LAKEPORT — A judge Monday rescheduled the civil trial involving the Lake County Correctional Officers” Association (LCCOA), Sheriff Frank Rivero and the County of Lake to begin in late October after both parties requested a postponement.
Visiting Judge William McKinstry filed an order to reschedule the estimated two-day trial, which had been set to start Tuesday, to instead occur Oct. 25 and 26.
The LCCOA filed a petition in late March in response to Rivero”s decision to recognize its members as correctional officers, not peace officers, though the LCCOA claims the Lake County Sheriff”s Office began identifying correctional officers as peace officers in May 2008.
Rivero has argued that the correctional officers have not completed minimum peace officer training and therefore should not be identified as peace officers.
The petition, in part, asks the court to order Rivero to recognize county correctional officers as peace officers.
Attorneys representing both sides filed a joint stipulation on Aug. 1 asking the judge to briefly postpone the trial. “The parties have been unable to obtain essential testimony, documents or other material evidence despite diligent efforts,” the stipulation stated.
McKinstry found good cause to grant the request, but later wrote in his order, “The Court will not accept a stipulated continuance of the trial again.”
Contact Jeremy Walsh at jwalsh@record-bee.com or call him at 263-5636, ext. 37.
