COUNTYWIDE : Ojai Rancher Quits Post on Grand Jury
Four weeks after he was appointed to serve on the 1991-92 Ventura County grand jury, Ojai rancher William Etchart has resigned, saying it has become a full-time job he cannot afford.
Etchart’s replacement on the 19-member grand jury is Catherine C. Koch, 41, a homemaker from Thousand Oaks, according to Superior Court Judge Edwin M. Osborne.
Etchart, 62, a retired administrator for the Oxnard Union High School District, said that when he applied to serve on the grand jury, he was told the yearlong commitment would require three to four days each week.
“It’s apparent that the five-day week is becoming the rule rather than the exception,” Etchart said Wednesday.
The rancher said he needs at least two days a week to cultivate his 10 acres of young avocado and citrus trees.
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