Governor Gavin Newsom announced the following appointments to CDCR leadership roles on Feb. 20:
Wardens at Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and Calipatria
Arturo “Roberto” Arias III has been appointed Warden of Calipatria State Prison, where he has served as Acting Warden since 2022 and has held several positions since 2018, including Chief Deputy Administrator and Correctional Administrator. He has served in several positions at Centinela State Prison from 1999 to 2010, including Captain, Classification and Parole Representative as well as Correctional Counselor II and I. This position does not require Senate confirmation.
Bryan D. Phillips has been appointed Warden of Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison, Corcoran. He has served as Acting Warden since 2022. Phillips was Chief Deputy Warden at California Men’s Colony in 2022 and held several positions there from 2009 to 2022. Those positions included Associate Warden, Captain of Adult Institutions, Correctional Counselor II Specialist and Correctional Lieutenant.
He was Associate Warden and Acting Chief Deputy Warden at Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in 2020. Phillips was a Correctional Sergeant at California Correctional Institution from 2004 to 2009. He was also a Correctional Officer at Avenal State Prison and California Correctional Institution from 1996 to 2004. This position does not require Senate confirmation.
Division of Rehabilitative Programs
Naginder Dhillon has been appointed Deputy Director of Program Support in the Division of Rehabilitative Programs at CDCR. She has been Associate Director since 2019. She served in several positions in the Budget Management Branch from 2008 to 2010, including Staff Services Manager I and Associate Budget Analyst.
Dhillon was a Branch Chief at the California Department of Housing and Community Development from 2017 to 2019. She was a Branch Chief at the California Department of Public Health from 2012 to 2016 and a Health Program Specialist I there from 2010 to 2012. Dhillon was a Research Analyst I at the Employment Development Department from 2006 to 2007. She was a Staff Services Analyst at the California Department of Transportation in 2006. Dhillon earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from the University of California, Davis. This position does not require Senate confirmation.
Board of Parole Hearings
Emily Sheffield has been appointed to the Board of Parole Hearings. Sheffield has been a Senior Appellate Attorney for the Third District Court of Appeal since 2020. She was a Civil Research Attorney for the Sacramento County Superior Court from 2014 to 2020. Sheffield was an Associate at Morrison & Foerster LLP from 2010 to 2014. She was a Law Student Volunteer for the Exoneration Project at the University of Chicago Mandel Legal Aid Clinic from 2007 to 2009.
Sheffield is a member of Women Lawyers of Sacramento and the Sacramento County Bar Association. She earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Chicago Law School and a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of California, Berkeley. This position requires Senate confirmation.
Read more Appointments and Promotions.
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