Kings County supervisors table letter after debate over Hanford Police withdrawal from Major Crimes Task Force

The Kings County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to table a proposed letter to the Hanford City Council seeking intervention after the Hanford Police Department withdrew from the Kings County Major Crimes Task Force, following a lengthy study-session briefing and an extended public discussion that included the county district attorney, the sheriff and Hanford’s police chief.

The board voted unanimously to postpone the letter and directed staff to rewrite it, incorporating suggestions from supervisors and public-safety leaders; the revised draft is to return to the board within two weeks. The action came after more than two hours of testimony about the task force’s structure, staffing and how the withdrawal could affect regional investigations and prosecutions.

The Major Crimes Task Force is a multi‑agency coalition, the county presentation said, originally formed from a narcotics and a gang task force to coordinate investigations of gang violence, narcotics trafficking and human trafficking. Kings County administrative staff told the board the task force is staffed by representatives from the Sheriff’s Office, the District Attorney’s Office and Probation, and that local police departments and the California Highway Patrol participate. The county presentation estimated shared clerical costs at about $20,550 per participating agency for the 2024–25 fiscal year and said operational expenses are paid from multiple department budgets.

Hanford Police Chief Stephanie Huddleston told the board her department established an in‑house Street Crimes Unit in 2023 to take a “tactical, proactive” approach to gang and narcotics enforcement that places officers on the street during nights and weekends. Chief Huddleston said her department’s overtime costs tied to task‑force participation in 2023 totaled roughly $140,000 and, when combined with officers’ total compensation of $138,000 and about $20,000 in operating costs, approached $300,000 — funds she said could instead support four additional investigators assigned to Hanford’s unit.

“There has been a lot of misinformation,” Huddleston said. “We remain committed to collaborating with our allied agencies. This is about keeping the resources here in the City of Hanford when I need them. When I have a homicide, I should not be told by my investigator that we can’t come help you because we’re in another city.”

Huddleston presented statistics for the Street Crimes Unit she formed: in 2023 the unit investigated 95 cases, served 65 search warrants, made 99 arrests and seized 21 firearms; in 2024 the unit investigated about 76 cases, served 50 search warrants, made 85 arrests and seized 25 firearms. She said the unit solved a double homicide in less than 14 hours.

District Attorney Sarah Hacker told the board she disagreed with Hanford’s decision to withdraw and explained why the DA’s office is concerned about fragmenting gang expertise. “To successfully prosecute a gang crime we often must prove both the underlying offense and that the defendant acted for the benefit of a criminal street gang under Penal Code Section 186.22,” Hacker said. She told the board that gang prosecutions rely on expert testimony that describes gang symbols, tattoos, associations and how specific acts benefit a gang; once an officer testifies as a gang expert, that testimony becomes part of the record and can be used in future cases.

Hacker said her office has been qualifying and training county gang experts and that having multiple, separate gang units operating from different local perspectives risks inconsistent expert testimony that could be exploited in criminal trials. “We need to ensure that our gang testimony is accurate and has integrity and that it’s truthful,” Hacker said. “We want everybody operating off the same playbook.”

Kings County Sheriff Dave Robinson, who has chaired the task force board for many years, said he disagrees with Hanford’s decision but supports Chief Huddleston’s goal of securing more officers for Hanford’s streets. Robinson warned the board that when an agency no longer places a representative in a task force “you lose that piece” of routine information sharing, and he urged city councils to commit funding so agencies can staff both local units and the county task force.

Multiple law‑enforcement leaders and former task‑force investigators urged collaboration and cautioned against public acrimony. Jonathan Brewster, who identified himself as DSA president and a former gang investigator, said wiretap and multi‑agency investigations are resource‑intensive but “put people in prison for years.” Justin Ballen, a Hanford resident and a former city employee, said the city’s decision was a local one and warned against framing the issue as an interpersonal attack on the chief.

Supervisor comments reflected competing priorities. Some supervisors said they wanted a more conciliatory letter — with language that expresses respect for Chief Huddleston while raising countywide public‑safety concerns — rather than one that could be read as an intervention in city governance. After discussion, the board voted to table the proposed letter and asked staff to rewrite it and return to the board, with the board chair authorized to sign when the item returns.

Votes at a glance

- Motion to table proposed letter to the Hanford City Council and direct staff to revise and return in two weeks — outcome: tabled (roll‑call: Joe Neves, Richard Valle, Doug Verboon, Rusty Robinson, Robert Thayer — all yes). - Approval to accept Homeless Housing Assistance and Prevention Program Round 5 (HAP5) standard agreement with the California Department of Housing and Community Development — outcome: approved (roll‑call: 5 yes). - Approval to purchase 66 sheriff mobile data terminals from Dell Technologies — outcome: approved (roll‑call: 5 yes). - Approval of plans/specifications for Avenal Cutoff Road Phase 2 and authorization to advertise for construction — outcome: approved (roll‑call: 5 yes). - Adoption of resolution proclaiming February 2025 as Black History Month in Kings County — outcome: approved (roll‑call: 5 yes). - Approval to set compensation for the Director of Child Support Services to $14,166 per month, effective Feb. 17, 2025 — outcome: approved (roll‑call: 4 yes, 1 no).

Why it matters

The withdrawal of a municipal representative from a regional task force raises practical and legal questions about evidence, prosecution and interagency communications. Prosecutors say consistent, countywide gang expertise supports prosecutions and avoids conflicting expert testimony; chiefs and city officials say local control over resources and schedules can improve tactical street enforcement. The board’s decision to table the letter reflects a desire to balance respect for municipal authority with countywide public‑safety interests and to resolve technical issues, such as memoranda of understanding and staffing, through further discussion.