Del Norte County Grand Jury • 2023-2024

inquire into the condition and management of the public prisons

Published: July 22, 2024 6 pages Consolidated Report

⚠️ Aviso de traducción: Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.

⚠️ Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.

Findings 7 findings

Conditions in the jail such as the mold, flooding toilets, and asbestos are a health hazard for both inmates and staff;

The insufficient staffing that results in twelve-hour shifts and safety check failures is a 6 security threat to staff and inmates;

Non-competitive compensation makes it difficult to recruit new staff;

Adverse working conditions and non-competitive compensation make it difficult to retain staff;

The position and size of mirrors and monitors in the control pod create blind spots for staff, and present a security risk for both inmates and staff;

Broken windows create visibility problems;

Unsecured inmate records are at risk for unauthorized access.

Recommendations 7

R1

One factor in losing staff has been that newly hired graduates stay a year and then leave for jobs elsewhere. Offer incentives such as paying a percentage of student debt each year beyond the first year of service.
R2

Ensure that USDA Rural Development Community Facilities Projects grants for jail improvements are applied for and followed up on.
R3

Investigate why there is a problem with the Del Norte County Maintenance Department.
R4

Place unsecured inmate records in a secure location, offsite if necessary.
R5

Institute procedure for reporting when the attorney phone is out of order. INVITED RESPONSE The Del Norte County Sheriff is invited to provide a response to the Honorable Judge McElfresh and the Grand Jury regarding: (F1-F7, R1-R5)
R6

CCHD should make compliance with state auditing requirements a priority to prevent future violations of the law.
R7

CCHD should request auditors to prominently highlight their review for credit card transactions and to clearly indicate whether they found credit card usage to be for CCHD business and supported by actual receipts.

Commendations 1

CM1

The kitchen and kitchen equipment are clean and well organized. During this year D tank was renovated and now has no major issues. Pay raises for staff were instituted this year. 7 Del Norte County Civil Grand Jury 2023/2024 Crescent City Harbor District Staff Use of Credit Cards and Compliance with Annual Audit Requirements DISCLOSURE For the purposes of maintaining the integrity of the Grand Jury and to avoid any possible appearance of conflict, any Grand Jury member may voluntarily recuse themselves from the investigation and ensuing report of a particular subject. Grand Jury member Diane Rykken, accordingly, voluntarily self-recused herself from this particular matter at its inception. BACKGROUND/SUMMARY The Grand Jury received a formal complaint that in 2021 there was at least one confirmed occasion of the Crescent City Harbor District’s (CCHD) staff misusing CCHD’s credit card for a personal travel expense. Staff indicated that they used CCHD’s credit card for a personal travel expense by mistake. Staff indicated that to reimburse CCHD for the personal travel expense they did not claim a travel reimbursement to which they were entitled, as an offset. Receipts showing that staff fully reimbursed CCHD for the improper use of the credit card were requested but have not been produced, and, consequently, the complete reimbursement cannot be verified at this time. In 2021, CCHD did not have a written policy regarding staff’s use of CCHD’s credit cards. As of November 2022, CCHD staff developed a written policy governing staff’s use of CCHD’s credit cards; however, CCHD has not adopted this policy at a public meeting. Further, the Grand Jury learned that the CCHD had been out of compliance with required financial audits for several fiscal years, including 2020/2021 and 2021/2022. As of 2024 CCHD is now current with its required financial audits. DISTRICT STRUCTURE The CCHD formed in 1931 as a special district under California Government Code. The CCHD is run and managed by five publicly elected Commissioners and operates under the California Harbors and Navigation Code.

No Responses Found 1

Government entities assigned to respond to this report. No response documents have been linked in our database.

Del Norte County Sheriff Elected County Office