and their families throughout a young person’s involvement in the juvenile justice system.
  3. Advance a whole family engagement strategy that places racial equity at its center to ensure that all youth have full and equal access to opportunities, power, and resources; that advances youth- and family-centered case plans and goal development to help justice-involved youth and their families thrive; and, that minimizes unnecessary or further justice system involvement.
  4. Create a non-institutional home-like secure setting for both detained and incarcerated youth and young adults that is healing-centered, developmentally appropriate, family-centered, community-connected, culturally responsive, and developmentally appropriate. Implement daily community presence of community partners; shared leadership with community and city agencies whenever possible; and meaningful opportunities for community input into policies and programming.
  5. Continue to organize and right-size the JPD department and budget to reflect changes in caseloads, increased emphasis on community-based services, and changes in approach and responsibilities, including DJJ realignment duties. Bolster equitable leadership development opportunities for staff throughout the Department, including but not limited to Black, Latino, Asian/Pacific Islander and Indigenous staff, and implement change that meaningfully improves the workplace experience of those staff; enact our organizational belief of redemption and helping people to succeed. Develop a collaborative approach to planning, policymaking and service provision to work effectively with community agencies and appropriate city agencies, including health, law enforcement, and schools.
  6. Advance the goals of the City and DJJ Realignment Subcommittee in our ongoing implementation of DJJ Realignment to effectively support the most impacted youth and young adults, both in the community and in the Secure Youth Treatment Facility located in Juvenile Hall or in another secure youth treatment facility the Subcommittee recommends.

Who we are

In 1989, San Francisco voters approved Proposition L, which created a new city Juvenile Probation Department managed by a seven-member commission appointed by the Mayor. The San Francisco Juvenile Probation Department is the only probation department in California that exclusively provides services to youth who are alleged or have been found to have committed law violations under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court. 

Administration

Management Team

  • Gabriel Calvillo, Assistant Chief Probation Officer
  • Verónica Martínez, Deputy Director of Administration
  • Shane Thomas, Director of Juvenile Facilities
  • Dale Tafoya, Assistant Director of Juvenile Facilities
  • Derek Hom, Director of Probation Services
  • Ling Gao, Director of Information Technology
  • Lorena Garcia, Senior Supervising Probation Officer
  • Maria McKee, Director of Strategic Planning, Policy, and Public Affairs
  • Naomi Wright, Manager, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
  • Preston Treichel, Director of Human Resources
  • Walter Martinez, Director of Finance
  • Emmanuel Pineda, Building and Grounds Maintenance Superintendent

Divisions

Juvenile Probation Commission

The Juvenile Probation Commission oversees the work of our department and appoints the Chief Probation Officer. The Commission consists of 7 members appointed by the Mayor. The Commission holds public meetings every month, except August. 

Juvenile Advisory Council

The Juvenile Advisory Council (JAC) is a paid leadership opportunity for young adults who have been impacted by the juvenile justice system. JAC members support youth-centered policy development at JPD. JAC members also provide support to youth placed on probation and their families, including regular orientations to the juvenile justice system.

COVID-19 response

Since the COVID-19 pandemic started in February 2020, the Juvenile Probation Department has enacted a series of comprehensive measures to keep young people, their families, and our staff safe. We follow all CDCR and San Francisco Department of Public Health orders and directives.

Resources

Legal requirements