Gov. Gavin Newsom has named a Santa Clarita resident to a state board, according to a news release from his office.
“Jennifer Shepard, of Santa Clarita, has been appointed to the Emergency Medical Services Commission,” according to a Sept. 11 statement from Newsom’s office.
The Emergency Medical Services Authority “is responsible for the equitable coordination, administration and integration of the statewide emergency medical services system to reduce suffering and save lives throughout California,” according to its website.
The agency provides oversight to the 34 local EMS systems that operate throughout the state’s 58 counties, according to the agency’s website.
“The EMS Authority provides statewide coordination and leadership for the planning, development, and implementation” for these systems. Its members include a medical director, a fire official, medical experts and policy experts, among others.
Shepard did not respond to a request for an interview for this story.
She is listed as a member of the commission through the California Peace Officers Association.
Shepard’s work with the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department as a deputy paramedic was featured online by the agency in a 2015 recruitment video for the LASD as part of a series called “A Day in the Life of.”
“I think people should join the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department because of the opportunities this department affords people who join,” she can be seen saying in front of an LASD helicopter. “You would not be able to go to a smaller department and be part of a team like this.”
Her role at the time was tactical paramedic with the department’s Special Enforcement Bureau, which is essentially the department’s Special Weapons and Tactics unit.
With Shepard’s appointment, the commission now has 17 members and two vacancies. The release announcing her appointment notes she is a Republican.
