East County Jail Closure Stalls
Ventura County has found the funds to stall the closure of the East County Jail in Thousand Oaks until mid-September, officials said Monday.
Faced with a budget shortfall, Sheriff Bob Brooks had planned to close the facility Aug. 17. The additional money, from a county fund set aside to avoid layoffs, will allow suspect bookings in the evenings after that date.
Completely closing the jail, which takes in about 3,500 suspects a year, would save the Sheriff’s Department $800,000 annually.
However, the jail closure is so unpopular that it prompted a lawsuit against the county last week from the city of Thousand Oaks. The shutdown would violate the law-enforcement contract between the county and Thousand Oaks, the lawsuit claims.
That lawsuit came on the heels of one filed against county supervisors by Brooks and Dist. Atty. Greg Totten, who contend the board illegally altered a local public-safety funding ordinance to effectively reduce their budgets.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
