Mentalist Fans: CBI Layoffs Possible

FACING THE BUDGET AX

What happens when reality could derail fiction? As I noted in my June 29 post, one of the cuts in the adopted State of California 2011-12 Budget has a potential significant impact on CBI employees Teresa Lisbon, Kimball Cho, Grace Van Pelt, and Wayne Rigsby and consultant Patrick Jane.

Following the adoption of the budget, California Attorney General Kamala Harris issued a news release in which she noted "The Bureau of Investigation and Intelligence and Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement will also likely be eliminated...."

Let someone thinks this is baseless hand wringing by Harris, a number of law enforcement officials around the state joined her including San Diego District Attorney Bonnie Dumani who issued a letter stating:

The purpose of this letter is to share my concern with the proposed cuts to the California Department of Justice, Division of Law Enforcement (DLE). As the elected District Attorney of San Diego County, my office investigates and prosecutes crime along California's border on a daily basis. It is through collaboration with the Division of Law Enforcement that we are able to see results from our efforts to stem the tide of violent crime crossing into California.The work of the Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement and the Bureau of Intelligence and Investigations is a key piece to a statewide strategy to prevent gang crime.I understand the challenges in balancing the state's budget, but urge you to keep in mind that most local law enforcement agencies are taking severe staffing reductions, especially the smaller agencies, and we will need the assistance of DLE more than ever.

One has to wonder if the 2011 fall season opener will begin with Lisbon telling her team of possible layoffs. Would make for an interesting story arc. Of course if the CBI gets the ax....

(Yes, I know the show is fiction. And for those who a stickler's for details, the current agency name is the California Bureau of Investigation and Intelligence. But for years it was known only as the California Bureau of Investigation as can seen from this old web page dating back to the early 2000's.)