Lake County supervisors approve response to 2024–25 civil grand jury report

The Lake County Board of Supervisors approved its response to the 2024–25 Lake County Civil Grand Jury report and authorized the board chair to sign the document, passing the motion 5-0 during the meeting.

The response was prepared to comply with California Penal Code sections 933 and 933.05, which require a public agency to reply to civil grand jury recommendations, and must be submitted to Judge Markham no later than Monday, Oct. 6, staff said.

Trevor Mokel, an administrative analyst, told supervisors the grand jury issues an annual report and that the draft response attached to the agenda had been prepared in compliance with state law. "As your board is aware, the Lake County Civil Grand Jury prepares an annual report making recommendations to improve systems, procedures, and methods of operation," Mokel said.

Matthew Rothstein, chief deputy county administrative officer, asked staff to display the version on the screen and said a fragment of the sheriff’s response had been inadvertently retained in the draft. "On page 10, a fragment copied from the sheriff's response for reference only was inadvertently retained. So that has been deleted in the final version. That's the only change," Rothstein said. He asked that the board approve the response as amended and authorize the chair to sign.

No members of the public offered comment, and board members moved and seconded the item. The board voted unanimously, 5-0, to approve the 2024–25 grand jury response as amended and to authorize the chair to sign the final submission.

Staff noted that responses from elected and appointed county department heads were incorporated into the board’s submission. The board did not set additional conditions or direct further work beyond approving the amended response and completing the required filing.

The final response will be sent to Judge Markham by the Oct. 6 deadline to satisfy the requirements of Penal Code sections 933 and 933.05.