Category: Civil Grand Jury News

The Sonoma County Civil Grand Jury investigated the long-term outsourcing of planning and development services in Petaluma, the financial health of three municipal cemeteries in Sonoma, and the county’s new system of emergency ‘warming centers’ for those without either shelter or heat according to a June 29 report by Marc Albert in Northern California Public […]

June 27, 2023, Amelia Richardson, of the Petaluma Argus Courier, reports that the grand jury found the city of Petaluma has outsourced its planning department functions to a private firm (Metropolitan Group, also known as M-Group) for the past 14 years. The city failed to conduct formal performance reviews and did not determine the cost-effectiveness […]

June 25, 2023, Austin Murphy, of The Press Democrat reported that Sonoma County must do more to help its unhoused residents find warm places to stay during cold weather emergencies. The civil grand jury found that the county lacked a coherent policy for opening warming centers. Read the full account at: https://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/news/grand-jury-faults-sonoma-county-for-lack-of-warming-centers-for-homeless-pe/

The Davis Vanguard on June 15, 2023 reported on a recently released Yolo County Grand Jury report, resulting from a complaint the grand jury received. The issue addressed the administration and maintenance of street trees, education of homeowners with city trees on their property, issues within Chapters 15 and 37 of the Davis Municipal Code […]

A San Bernardino County Grand Jury report issued in December on the state of the county’s social services department is seeing some action.  In a May 25th story reported in the Los Angeles Times by staff writer by Salvador Hernandez a federal class-action lawsuit has been filed by A Better Childhood, a nonprofit group that uses civil litigation to push reform in […]

— City News Service reported that “More mental health clinicians and services are needed in San Diego County jails, according to a report released this week.” Read the full report on Patch San Diego here:  https://patch.com/california/san-diego/more-mental-health-staff-resources-needed-county-jails-grand-jury

Jeff Horseman of The Press-Enterprise reports on a recent Riverside County Grand Jury report indicating Ambulance delays in dropping off patients at Riverside County hospitals hurt health care.  To prevent delays, the grand jury recommended that county supervisors “review, approve, and support” delay-slashing programs. One example is a “safety net ambulance” effort in Corona in which an ambulance […]

Once a grand juror, always a grand juror! San Mateo grand jury alumnus takes action in this article from California Political Review by Stephen Frank.   https://www.capoliticalreview.com/capoliticalnewsandviews/redwood-city-voter-seeks-to-invalidate-local-bond-measures/

 As a tribute to Civil Grand Juries, Nevada County Board of Supervisors declared February as Grand Jury Awareness Month. Read the article at TheUnion.com  here  https://www.theunion.com/news/grand-jury-awareness-month/article_b76fa68c-a99e-11ed-b0d6-ab71760f1ed3.html

Jessica A. York of the Santa Cruz Sentinel, reported May 29th on a recently issued Santa Cruz Grand Jury report. That report, the result of a tour by the grand jury of the county’s four detention facilities, recommended the County address hiring and retention of the jail’s employees before building a much-needed jail. Read the full report here.