As I begin another year as your CCSO president, I can’t help but think back on how far our organization has come since I proudly took office five years ago. Many of us remember the not-so-distant past when our budget was so small that it was putting us at serious risk of not being able to function.

Fortunately, those days are long over, thanks to the hard work of our leadership team and the dedication of our members to trust the vision I had for CCSO when I became president. As a result, we’ve been able to undo years of stagnation that were a result of past individuals not wanting to invest the time and effort to move this organization forward.

By entrusting us with much-needed additional funding from the recent dues increase, you’ve enabled us to put you, our members, first. In the past year alone, we’ve been able to provide more first-class training, bolster our legal services so that our members have access to the highest level of representation possible and expand CCSO Headquarters to accommodate more people and save us money on meeting space for business, Board and chapter presidents meetings.

I ask that, moving forward, everyone please let me know if there are any concerns or questions about how things are run so that we can address them immediately.

As I said in my last article, a recent audit took place that pointed to some deficiencies and systemic issues that the organization needs to address. Further details about the findings are expected to come out in February, which will allow me to go more in depth about what we can do to move forward together. What I can say is that a lot of what I’ve seen on the report are systemic issues that have been going on for years, and I’m glad we now have the opportunity to correct what’s been holding us back for several years.

I’ve always taken tremendous pride in being open and transparent with each and every one of our members. I believe that’s one reason why I was re-elected for a second term in 2022 and why the decision to raise members’ dues was firmly backed by the vast majority of those involved.

With that said, I think it’s important to note that this audit came about because a small minority of individuals decided they’d rather not share their differing opinions with the leadership team or me, and instead, they made allegations that were unfair and hurtful to our hardworking membership. 

I ask that, moving forward, everyone please let me know if there are any concerns or questions about how things are run so that we can address them immediately. Staying silent or spreading rumors negatively affects members and stalls our growth. I more than welcome any issue someone may have so that we can deal with it and explain the reasons why we’re doing what we’re doing.   

While I prepare to tackle this issue head-on by ensuring the proper safeguards are in place, and I welcome this audit and any future ones to come, it’s crucial that our members know that a service has never been denied or legal representation jeopardized because of this audit. The services we provide to our members have been — and will continue to be — provided throughout the duration of this process and will never be diminished. I am as energized and excited as ever to move forward and address any questions you have about this process. 

In other news, the walk time case looks to be coming to an end very soon, and we expect to see sizable movement in 2023. It’s been a long time coming, and this will be a big stepping stone that will benefit our members for years to come. 

As we start a new year, I’d like to thank all of you for supporting me and allowing me to move this organization in a positive direction. I look forward to a very fruitful year and am proud that we are able to continue providing the best legal representation for our members.