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LA County's Justice Care and Opportunities Department entered into an illegal sole source contract with surveillance giant Accenture. Now, 12 high-paid consultants with ties to police and ICE are working behind closed doors to design the system that determines how people and families are treated before trial.
Community organizations and experts already crafted a #CareFirst pretrial strategy to create alternatives to incarceration. There's no justification for throwing away that work and paying millions to a global consulting company with expertise in implementing and expanding surveillance, predictive policing, and crowd control.
It's not too late. County Supervisors can cancel the contract, save our money, and implement the plan developed by community experts. But they need to hear from us.
WHO IS ACCENTURE?
Accenture used to be Arthur Anderson, Enron's accounting firm. It rebranded itself to focus on technology consulting, and has grown to be one of the most profitable firms in the world. Last year, Accenture generated ~$7.4 billion from contracts specializing in IT services, particularly for police and militaries to build an "intelligent, smart border." It recently won a $380M Contract to Modernize IT for U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Across federal and local contracts, the company specializes in "predictive policing," digitally transforming the justice system, and "reimagine the police workforce of the future." The North America Accenture CEO is on the board of the Atlanta Police Foundation.
WHY IS THE COUNTY PAYING THEM $8.6M TO DEVELOP A COMMUNITY-BASED PRETRIAL SYSTEM?
On March 10, 2020, LA County adopted 114 recommendations in the Care First, Jails Last roadmap - which calls for an independent pretrial support agency situated outside of police agencies to “coordinate voluntary needs and strengths assessments expeditiously upon booking, and to follow a community-based” services model.
A new unit, now called JCOD, stood up expert committees of county officials, service providers, and community leaders. But now it looks like the ATI Subcommittee of the Public Safety Realignment, Care First Community Advisory Body (2021 and 2022 Spending Plan), ATI Community Cabinet, and ATI Implementation Team were merely to warm Accenture’s seat. Now, Accenture will undo their work.
WHO PAYS THE PRICE?
Deaths inside the County Jail System are happening at an all time high, even after the county has promised to close the jail and reinvest resources away from it. As the County continues to renege on those promises, they have instead worked behind closed doors with a cynical company that will only exacerbate the crisis.
ONE PERSON: ONE YEAR
Cost to jail someone in the system where five people died last month.
ONE PERSON: ONE DAY
Cost to jail someone in High and Moderate Observation Housing at Twin Towers.
6 MONTHS OF PRETRIAL STRATEGY AND PLANING
This includes a $286,000 PowerPoint on how judges, sheriffs, and probation officers want their experience of the pretrial system to look after interviews with Accenture.
18 MONTHS OF PRETRIAL PILOTS IN 8 LOCATIONS
The contract also includes $4 million set aside for community groups or Accenture staff. But there are no incentives to encourage the former. What do you think Accenture will choose?
WHO BENEFITS? MEET THE ACCENTURE TEAM
On June 14th, Accenture presented the team members. A five person Advisory Panel include Accenture leaders provided to contribute “justice expertise.” A seven person Project Team will implement all activities. Not pictured: Matt Branco, Project Manager.
To learn more about the consultants: read our Accenture Advisory Panel memo here.
ACCENTURE PROJECT ADVISORY TEAM FOR LAC PRETRIAL STRATEGY
Matthew Rowland
Former Federal Chief of Probation; Former Deputy Chief Probation Officer NY
Lara al-Sakar
Accenture North America Public Safety Lead for police and prison projects
Sir Brian Leveson
Former UK Judge and prosecutor; Former Head of Criminal Justice in the UK
Molly Tierney
Managing Director Accenture North America Public Sector
Jody Weis
Former FBI overseeing LA criminal division; Former Chicago Police Chief.
ACCENTURE PROJECT TEAM FOR LAC PRETRIAL STRATEGY
Michelle Smith
Client Relationship Director
Praneet Raj
Contract Project Sponsor
Ernst Rampen
Operational Model Lead
Dunja Letica
Business Analyst
Carter Goffigon
Strategy Lead
Lorree Tachell
Stakeholder and Comms
THE CONTRACT IS ILLEGAL
On March 11th, 2024, Civil Rights Corps (CRC), a national civil rights organization dedicated to challenging systemic injustice, put Los Angeles County on notice about its illegal contract with surveillance giant Accenture.
According to CRC, the contract is illegal for the following reasons:
Unlawful circumvention of competitive bidding process
Even if the County were legally allowed to grant exemptions to the public bidding process, the Accenture contract SIGNIFICANTLY exceeds the new limits they carved out in various motions.
The contract is a gross misuse of Measure J funds.
Read the full legal analysis in CRC's open letter to the County.
#EXPOSEACCENTURE
LA County is outsourcing community demands to a group that profits from the existence and expansion of the very forces the community fought against in the first place.
This is not just an expenditure; it's a call to action.
The Board of Supervisors did not negotiate this contract and can cancel it at any time. The Care First, Jails Last report names the need for community oversight. After three years of planning, it's time to translate promises into tangible results. Let's act on the community-based pretrial plan already in place.
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