Judicial Operations Bureau

The Judicial Operations Bureau is comprised of two divisions: Judicial Services and Judicial Courts. The bureau is commanded by a major and oversees nearly 300 sworn and civilian members.

The Judicial Services Division is broken down into two sections: Court Supervisor and Court Enforcement. The following units are assigned to the Court Supervisor Section: Alternative Sentencing, Juvenile Diversion, and the Misdemeanor Probation Unit.

The Alternative Sentencing Unit (ASU) consists of several programs which are responsible for supervising offenders through alternate means of incarceration. These programs include Electronic Monitoring, which tracks offenders via GPS ankle bracelets; Alcohol Monitoring, which uses Continuous Alcohol Monitors to record alcohol usage by offenders; Supervised Bond, and Supervised Release on Own Recognizance which requires offenders to check in weekly with unit members, among other conditions. Lastly, ASU operates the countywide Adult Pre-Arrest Diversion Program (APAD) and juvenile diversion program. The purpose of these program is to divert individuals who meet certain criteria from the criminal justice system.

The Misdemeanor Probation Unit is responsible for monitoring misdemeanor offenders sentenced in county court to ensure the offenders are in compliance with their court order conditions. As a method to ensure offenders remain free of any controlled substances or alcohol, the unit has its own urinalysis lab to test on a random basis.

The following units are assigned to the Court Enforcement Section: Court Processing Unit, Sexual Predator and Offender Tracking (SPOT), and Habitual Offender Monitoring and Enforcement (HOME) Task Force. The Court Processing Units are responsible for the handling and serving of all civil process along with managing all arrest warrants countywide. The SPOT Unit is responsible for monitoring and gathering intelligence on all registered sexual predators, sexual offenders, and career offenders within Pinellas County. SPOT members conduct criminal investigations and surveillance, and also conduct neighborhood notifications of all sexual predators who enter or relocate within Pinellas. HOME is a task force comprised of multiple agencies that monitor juveniles on a supervisory status and prevent them from re-offending.

The Judicial Courts Division is broken into two sections: Criminal Court Security and Civil and Detention Court Security. The Criminal Court Security Section is comprised of four criminal court squads that are responsible for providing security for the judiciary at the Pinellas County Justice Center, which involves the proper screening of all persons entering the courthouse to prevent the introduction of contraband and weapons. This section’s duties also include maintaining order in and around all common public areas within and immediately adjacent to the courthouse facilities.

The Civil and Detention Court Security Section is comprised of two civil court squads that provide security for the judiciary at the St. Petersburg and Clearwater courthouses and two detention squads that are responsible for the care, custody, and control of inmates being transferred between from Pinellas County Jail and the Pinellas County Justice Center.