KEYT File
SANTA MARIA, Calif. - Chief Probation Officer Tanja Heitman with the Santa Barbara County Probation Department reported that one staff member at Santa Maria Juvenile Hall (SMJH) recently tested positive for COVID-19.
The probation department said the staff member last worked at the facility on Jan. 25 and was tested for COVID the following day.
As a precaution, in coordination with the Public Health Department and the facility’s medical unit, the department conducted contact tracing of staff and youth for potential exposure. Fortunately, all youth and staff reportedly tested negative.
For more information on the probation department s approach to COVID-19, visit www.sbprobation.org.
By Jade Martinez-Pogue, Noozhawk Staff Writer | @MartinezPogue
January 22, 2021
| 6:53 p.m.
Santa Barbara County appears to have passed its explosive winter peak of COVID-19 case rates and testing positivity, Public Health officials said Friday at their weekly COVID briefing.
But they warned that the community should not become complacent, noting that the number of deaths remains high including 11 announced on Friday.
“This is really encouraging news,” Public Health Director Van Do-Reynoso said. “However, I do want to share that we are not out of the woods yet.”
Public Health data shows that case rates and testing positivity peaked in the county on Jan. 9, and have been trending downward since, Do-Reynoso said.
Chief Probation Officer Tanja Heitman reported Friday that a staff assigned to the Santa Barbara Probation Department’s Santa Maria Juvenile Hall (SMJH) recently tested positive for COVID-19.
Santa Maria Juvenile Hall staff member tests positive for COVID-19; another possibly exposed
and last updated 2020-12-19 16:29:46-05
A staff member assigned to Santa Barbara County Probation Department s Santa Maria Juvenile Hall (SMJH) tested positive for COVID-19 Friday, according to chief probation officer Tanja Heitman.
According to a press release from the Santa Barbara County Probation Department, the staff member left work early after feeling mild symptoms and getting tested with their personal physician.
Officials said the staff member continues to experience mild symptoms of the virus and is self-isolating at home.
Probation department officials determined after contact tracing that an additional staff member was possibly exposed, but no youth, contract nor other personnel were contacted.
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The Public Defender’s Office has been focusing on the issue of holistic defense to reduce jail commitments and recidivism.
“It is incredibly groundbreaking that rather than focusing on the facts of each case, the Public Defender’s Office looks at the actions and the conditions in the individuals’ lives to see what led them to get to where they are,” Melekian said. “It’s inspiring to see the work that the District Attorney and the Public Defender have done to look at the individual cases to determine actions other than just putting them in jail.”