2021-2022 Los Angeles County Civil Grand Jury Final Report

Conclusions 1

• CL1 Page 280
  Documents Edited during the Civil Grand Jury empanelment: - Numerous letters requesting responses from the prior jury recommendations - 9 Standing Committee Reports including Continuity and Detention - All Investigation Reports 279 COMMITTEE MEMBERS Elzie Whitlow, Chair Ruth Cordero, Co-chair Gertie Moncrief Vivian Ozuna Maureen Smith 280 HOSPITALITY 2021 – 2022 LOS ANGELES COUNTY CIVIL GRAND JURY 281 HOSPITALITY COMMITTEE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The 2021-2022 Hospitality Committee consisted of five Civil Grand Jury (CGJ) members selected in the month of July, 2021. Hospitality Committee members serve the CGJ by providing beverages, baked goods, and supplies needed for planned events.

Commendations 4

• CM1 Page 41
  The Civil Grand Jury investigative committee, after reviewing and evaluating the information presented by the Department of Regional Planning, would like to commend the entire staff and department of the Unmanned Aircraft System Program for their dedication and expertise in developing and implementing the entire UAS/Drone Program. 40
• CM2 Page 88
  The Information Systems Committee of the 2021/2022 Civil Grand Jury wishes to commend John Acevedo and his 2014/2015 Committee for its outstanding report, which is the foundation of this document. 87
• CM3 Page 144
  We sincerely thank the LACFD for their bravery in keeping us safe during all the wildfires we have experienced in LA County. 143
• CM4 Page 171
  The OPG has offered robust services to conservatee clients in the County for years. Our Committee commends the excellent work of the DMH’s OPG for putting in the work to protect the County's conservatees. The OPG has had a long history of serving the County and have the data to prove its involvement. In addition, the OPG has been dedicated to put forth reforms and implement changes to the department that protect its conservatees. 170 REQUIRED RESPONSES: California Penal Code section 933 (c), 933.05(a) and 933.05(b) require a written response to all recommendations contained in this report. Such responses shall be made no later than ninety (90) days after the Civil Grand Jury publishes its report to the public. All responses to the recommendations of the 2021-2022 Los Angeles County Civil Grand Jury must be submitted on or before Friday, September 30, 2022: Presiding Judge Los Angeles Superior Court Clara Shortridge Foltz, Criminal Justice Center 210 West Temple Street, 13th Floor, Room 13-303 Los Angeles, CA 90012 Responses are required from: R10.1, R10.2, R10.3, R10.4, R10.5, Los Angeles County Chief Executive R10.8, R10.9 Officer R10.1, R10.2, R10.3, R10.4, R10.5, Los Angeles County Board of R10.8, R10.9 Supervisors R10.2, R10.3, R10.4, R10.6 Los Angeles City Department of Aging R10.2, R10.3, R10.4, R10.5 Los Angeles County Adult Protective Services R10.1, R10.2, R10.3, R10.9 Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health R10.1, R10.2, R10.3, R10.4, R10.5, Los Angeles County Department of R10.9 Mental Health Office of the Public Guardian R10.2, R10.3, R10.4, R10.8 Los Angeles Workforce Development, Aging and Community Service R10.6 Office of the Mayor-Los Angeles R10.2, R10.3, R10.4, R10.7 Purposeful Aging 171 COMMITTEE MEMBERS Maureen Smith (Chair) Hassan Ferasati Tiglath Gaete Elaine Killings-Jankins Thomas Rasmussen Bernadette Trigo 172 WHO’S WATCHING THE FIRE HOUSE? 2021 – 2022 LOS ANGELES COUNTY CIVIL GRAND JURY 173 ACRONYMS DEFINITIONS LAFD Los Angeles Fire Department CGJ Civil Grand Jury OT Overtime FCA Firefighters Candidate Assessment EMS Emergency Medical Services CAP Candidate Assessment Program 174 WHO’S WATCHING THE FIRE HOUSE? EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The City of Los Angeles (City) Fire Department (LAFD) has undergone a litany of criticisms from the media as well as the City auditors.1 The 2021-2022 Civil Grand Jury (CGJ) focused on nepotism and overtime (OT) practices. California Penal Code section 925a grants the CGJ the ability to investigate and report upon the operations of any incorporated city located in the County.2 The CGJ sought to ascertain if evidence of widespread nepotism exists in LAFD's hiring process for new recruits. In addition, the CGJ reviewed LAFD's OT policy and practices to determine if abuse is prevalent. This is an attempt to follow up on previous allegations and what has been done to help close the gap between past nepotism and OT abuse as compared to the current practices. Nepotism refers to a form of unfair workplace procedures, when family members or friends of the boss or manager are hired not purely for their skills, experience or knowledge.3 The recruitment process for new hires is a long and lengthy process starting with the City Personnel Department and continuing through the Drill Tower training regimen. The CGJ will explore at which point during the hiring process nepotism is most likely to occur. OT has been an area where the LAFD has been cited by an audit for not properly managing their OT process. Many employees are being paid for significant OT hours beyond their base pay hours.4 The CGJ will discuss the process to determine if OT is properly managed and all personnel have equal and fair access to OT. After delving into LAFD's OT process, we found a definite and critical need for OT oversight. The multitude of sources that we came into contact with provided conflicting facts. Therefore, it is reasonable to suggest that there is a dire need for oversight. The ultimate goal of the CGJ is to make recommendations to help reduce unwarranted OT hours, avoid nepotism wherever possible, and create a more favorable public perception of the LAFD. 1 See LAFD gets new anti-nepotism rules in wake of hiring controversy - Los Angeles Times (latimes.com); The L.A. Fire Department Rolls Out New Nepotism Protocols - Bloomberg; LAFD Employees Earned More Than $190 Million in Overtime Last Fiscal Year – NBC Los Angeles 2 https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?sectionNum=925a&lawCode=PEN 3 https://roubler.com/au/resources/blog/nepotism-in-the- workplace/#:~:text=Nepotism%20refers%20to%20a%20form%20of%20unfair%20workplace,is%20unable%20to%20successfull y%20perform%20in%20the%20role. 4 http://lacontroller.org/press-releases/lafd-overtime 175

No Responses Found 4

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