Sheriff urges further negotiations; Vallejo leaders press Board for temporary deputies as city battles violent crime

Solano County Sheriff Thomas Ferrara told the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday he did not recommend immediate approval of a proposed temporary contract that would provide deputy sheriffs to assist the Vallejo Police Department, citing incomplete labor meet-and-confer steps, vehicle procurement lead-times and questions about retired-annuitant staffing.

The county and the city of Vallejo have negotiated an agreement under which the sheriff’s office would provide trained deputies for one year to boost patrol capacity while the city recruits and reforms its own police force. Vallejo city leaders — including Mayor Andre Sors, City Manager Andrew Murray and several council members — told the board the help is urgent. City officials said the arrangement would shorten response times, allow the city to pursue long-term staffing and facility investments and provide immediate coverage in neighborhoods experiencing gun violence; the Vallejo City Council unanimously approved the contract on June 17.

Ferrara told the board he had completed several prerequisites (including a written Department of Justice confirmation that the county was not a party to a DOJ stipulated agreement about Vallejo policing) but cautioned that other steps were incomplete. He said the county still needed to complete a formal meet-and-confer with the deputy sheriffs association and with SEIU dispatch staff, and that the county’s vehicle purchase and outfitting processes would likely not meet the July 1 start date the city had proposed without accelerated procurement. Ferrara recommended the board not approve the agreement at the meeting and asked instead that staff continue negotiations and return with a resolution at the July 22 board meeting if the labor and procurement matters can be resolved.

Several union representatives repeated the Deputy Sheriffs Association’s written opposition to the contract as currently drafted and said they were willing to meet. The Deputy Sheriffs Association vice president told the board the association remained open to meet-and-confer and to seek resolution by July 22, but that major contract language needed revision.

Dozens of residents, community leaders and city officials urged the supervisors to approve the help immediately. Local public‑safety advocates described a recent string of shootings and one fatality in Vallejo neighborhoods; city and community leaders said deputies from the sheriff’s office would reduce response times, help remove violent offenders and give the city time to build long-term capacity. “When Vallejo suffers, Solano County suffers,” said NAACP Solano County President Patricia Hunter. Several speakers recounted personal experiences in which delayed police response or increased violence had harmed neighborhood programs and residents.

Board members differed on the immediate path forward. Some supervisors and staff said they were sympathetic to Vallejo’s urgent needs and praised progress in negotiations; others emphasized labor rules, the need for a complete meet-and-confer and the procurement timeline. Sheriff Ferrara asked the board to direct staff to pursue the meet-and-confer and return with an updated recommendation at the July 22 meeting; at the time of the meeting the board took no final vote to authorize the contract.