Drugs in Jails – The Perpetual Scourge

This investigative committee conducted telephonic interviews with former CGJ members who resigned from grand jury service. Every former juror interviewed stated that unsuitable working facilities and conditions and the daily rate of pay were major contributing factors that led to their resignation.

The Los Angeles County CGJ is not a member of the California Grand Jury Association. The purpose of this association is to “promote, preserve and support the grand jury system through training, education, and outreach”.19

Currently, the CGJ occupies approximately 1,864 sq. ft. of County space. During an interview between members of this CGJ investigative group and personnel with the L.A. County CEO Real Estate and Leasing Division, it was stated by these experts that the space provided to the CGJ should be approximately 5,000 sq. ft. in order to provide the most productive work environment.20

The current training provided to the CGJ is inadequate and contributes to the attrition of CGJ members. 18https://officeprinciples.com/planning/space-calculator/(accessed 04-26-19) 19 California Grand Jury Association website https://cgja.org/ (accessed 03-05-19) 20 Meeting with employees of Space Management, Real Estate and Leasing Division, CEO’s Office 2018-2019 LOS ANGELES COUNTY CIVIL GRAND JURY FINAL REPORT GRAND JURY FACILITIES AND RETENTION 7 -

Alternates who join the jury after three months or more of jury activity, are hindered to competently perform their expected duties because they did not participate in the initial jury training, they did not have the opportunity to hear any of the invited speakers, and investigations were already underway.

Many misconceptions related to the requirements of jury service result in jury attrition and must be addressed before jurors and alternates are sworn-in. These include the state of the sheriff’s buses, monthly payment requirement, and the state of the working facilities.

The transportation buses currently provided to the Los Angeles CGJ are subpar and is a contributing factor to why some jurors elected not to participate in all mandated off-site activities.