San Diego County Sheriff's Department

Recent Deputy Arrests Don't Change Department's Commitment to Public: Sheriff Kelly Martinez

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After two San Diego County Sheriff's deputies were arrested following an alleged bar fight in Ramona — the third and fourth deputies arrested in about a month — Sheriff Kelly Martinez is trying to assure San Diegans their safety is still her department's top priority.

"It's a black eye for all of us when these things occur," Sheriff Martinez told NBC 7 over the phone Thursday.

Deputy Arrests

Deputies Tara Heath and Shawn Kobs were taken into custody Feb. 4 just after 8 p.m., according to the sheriff's department. The deputies were involved in an argument with another group which turned physical, and both were arrested for public intoxication and booked at the Vista Detention Facility, the department said.

Heath has been with the department since 2012 and is assigned to the Vista Station. Kobs has been a deputy since 2005 and is currently assigned to the Special Enforcement Detail. Both are on paid administrative leave following their arrests, according to a department spokesperson.

"This incident occurred when the deputies were in an off-duty capacity. This type of incident is disappointing and was handled appropriately by responding deputies," the department said.

An Internal Affairs investigation will be launched, according to the SDSO. The department declined to comment further on the incident.

On Feb. 3, the department announced the arrest of Deputy Allen Wereski, 48, who is accused of bringing what investigators believed was cocaine, onto jail property. Wereski was suspended without pay and has since been bailed out.

Early last month, Cory Richey, a 15-year veteran of the department, was arrested for allegedly stealing prescription drugs from public drop-off boxes meant for people to safely surrender unwanted or expired medication. He was also suspended without pay and faces drug possession and burglary charges. He remains out of custody but with several stipulations and his next scheduled court appearance is in July.

Like the rest of the country, especially after the pandemic, Martinez said alcohol and substance issues are increasing among her ranks,

"We're seeing an increase in alcohol use, in drug use and people turning to substances they might not have before OCVID and all of theother things going on, so I think as a department, we're — and our board approved a grant that we're receiving from the state, and there's been renewed focus on our department for wellness programs and a wellness team," Martinez said.

Martinez added that she's done her best to make it clear to her deputies that no one will be retaliated against for coming forward with accusations of misconduct by their colleagues.

With reporting by NBC 7's Priya Sridhar — Ed.

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