Monday, April 21, 2014

Santa Barbara County, courts look to north for grand jurors

Supervisors, other leaders step up recruitment efforts

April 20, 2014 12:45 am  •  Erin Lennon/elennon@lompocrecord.com

When 5th District Supervisor Steve Lavagnino met with the Santa Barbara County Civil Grand Jury last year, he didn’t recognize many faces from the North County, including Santa Maria, the county’s most populous city.

Now, he and other county leaders have teamed up with Santa Barbara County Superior Court to inform North County residents about the grand jury, hoping to see more interest from around the county as the May 2 application deadline approaches.

“Whether it’s people from the north or south, if there’s a view from all points of the county, you’re going to have more complete investigations, reports and discussions,” said Lavagnino.

The grand jury is a division of the Superior Court that oversees numerous government agencies, cities and districts throughout the county. Its 19 volunteer jurors are blindly pulled from a drum of 30 names after applicants from throughout the county are screened and interviewed.

Despite the jury’s far-reaching impact on countywide issues, less than 36 percent of jurors and alternates serving on the grand jury in the last five years resided north of Goleta, according to the Superior Court’s Judicial Services Department. The majority of jurors came from supervisorial districts one and two, encompassing Santa Barbara, Carpinteria, Montecito, Summerland and Cuyama to the north.

Court Executive Officer Darrel Parker can’t pinpoint an exact cause for the disparity, but he has begun exploring strategies to close the participation gap.

The first step is to make sure people know about the jury, said Parker. While this year’s advertising and outreach budget is nearly gone, Parker said he’s gotten some free advertising resulting from the community’s growing interest in the grand jury. Parker and Presiding Judge Arthur Garcia are scheduled to discuss the jury’s work with Lavagnino on the weekly 1240 KSMX radio show, “Our Town,” on Friday.

The show airs weeks after the county created and released a recruitment video in which Foreman Ted Sten answers questions about the civil grand jury. The video is available on the county’s Facebook and YouTube pages.

“I’ve given talks to service clubs throughout the county, from Santa Maria to Carpinteria,” said Sten, who has sat on the jury a number of times. “I always take applications with me and just hope that even if the people there don’t see themselves applying that they may have a friend or relative who might be interested.”

Despite the court’s countywide advertisements and outreach efforts, Judicial Services Manager Mark Hanson said over the last 10 years there have routinely been more applicants from the southern part of the county than from the north.

“It has nothing to do with the north-south divide or the way they view the world,” said Lavagnino. “It all comes down to the drive.”

He and 4th District Supervisor Peter Adam said the drive from their northern districts to the jury’s headquarters in downtown Santa Barbara is a major roadblock for their constituents. They’ve suggested that the jury rotate its meetings around the county and possibly focus on meeting in the midcounty region.

This concept isn’t new to Sten, who has been appointed foreman five times since 2005 by presiding judges from both the North County and South County. He said he’s made it a priority during his terms to hold meetings throughout the county, including the unincorporated areas. The 2013-14 jury has completed 13 meetings outside of Santa Barbara since it began its work last July, according to Sten.

Parker is open to furthering this idea and has started looking into the costs associated with different meeting locations. But he conceded that few spots have the space and security necessary to accommodate the work of 19 jurors. In Santa Barbara, the jury has an established and secure conference room where jurors can keep their files, notes and exhibits in one place.

Parker is also investigating transportation options to ease North County jurors’ drive to Santa Barbara, should the jury stay anchored in the south. He has looked into possibilities such as an affordable shuttle or other type of group transit option as well as a possible carpooling system, a strategy that has been used in the past. Parker said there’s also the option of video and teleconferencing between conference rooms in Santa Maria and Santa Barbara.

But Lavagnino said there may be fewer constituents in his district, which includes Santa Maria, and throughout the North County than farther south who have the time, means and desire to dedicate at least 20 hours per week to jury work, even if meetings become more accessible.

“A lot of the retired folks in the South County are worrying about where they’re going to spend their vacations,” said Lavagnino, who suggested that many applicants are likely retirees. “People up here are working later in life and perhaps worrying more about their incomes and issues like that.” The 2010 U.S. census shows the median household income in Santa Maria was nearly $12,000 less per year than in Santa Barbara, with 19.8 percent of Santa Marians falling below the poverty line, compared with 14.7 percent in Santa Barbara.

“I’m hoping my efforts will mean a few more applications,” Lavagnino said. “But if not, we’ve got to go with who’s applying.”

Grand jury applications are due May 2, with interviews taking place in Santa Maria and Santa Barbara during the second and third week of May. The 2014-15 grand jury will be sworn in July 1.

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