Go back to News pageSAN FRANCISCO -- San Francisco Juvenile Probation Chief Fred Jordan has vowed to fight for his job after the mayoral-appointed commission that serves as his boss handed him his walking papers.
"I will do what I have to do,'' Jordan said Thursday. The dismissal was pushed by Mayor Frank Jordan, no relation to the long-embattled juvenile justice chief. Fred Jordan's attorney, Carl Williams, appealed the ruling and is seeking an administrative hearing within 30 days to plead his case.
Williams said his client, a peace officer, has that right under state law. The Board of Supervisors and Fred Jordan's supporters in the community also are expected to enter the fray politically.
On a 5-2 vote Wednesday, the Juvenile Probation Commission, which has sole authority over the chief's hiring and firing, read a prepared statement stating that Fred Jordan no longer will serve in the position. No other explanation was offered, but the action was not unexpected.
Fred Jordan, who has held his post since January 1990, has long been at philosophical and political odds with Mayor Jordan over the running of the juvenile justice system, including the Youth Guidance Center. A recent stabbing incident at the youth lock-up, and how it was handled, sparked the mayor's latest charge to oust the chief. The mayor favors tougher sanctions for juvenile offenders.
"Fred Jordan has had three years' notice that the mayor is unhappy with his performance," said Noah Griffin, spokesman for the mayor. "It's not a matter of competence or incompetence. It's a matter of performance and philosophy."
The commission appointed Edgar Flowers, a retired assistant sheriff, to serve as acting juvenile probation chief in Jordan's place.
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