Orange County reports closed-session settlements and interim county executive appointment

County counsel reported that the Orange County Board of Supervisors took several reportable actions in closed session, including appointing Chief Financial Officer Michelle Aguirre as the county's interim county executive officer and approving or authorizing multiple settlements and a legal intervention.

Counsel said the board, on a recorded vote of 4–0 with Supervisor Doe absent, appointed Michelle Aguirre to the interim county executive position and directed that she execute the county’s standard at‑will agreement. Counsel also reported approval of a proposed $365,000 settlement in Sandra Atkinson v. County of Orange, describing the claim as arising from a bite by a Sheriff's Department canine that caused an approximately 8‑centimeter facial laceration; counsel said the settlement remains subject to final approvals and that copies will be made available through the Office of CEO Risk Management to anyone who inquires.

Counsel further said the board authorized County Counsel to intervene on behalf of the county in Build the Great Park Veteran Cemetery et al. v. City of Anaheim (Orange County Superior Court case number 30-2024-01420506), a California Environmental Quality Act challenge to the county‑funded veterans cemetery project in Gypsum Canyon. Counsel reiterated the county’s position that the lawsuit lacks merit and noted the county previously transferred roughly 283 acres in Gypsum Canyon to the Orange County Cemetery District for public cemetery use, with half the usable acreage set aside for a state veterans cemetery and a reversionary interest if the site is not used for cemetery purposes within 10 years.

Counsel also reported that plaintiffs in Marcus Rodriguez III et al. v. County of Orange have reportedly accepted a $125,000 county counter‑offer in a case alleging false arrest, excessive force and civil‑rights violations; and that litigants in IH et al. v. County of Orange have reportedly agreed to settle a case concerning the asphyxiation and severe injury of a dependent child, with the board having previously agreed to apply $5,000,000 of the county’s self‑insured retention toward the settlement and counsel saying approximately $23,000,000 will be covered by the county’s external insurer. Counsel emphasized that those settlements remain subject to final approvals and that finalized agreements will be available through CEO Risk Management.

The closed‑session report concluded with counsel stating no other reportable action was taken. The board made these disclosures in open session after meeting behind closed doors under cited Government Code provisions.