The Peacekeeper
December 1, 2009
FROM THE EDITOR
Just a day before Thanksgiving, I received an email from Diane, a member and parole agent out of Region III. She wanted me to know that she enjoys reading my From the Editor columns. "You help inspire," she wrote. I couldn't have been more pleased to read those words. It's all any writer could ever hope to hear from a reader. Believe me, it means as much as the paycheck in the envelope. But, truly, if I do inspire, it's only because I've been inspired - by you. All of you...
December 1, 2009
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
by Mike Jimenez, CCPOA State President
Service is a word that means many things. It can mean the service you receive when you order a meal at a restaurant, or it can mean that you served your country in the Armed Forces. It can even mean the opening salvo of a tennis volley or the cups, saucers, and utensils for high tea. In the context of the quote from boxing champ Mohammed Ali, service obviously means the performance of work for the benefit of others with no expectation of personal profit...
December 1, 2009
COVER STORY: Yes, California, There Is A Santa Claus
by Lance Corcoran, CCPOA Chief Communications Officer 
The holiday season can be a magical time - and, on occasion, it can be a time of miracles. For many, the holidays are meant for celebrating family traditions, giving thanks for life's many blessings, and sharing those blessings with those less fortunate. When it comes to Christmas miracles, one CCPOA member, now retired, quietly began a giving tradition in the Stockton area about 14 years ago - a generous endeavor that has carried on and gains momentum to this day...
December 1, 2009
RESPONSE TIME
Starting in early Spring 2008, I submitted transfer packets for a lateral transfer from Corcoran State Prison to Sierra Conservation Center, due to my mother's diagnosis with colon cancer. After over a year and two interviews I did successfully transfer in July 2009. Upon my transfer, I emailed the following letter to both chief deputy wardens at Corcoran, with the intention it be published in the IST Bulletin. Well, it wasn't...
December 1, 2009
VICTIMS OF SUCCESS
by Correctional Sgt. Kevin Raymond 
CCPOA has enjoyed a great deal of success over the last 26 years of collective bargaining-culminating with the 2001-2006 Memorandum of Understanding. This success didn't come easy and at times was stagnant for years...
December 1, 2009
The Value of a Skelly Hearing
by Leanne M. Kent, CCPOA Staff Legal Counsel, West Sacramento
Recently, an article appearing in another corrections employee publication stated that Skelly hearings are a waste of time. To the contrary, CCPOA statistics show that participating in the Skelly process has value for our members...
December 1, 2009
Benefit Trust: Pennies from Heaven
by Crystal C. Virtue, Esq., Caldwell Legal
Back in the 18th century, Ben Franklin coined the phrase, "A penny saved is a penny earned." Those wise words were never truer than they are right now. The CCPOA Benefit Trust Fund is all about helping you hold on to your hard-earned money...
