June 30, 1997

Honorable William L Gordon
Presiding Judge, Santa Barbara County Superior Court
Santa Barbara, California

Dear Judge Gordon:

In compliance with the laws of the State of California and the charge given to us on

July 1,1996, the 1996-97 Santa Barbara County Grand Jury is pleased to submit this Final

Report to the Court, the Board of Supervisors, and the citizens of the County. Each of the

ten reports was released to the affected agencies and the public upon completion.

We took your charge quite seriously, when you instructed us to:

"... investigate or inquire into County matters of civil concern; ... make a careful and

complete examination of and report on the operation of accounts and records of the

officers, departments and functions of the County; ... inquire into the condition and

management of public prisons; ... inquire into willful or corrupt misconduct in office of

public officers of every description within the county, ... and ... examine all sorts of

complaints." Of the latter, there were many.

More than 300 letters were received from concerned citizens in the County. Some were general complaints about City or County agencies; others addressed specific concerns. Selecting topics for investigation was sometimes difficult. We examined environmental regulations (Tajiguas Landfill), expenditure of Bond funds and compliance with the Brown Act (Buellton Union School District), development of the Lompoc Senior Center, City of Santa Maria State Water Obligations, County Election process, Disability Retirement, and Boards and Commissions. In addition, we submitted the mandated reports on Detention Facilities and Audit of County records, and we continued the Follow Through process of tracking the responses of the previous year's Grand Jury report. We trust that our efforts will help to keep the public aware of matters not usually available to public scrutiny.

This Jury experienced an unusual circumstance during the past year. Our probe of

Disability Retirement in the Santa Barbara County Retirement System led to the

Retirement Board filing suit against the Grand Jury to prevent our interviewing

members of the Board of Retirement. That suit was heard in Superior Court in March

1997, and resulted in a judgment in our favor. The Board of Retirement, however, filed

an appeal with the 2nd District Court which has not yet been heard.

There are various reasons why a number of investigations undertaken by the Grand Jury did not result in a report. Sometimes the situation was resolved as the investigation proceeded. In other cases the study required more time than we had available.

It has been an exciting, stimulating and rewarding year for the members of the Grand

Jury. The process of developing a working relationship among strangers from diverse

backgrounds and different parts of the county, each bringing unique talents and

viewpoints to the task of investigating various agencies, was challenging. We grew from

nineteen individual personalities into a cohesive unit, bonded by a respect for each other

and the tasks we had undertaken.

The Santa Barbara County Grand Jury expresses appreciation to you for your guidance
and your prompt and careful consideration of our Interim Final Reports.

We would also like to thank those members of the District Attorney's office and other County departments who were especially helpful during our investigations.

We consider it a privilege to have been a part of this dedicated and hard working group

serving Santa Barbara County residents and the Superior Court. I would like to extend

my personal thanks to each member of the Jury for the year long commitment and the

willingness to "go the extra mile."

Sincerely,



Patricia A. Fillippini, Foreperson,
1996-97 Santa Barbara County Grand Jury