As with many
The other Grand Jury is a criminal Grand Jury that largely deals with issuing indictments (charging a person with a criminal or public offense). This jury is called on a case-by-case basis.
The Civil Grand Jury has three primary functions:
·
To randomly audit local governmental agencies
and officials
·
To publish their investigative findings and
recommendations toward improving those governmental operations in the interest
of the community being served
· To investigate citizens' complaints
The Civil Grand Jury investigates local government agencies and officials to evaluate if they are acting properly. If a Grand Jury determines that they are not, it has various options open to it. The most frequently used option is the presentation of a report outlining the Grand Jury's finding and recommendations in the matter. Such reports are public and sometimes attract media attention. Agencies or elected officials discussed in the Report must respond specifically to the report's findings and recommendations.
Citizen may file complaints with the Grand Jury to request that it investigate what they perceive as wrongdoing by a public agency, such as a school district or a police department. The Jury will decide if the complaint has merit and is not obligated to pursue the complaint. County complaint forms are available from the following address:
(831) 454-2099
FAX (831) 454-3387