Leading MoCo Sheriff candidate opens up about future plans

Right now he patrols the streets but soon, he may become Monterey County’s next sheriff. Election results are still being counted, but tonight we’re hearing from Deputy Steve Bernal. He’s in the lead and is already making big plans for change at the department.

On Monday, NewsChannel 5 sat down with Bernal to find out what his goals are and how he hopes to make them happen. Even though election results aren’t official yet, he said improving communication within the sheriff’s department and with the public will be a major focus.

“I’ll be accessible you’ll see me out there in the public and I look forward to working together with everybody in Monterey County,” Bernal said.

Currently serving his 14th year, patrolling for the Monterey County Sheriff’s Department, Bernal said he’s prepared to take over as sheriff. He’s worked at every patrol station in the county, has held various jobs within the custody operations bureau and specializes in investigating agricultural crimes. Bernal said he’s hoping to develop a new era of proactive law enforcement by opening up lines of communication with local cities.

“You know, I don’t know that we’ve communicated that well with other departments in the past and that’s something that’s important to me is to work together, work smarter and especially with shrinking budgets, we need to work together more than ever,” Bernal said.

The Monterey County Elections Office is still sifting through about 6,000 ballots. Bernal is about 2,800 votes ahead of incumbent Sheriff Scott Miller. Between now and January, Bernal said he’s going to create a citizens advisory committee to make sure the department understands the needs of the county.

“That’s gonna be the first step to transparency and getting input from the public,” Bernal said.

Bernal said he’s crafting a 10-year plan, focusing on fighting crime and building a stronger agency, with help from a mostly new executive management team. He wants that plan will be crafting a new violent crimes unit, increasing support for the current gang task force and putting resource officers in schools.

We’ve reached out to Miller several times but haven’t’ heard back. Election results will be updated this Wednesday.