San Benito County 2011-2012 - California Grand Jury Reports

September 25, 2012 — 2011 / 2012 San Benito County - Civil Grand Jury Report*

39 pages 13 findings 9 recommendations

Findings & Recommendations 13 findings

F0: The San Benito High School District has an estimated $20 million reserve fund (as reported in a GJ interview). The American flag is displayed on a pole at the front of each school. The recitation of the Pledge of

F1: The JH was found to be operating in a safe, secure and effective manner. Staff members are exceptionally caring, involved and committed.

F2: Ongoing maintenance and daily janitorial tasks are performed by residents and staff.

F3: The JH continues to offer limited rehabilitative treatment programs.

F4: Two videos developed by the facility, staff and SBHS students – one for the purpose of orientating parents, and residents, and another for sentencing/reporting, have received state awards and the models are being used by other juvenile hall facilities.

F5: JH is currently providing on-site open houses for the community.

F6: Facility staff conducts parenting classes at the Presbyterian Church. -2012

F7: A Community Advisory Board has been established.

F8: San Andreas is an accredited school through the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. This gives graduates significant educational opportunities for college.

F9: Many schools in the county do not have security cameras. -2012

F10: The Grand Jury has confirmed that there are eleven school districts and 19 Schools County wide.

F11: Bitterwater Tully School appeared to be a very well-run school, with a functioning library and computer lab.

F12: Jefferson School is an older school, but is very well maintained. There is a residence for the use of the staff, but no staff member at this time use the residence.

Additional Recommendations 9

Not linked to specific findings.

R1: Personnel are stretched too thin due to budget cuts and non-replacement of deputies. Basic current needs include the hiring of at least 4 additional deputies.

R2: The office for Medical Services is extremely cramped and a larger space should be considered.

R3: San Benito High School should review and refine lock out drill policies and procedures regarding where students should go in the event they are "locked out" or arrive at school after the lockdown drill has begun.

R4: The heads of the Police Department and Sheriff's Department should be notified regarding the "Lock Down Drill," but officers should not receive prior notification so their response time can be properly evaluated and critiqued.

R5: The San Benito High School District should make a policy that does not allow relatives on campus or other buildings without signing in as a visitor.

R6: Hollister School District should attempt to negotiate with the employee unions to allow volunteers to run programs that are not funded to allow short falls in educational programs to be filled.

R7: All school Districts should consider and discuss consolidation to reduce educational costs county wide and to provide more money for educational programs and opportunity.

R10-15: minutes away; however, Hollister PD, CHP and State Park Rangers occasionally respond for back up. Staffing levels in San Benito County is far less than comparable counties in California* Sworn staff CountyPopulation Area—Sq Miles Reserves 52 1,256 1 Lake 64,053 2,950 75 10 63,100 Tehama 3 27** San Benito 58,388 1,388 2,220 62 6 56,086 Tuolumne 5 80 46,010 6,277 Siskiyou 5 50 1,020 Calaveras 45,870 Sources: US Census data and California Peace Officer Standards & Training (P.O.S.T.) data * San Benito County's property tax revenue—which funds public safety—is one of the lowest rates in the State and is based on a formula defined by CA Proposition 13 and CA AB-8 which has not changed since the laws were passed in 1978 and 1979. San Benito County receives $0.11 per property tax dollar. ** 19.5 are funded by the general fund, 7 are funded through grants & contracts, 1 is vacant Community impact San Benito County's location between Salinas and Gilroy puts it in the middle of two large gang "hubs" and the crime that goes with it. San Benito County residents may not receive law enforcement services in the timely manner they demand due to patrol staffing. -2012 Summary: The SBC Juvenile Hall is responsible for providing a safe, secure and healthy environment for minors while they are in temporary custody, or serving a sentence up to 90 days. The Juvenile Hall is a division of the SBC Probation Department. It serves as a temporary detention and treatment facility that houses a young person awaiting a court hearing or release to parents, guardians or other responsible adults. Purpose of Inquiry: Each year the GJ performs a state mandated inspection of Juvenile Hall to ensure that it is operating safely, securely and effectively. Methodology: A committee of the GJ visited Juvenile Hall and interviewed the on-site staff, chief probation officer and Juvenile Hall Superintendent on September 22, 2011. Discussion: The Juvenile Hall review and inspection covered the following areas: Juvenile Hall Personnel Juvenile Hall Wards Food Services Medical Services

R13-15: days. meals a day to the facility. Medical Services: There is a registered nurse on duty from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. JH contracts with a medical provider for assistance at other times. Educational Services: JH provides educational instruction and support through the Pinnacle Court School, which is staffed by one teacher, one classroom aide and one JH instructor officer. Students placed on individual learning plans, work at their own pace. They receive four hours of instruction daily, Monday through Friday. The number of students in the classes may vary. Instruction is also provided for special education students. Maintenance: There is no maintenance staff; however the JH staff and residents voluntarily assume responsibility for on-going maintenance, repairs and daily janitorial duties. Juvenile Hall Facilities: The JH includes an intake area, day room, school room, administrative offices, laundry room, storage area, and courtroom. The overall appearance is clean, neat, up-dated, spacious and youth-friendly. Signage on Highway 25, and at the entrance, is easily visible and attractive. There is a metal detector in place. They have a check in and out system so the residents are responsible for keeping their room clean. The computer system has been upgraded. There is also a movie night. Findings: F1. The JH was found to be operating in a safe, secure and effective manner. Staff members are exceptionally caring, involved and committed. F2. Ongoing maintenance and daily janitorial tasks are performed by residents and staff. F3. The JH continues to offer limited rehabilitative treatment programs. F4. Two videos developed by the facility, staff and SBHS students – one for the purpose of orientating parents, and residents, and another for sentencing/reporting, have received state awards and the models are being used by other juvenile hall facilities. F5. JH is currently providing on-site open houses for the community. F6. Facility staff conducts parenting classes at the Presbyterian Church. . A Community Advisory Board has been established. Recommendations: None Response Required The California Penal Code 933 (c) and 933.03 requires a response to the findings and recommendations made in this final report be delivered to the Presiding Judge of the Superior Court. The following affected agency shall respond to all relevant findings and recommendations. The affected agencies are: San Benito County Probation Office (response required within 60 days) San Benito County Board of Supervisors (response required within 90 days) and above) who are detained at the facility located at 710 Flynn Road, Hollister, CA 95023. The jail is a division of the San Benito County Sheriff's Office. It serves as a detention and treatment facility for inmates waiting for their arraignments, having their cases tried in court, or serving their sentences. The capacity of the jail, determined by inmate/staff ratio is 145 beds. At the time of our visit, the jail housed 142 inmates. The annual budget for the jail is 2 million dollars. Purpose of Inquiry: Every year the Grand Jury performs a state mandated inspection of the San Benito County Jail to ensure that it is operating safely, securely and effectively. Methodology: The Law and Justice Committee of the Grand Jury toured the San Benito County Jail and interviewed on the site staff on September 22, 2011. Discussion: The jail review and inspection covered the following areas: -2012 Jail Personnel Inmates Food Services Medical Services Support Services Maintenance Services Jail Facilities

* This report's PDF did not contain easily extractable text and required Optical Character Recognition (OCR) for analysis. There may be minor errors in the extracted findings and recommendations due to OCR limitations with scanned documents.