Lucerne Valley sweep also gets drugs, weapons and rattlesnakes
From staff reports
LUCERNE VALLEY • The San Bernardino County Probation Department, along with the Sheriff’s Department, conducted a probation compliance operation from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday in Lucerne Valley.
Nine people were arrested, including five adult probationers and four people not under supervision who were found to have warrants or be in violation of the law.
The arrests included three violations of probation, four outstanding warrants, and two new violations of the law. No AB109 offenders were arrested.
Officers attempted 35 home visits and conducted 21 searches during the operation. Several items were confiscated, including four pounds of marijuana, 24 grams of meth, weapons, and a few hundred rounds of ammunition.
At one home, officers discovered a collection of desert tortoises and rattlesnakes, whose possession may be illicit. The matter was turned over to Federal authorities with the U.S. Fish and Game and Wildlife Services for possible prosecution.
This operation was part of the Probation Department’s on-going mission to conduct saturation compliance operations in which every supervised offender within a specific city or area is targeted for contact. The department accomplishes this by redeploying officers from throughout the county to focus on the target city.
Offenders with technical violations of probation or simply at risk for re-offense were referred to the Probation Day Reporting Center in Victorville. There they can receive follow-up programming or resources that will assist them in complying with probation terms and succeeding on supervised release.
“This operation was conducted in a rural area of San Bernardino County,” said Chief Probation Officer Michelle Scray Brown. “The hard work of these officers is a great example of our ability to bring better crime suppression efforts and referrals to treatment services to all areas of the county.”