SDPD investigating juvenile services unit after audit uncovers ‘discrepancies in accounting’

The San Diego Police Department is investigating after an internal audit of the agency’s Juvenile Administration Unit uncovered “discrepancies in accounting,” officials confirmed Thursday.

The department said the discovery prompted an “immediate” investigation, which remains ongoing, but declined to release the identity of any officers involved or details of the allegations against them.

Department sources with knowledge of the matter said the alleged impropriety was uncovered weeks ago and that two officers are at the center of the case. Multiple search warrants have already been served, according to sources who asked not to be named because they were not authorized to speak about the case.

The Juvenile Administration Unit runs initiatives such as the School Safety Patrol Program, and its officers are involved with STAR/PAL, according to officials and the department’s operations manual, last updated in 2019. Both programs are designed to bolster better relationships between police and young people.

The School Safety Patrol is made up of fifth- and sixth-graders who serve as crossing guards at nearly 80 schools across the city. STAR/PAL offers a variety of programs that are facilitated by law enforcement including school events such as story time with an officer and the Shop with a Cop program, when children go Christmas shopping with a police officer. No STAR/PAL funds were impacted by the alleged acts, department officials said.

The unit oversees several expense accounts, according to the manual.

They include the School Safety Patrol General Fund, which generates revenue through donations and student fundraisers; the School Safety Patrol Uniform Fund, which makes money from School Safety Patrol uniform purchases; and the School Safety Patrol Spirit Gear Fund, which raises funds through purchases of School Safety Patrol Spirit Gear.

Two other accounts mentioned in the manual are no longer overseen by the unit.

Department officials did not release information about the specific accounting discrepancies that were uncovered.

The unit is small, made up of a lieutenant, two sergeants and four officers, according to the manual. As of 2019, three of those positions were vacant.