Golden State Today

The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office has welcomed 10 new Custody Deputies following their graduation from the Allan Hancock CORE Custody Deputy Academy. The new deputies were sworn in by Sheriff Brown on Wednesday, May 22, 2024, ahead of the graduation ceremony.

Custody Chief Vincent Wasilewski delivered the keynote speech for the CORE Custody Academy Class #16 on Thursday, May 23, 2024. The class included Custody Deputies Brian Bautista, Jesus Cabrera Jr., Raymundo Estrada, Luis Lopez-Zarate, Joaquin Quintero, Erik Sheets, Dylan Stockton, Nathan Valdovinos, Alex Vasquez, and Matthew Woods.

During his address to the graduates, Chief Wasilewski emphasized the importance of empathy in their future roles. “With empathy," he stated, "we can touch the lives of everyone we meet and provide our services with the humanity and compassion that our fellow community members deserve.”

The recruits completed a comprehensive training program totaling 260 hours. Their instruction covered various aspects including emergency planning in a custody facility, report writing, ethics, investigation procedures, classification of inmates, contraband detection, arrest and control techniques, physical training, and Direct Supervision training.

Among the graduates were several notable award recipients: Custody Deputy Brian Bautista was named Class Valedictorian; Custody Deputy Raymundo Estrada received the Santa Maria Elks Lodge Leadership Award; and Custody Deputy Joaquin Quintero was honored with the Ron Battles Award from the Deputy Sheriff’s Association.

For those interested in pursuing a career in law enforcement or who know someone who is interested, more information can be found at SBSheriff.org.