Parents and an investigative reporter urge probe of Orange County family-court professionals

Speakers at the Dec. 17 public-comment period urged the county to investigate an alleged pattern of biased or unqualified court-appointed professionals in Orange County Family Court. One commenter (identified in the agenda list as James P.) said a court-appointed therapist, named in the transcript as Jessica St. Clair, had "fraudulent credentials and extreme bias" and claimed such recommendations sometimes overrode forensic evidence of abuse.

Julie Anderson Holborn, who identified herself as an investigative reporter and Orange County constituent, told the board she has investigated alleged corruption across the family-court system, named attorneys and court-approved therapists she has written about, and asked the board to call for a public, DOJ-style investigation modeled on a Colorado inquiry that led to indictments in a comparable case.

Why it matters: Commenters said biased evaluations by court-appointed professionals can result in custody decisions that separate children from protective parents and frustrate law-enforcement or child-protection investigations. They urged the board to use its oversight to request a higher-level investigation to restore trust in the family-court process.

Board response: Supervisor Foley and county counsel said they would help identify the appropriate entity for complaints and would follow up to determine whether the matters fall within county jurisdiction or are matters for the courts or other state agencies. No formal motion or vote was recorded during the public-comment period.

The claims in this article are reported as made by the speakers during public comment; the transcript does not include formal findings or responses from the courts or law-enforcement agencies.