San Bernardino County Public Defender's Office

San Bernardino County renters: Are you behind on paying rent? You may be eligible for help. Check your eligibility at sbcrentrelief.com. You will need to provide a form of identification, copy of your current lease agreement, proof of COVID-19 impact or related loss of impact, your landlord’s phone number and address, and proof of your 2020 household income.... For more information and to apply, visit sbcrentrelief.com or dial 211 ext. 5. County of San Bernardino Inland SoCal United Way 211+ #RentReliefPartnership #PandemicRentRelief #SBCountyTogether

Inquilinos del Condado de San Bernardino, ¿no pueden pagar el alquiler debido al COVID-19? Usted puede ser elegible para la ayuda. Verifique su elegibilidad en sbcrentrelief.com. Tendrá que proporcionar una forma de identificación, una copia del contrato de arrendamiento, prueba de un impacto relacionado a COVID-19 o pérdida de ingresos relacionados, número de teléfono y correo electrónico del manejador/a o propietario/a, y comprobante de ingresos del hogar del 2020.... Para más información y para inscribir, visite sbcrentrelief.com o por telefono 211 ext. 5. County of San Bernardino Inland SoCal United Way 211+ #RentReliefPartnership #PandemicRentRelief #SBCountyTogether

Is your conviction record preventing you from accessing opportunities and services that you need? San Bernardino County Public Defender staff will be available to help you clear your record this weekend at Cope Inland Empire's Juneteenth Resource Fair Celebration. Not sure if your cases are eligible? Visit pd.sbcounty.gov/clear-your-record for more information. This celebration of Black people's freedom will also offer COVID vaccines (Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson), free food,... free raffle prizes, yard games, other resource booths, and a DJ. Thank you to COPE for holding this community space! Date: Saturday, June 19, 2021 Time: 10am to 1pm Location: 1505 W. Highland Ave, San Bernardino Cost: Free of charge

An expungement and hiring event at The Way World Outreach created new opportunities for hundreds of individuals. More than 60 employers provided 4,500 job oppo...rtunities for 725 people who attended the record expungement and hiring event. Nearly 500 record expungement applications were completed for San Bernardino County residents. Though designed as an expungement event, individuals with or without a prior conviction were invited to attend. The Way World Outreach collaborated with Supervisor Joe Baca, Jr., San Bernardino County Workforce Development Board, San Bernardino County Public Defender's Office, and San Bernardino County Human Services to make this event happen.

We are proud to announce that the Law Offices of the Public Defender San Bernardino County has received a 2021 National Association of Counties (NACo) Achievement Award for our partnership with New Hope, a program of Abundant Living Family Church HD. This is our eighth NACo award in 10 years and one of 60 awarded to County of San Bernardino agencies this year the second highest number of all California counties. Click to read more!

I went from being homeless with $200 in 2017 to having a job that maxes out at $70 an hour. A client of our Post-Conviction Relief Unit reached out to share his story: For about five years I would start jobs, and about two months in they’d tell me, ‘Your background check cleared. We can’t have you here anymore.’ I worked at a fast food chain and holding signs on the sidewalk until I could get housing and put myself through school.... My probation officer and [Deputy Public Defender] Allen Phou helped me get my five 1203.4 petitions filed. I had finished school and applied for my trade union. I got accepted for an apprenticeship, and right around the same time my final 1203.4 cleared. I’m starting at $21 an hour with a pay raise every six months. In the future, I want to open my own business, and I want to go to law school. I learned so much from researching for my own cases. I want to be able to help people. Thank you to our client for reaching out. We love to hear how post-conviction relief has helped our clients gain opportunities. If you have a story to share, please let us know at pd.sbcounty.gov/contact-us. Our Post-Conviction Relief Unit is available year-round to assist you in sealing your conviction record, getting a certificate of rehabilitation, or finding out if you are eligible for other forms of post-conviction relief. Visit pd.sbcounty.gov/clear-your-record to learn more and begin the process. #PublicDefenders #PostConvictionRelief #FairChance #Expungement #SecondChance #CleanSlate #LegalAid

There's still time to register for our in-person record expungement event this Thursday, May 27, in San Bernardino! Sign up at https://theway.ccbchurch.com/goto/forms/384/responses/new

We are now hiring Social Service Practitioners at Levels I, II, and III. Social Service Practitioners (SSPs) at the Public Defender's Office provide professional social work services to adult and juvenile clients and their families as they navigate the criminal justice system. Public Defender SSPs ensure that clients have access to available supportive services throughout the County and State. SSPs meet with indigent clients in their home, jail, prison, state hospitals or ot...her various settings. SSPs develop and implement treatment plans to improve social functioning, in addition to performing biopsychosocial reports requested by attorneys. To apply, please visit the link below. Applications close on Friday, June 4, 2021, at 5pm. https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/sanbernardino

An expungement and hiring event will create new opportunities for hundreds of individuals, including those formerly incarcerated individuals as they will have t...he opportunity to clear their records and get the resources and connections they need to secure employment opportunities. The event will be held from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. on May 27 at The Way World Outreach, 4680 Hallmark Parkway in San Bernardino. As many as 40 businesses will participate, as will a variety of agencies that offer support services. Though designed as an expungement event, individuals with or without a prior conviction are invited to attend. Many of the employers will be offering on-the-spot job opportunities. The Way World Outreach is the lead agency for the Expungement and Hiring Event, with support from Supervisor Joe Baca, Jr., San Bernardino County Public Defender's Office, @San Bernardino County Workforce Development Board and @San Bernardino County Human Services.

Through efforts such as this expungement and hiring event, lives are transformed, and everyone benefits. I’m proud to partner with The Way World Outreach, San B...ernardino County Public Defender's Office, San Bernardino County Workforce Development Board, and San Bernardino County Human Services. We know we are going to help many people who are looking for work, the employers who are looking to fill their positions, and the community as a whole. See more

Join Supervisor Joe Baca, Jr., The Way World Outreach, the San Bernardino County Public Defender's Office, San Bernardino County Workforce Development Board, an...d the San Bernardino County Human Services for a Record Expungement Event. The event will be held from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. on Thursday, May 27th at The Way World Outreach located at 4680 Hallmark Parkway in San Bernardino. This event will offer rehabilitation certificates and adult and misdemeanor expungement preparation. There will also be a variety of agencies that will be available to offer support services. You must register to attend this event. To register: tiny.one/hiremetoday. See more

This Thursday, May 13, at 10-11:30am: IE Fair Chance Coalition presents a Know Your Rights webinar for people with conviction histories and service providers who advocate for them. Find out what employers can know about your conviction history and how to ensure that people with convictions get a fair chance at employment. Register at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/know-your-rights-training-tick

In partnership with The Way World Outreach, San Bernardino County Public Defender staff will be available *in person* on Thursday, May 27, 2021, from 9am to 2pm, to assist individuals seeking to clear adult felony and misdemeanor records and/or apply for Certificates of Rehabilitation. To sign up, see https://thewayworldoutreach.org/hiring-event-record-expung/ or call 909-884-7117. The event will take place at The Way World Outreach’s Hallmark Campus at 4680 Hallmark Pkwy, San Bernardino, CA. The Public Defender’s Office Post-Conviction Unit is also available to help individuals begin the record-clearing process at any time. Visit our Clear Your Record page for more information: https://pd.sbcounty.gov/clear-your-record/.

This morning, Interim Public Defender Thomas Sone spoke with Assemblymember Eloise Gómez Reyes about AB 2147 at her virtual town hall series. AB 2147, authored by Asm. Reyes, expedites the expungement process for formerly incarcerated individuals who have successfully participated in fire suppression activities, such as the California Conservation Camp. AB 2147 goes into effect on January 1, 2021. Individuals who have AB 2147 cases and were sentenced in San Bernardino County ...may contact the Public Defender's Office Post-Conviction Unit to initiate the record-clearing process. If you have a loved one with an AB 2147 case, you may contact us on their behalf. Phone number: (909) 387-0569 Email: [email protected] Web: http://sbpubdef.com/Contact-Us/Clear-Your-Record Thank you to Asm. Reyes for this invitation to spread information on how our shared constituents can broaden their opportunities!

SBCPD is thrilled to spread holiday joy with Sista’s Making A Difference and Never Stop Grinding Impact through their toy giveaway, taking place today in Rialto. Thank you for this opportunity to collaborate, and thank you to all the SBCPD team members who contributed toys! Supervising Deputy Public Defender Dave McClave of the Juvenile unit is pictured presenting the toys to Ronnie Miller and the Sista’s Making A Difference team. Pics courtesy Sista’s Making A Difference.

COVID-19 ZOOM TOWN HALL SERIES WITH Assemblymember Eloise Gómez Reyes AB-2147: A Conversation with Interim Public Defender Thomas W. Sone Thursday, December 17, 2020 @ 11:00 AM... San Bernardino County Interim Public Defender Thomas W. Sone will answer your questions on the record-clearing process and AB 2147: What is AB 2147? Why does it matter? What is the process? How does this impact our community? REGISTER: bit.ly/AB2147TOWNHALL

Looking back at a few great pre-pandemic events: (1) Chief Deputy Public Defender Kellie Byward and Public Defender Chris Gardner (back row, from left) with the county’s First District Advisory Council. (2) PD Gardner (front of room) at a Black Chamber of Commerce of the Inland Empire event with members of partner orgs the California Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Riverside Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and the Asian Chamber of Commerce. (3) PD Gardner with (from left) Sheriff John McMahon and DA Jason Anderson at a @victorvalleychamber Friday Morning Insight Breakfast discussing how they collaborate as justice partners and how they can best serve constituents. Thank you to the organizers of these successful events!

We are proud to announce that SBCPD won first place among San Bernardino County departments in the county's 2020 ShakeOut video competition! There were a record number of participants this year. Watch the winning video for a refresher on how to Drop, Cover, and Hold On in the event of an earthquake: https://www.facebook.com/SBCDefender/posts/430953841638420 Thank you to all SBCPD team members who participated in the video!... #SBCShakeOut #SBSafe #Vision4Safety See more