Calaveras County Grand Jury • 2018-2019

Calaveras County Grand Jury Report 2018-2019

Published: June 01, 2019 114 pages Consolidated Report

Ver PDF original

⚠️ 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 14 findings

The ACS facility is old, outdated, and insufficient to care for and house animals.

Funding to purchase one additional new vehicle is needed.

Through interviews, the CCGJ determined that when funded properly, ACS functions more effectively under the jurisdiction of the Sheriff’s Office. Under the administration of the Sheriff’s Office, an ACS Officer would command more respect and authority within the community, have the authority to issue citations, make arrests, and enforce codes and licensing laws.

Currently, revenue collected by ACS goes directly into the County General Fund instead of enhancing the ACS budget, limiting funds available for their specific needs.

Due to a lack of funding, ACS has not complied with all of the recommendations made in the Bickmore Hazard Assessment Report.

ACS does not have an official uniform policy, does not provide uniforms to its officers, and does not have adequate funding for uniforms. The officers do not have a professional, identifiable appearance.

There is an insufficient number of office personnel to keep the ACS office open eight hours a day, five days a week, limiting public access to available services.

A Policy and Procedure Manual does not exist, resulting in inconsistent practices and procedures, and a lack of structure for the department and its employees.

The signed preliminary MOU between the Humane Society and Calaveras County to build a new animal shelter facility was terminated after the county expressed a desire to rewrite the terms of the MOU.

F10

ACS does not have a current training manual resulting in operational inconsistencies.

F11

There is not a current written policy and procedure on how evidence is handled, logged, transported to the Sheriff’s Office, or otherwise properly stored. This has resulted in a loss of evidence and documentation, which likely will occur again due to a lack of policy and procedure.

F12

Clear policy and procedures are in place and strictly followed by staff and volunteers. Day-to-day opera tions are performed at a high standard under sub-standard conditions without adequate facilities and equip ment. Disagree. While policies and procedures were presented to the Grand Jury, many are outdated and not readily available to staff. Comprehensive policies and procedures are urgently needed and will be a high priority for the new Animal Services Manager.

F13

The nonprofit Friends of the Calaveras Animal Shelter (FOCAS) has provided funds to the ACS and has do nated equipment and volunteer hours to help keep the ACS effective. Agree. FOCAS provides invaluable assistance to Animal Services in terms off inancial assistance and volunteer help. FOCAS members are tremendously dedicated to all aspects of animal welfare and the work performed by Animal Services.

F14

The ACS has a ninety percent (90%) no-kill rate. Agree. This no-kill rate applies to dogs at the shelter and is the result of the hard work of staff and volunteers in providing animals with medical treatment, socialization, and a variety of placement options, including adoption out of other centers and rescue groups. Page -4- Fl.Rl. Calaveras County Human Resource Department needs to increase the ACS budget and the Calaveras County Board of Supervisors needs to approve the increase proposed for the ACS budget to efficiently and ef fectively operate at a higher level of productivity.

Recommendations 11

R1

By the 2019-2020 fiscal year, the BOS must commit to one of the following: a) Provide ACS the necessary budget to allow for the building of a new facility, b) Investigate vacant county buildings for use as a replacement Animal Shelter and authorize funding to conduct a feasibility assessment of the old jail facility, c) Eliminate ACS in Calaveras County, thus requiring the outsourcing of operations.
R2

The BOS needs to allocate to ACS the necessary funds in the 2019-2020 budget for one additional properly equipped new vehicle.
R3

The BOS should place ACS under the management of the Sheriff’s Office and provide the necessary additional budget to operate, equip, and staff ACS properly. This should occur within the 2019-2020 fiscal year.
R4

Any donations or fees collected by ACS should be directly allocated to the ACS budget instead of being directed into the County General Fund.
R5

By the 2019-2020 fiscal year, the BOS should provide the necessary funding to bring ACS into compliance with all of the recommendations made in the Bickmore Hazard Assessment Report.
R6

ACS needs an official uniform policy by the end of the 2019-2020 fiscal year; additional funding for uniforms is needed in the 2020-2021 fiscal year budget.
R7

In the 2019-2020 fiscal year, the BOS needs to approve the budget necessary for hiring additional office personnel for ACS.
R8

ACS management needs to develop a Policy and Procedure Manual using industry standards provided in “Guidelines for Standards of Care in Animal Shelters” 2010
R9

The BOS should, within the 2019-2020 fiscal year, increase the Sheriff’s Office budget sufficiently to improve services to the county.
R10

ACS management needs to create a training manual
R11

ACS management needs to establish written evidence handling procedures

Commendations 2

CM1

C1. Individual County schools do their best to serve the needs of homeless students. Page 58 of 114
CM2

C1. The CCSO is deserving of congratulations on their performance of high standards within the jail. C2. The CCSO and Mark Twain Medical Center have performed remarkably well in handling and processing rape kits.