The Superior Court of California, County of Humboldt asks that the public submit applications for the upcoming 2026/2027 Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury term (July 1-June 30). The Humboldt Superior Court empanels 19 citizens to act as an independent body of the judicial system each year. The Court accepts applications from citizens representing a broad cross-section […]
Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury
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Wanted: Alternates for Humboldt’s Civil Grand Jury
The Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury is still searching for alternates who can serve on this year’s panel, if needed, to carry on a civil oversight tradition that dates back to the Magna Carta. According to a news release from the Humboldt County Superior Court, which appoints a group of residents each year to act […]
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Eureka City Schools to Talk Jacobs, Grand Jury Response
The California Highway Patrol appears to be back at the table, negotiating to purchase 8.3 acres of the former Jacobs Middle School campus from Eureka City Schools. A closed session item for the board to conference with Superintendent Gary Storts, the district’s negotiator, concerning price and terms of payment of a potential deal with CHP, […]
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Grand Jury Blasts Eureka Schools’ for Lack of Transparency, Due Diligence in Jacobs Deal
After investigating Eureka City Schools’ decision to offload its former Jacobs Middle School site in a property exchange agreement with a mystery developer, the Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury has issued a report criticizing the district for a lack of transparency and due diligence. “The Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury concludes that the Eureka City […]
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Grand Jury Report Blasts Auditor-Controller, Auditor-Controller Says it’s All Incorrect
The Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury has interjected itself directly into the county’s auditor-controller race. Less than a week before Election Day, the Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury poured gasoline on what was already considered to be the county’s most contentious political race yesterday, issuing a largely scathing report stating incumbent Auditor-Controller Karen Paz Dominguez’s […]
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Humboldt County’s ‘Cannabis Planning Program’ Lacks Fiscal Transparency, Grand Jury Reports
Four years after recreational cannabis was legalized in California, the Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury has a released report entitled “A Growing Concern.” The report focuses on the Planning and Building Department’s record keeping and cash handling procedures for the cannabis industry. “There is a notable lack of in-depth reporting of revenues and expenditures that […]
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Civil Grand Jury Finds SoHum School District Lacks Vision, Plan Amid Budget Crisis
The Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury released a report yesterday detailing the hefty challenges facing Southern Humboldt Unified School District, from mountain budget shortfalls to a lack of stable leadership. The report, prompted by an apparent laundry list of complaints from families and staff in the district, details how declining enrollment, the formation of a […]
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The Jury’s In
By their very nature, Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury reports generally make for pretty dry reading. Not only are they products of deep-dive investigations into the inner workings of the bureaucracies of government, but they are also the work product of 19 citizens who must be in agreement not just about what an investigation found […]
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Grand Jury: No ‘Silver Bullet’ to Solving Homeless, Offers Strategies
The Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury, a board of citizens impaneled for a year to look into governmental issues, released a report today making recommendations on how to address the region’s overwhelmingly high homeless rate. The 38-page report looks back at the recommendations from the consulting group Focus Strategies that led the city of Eureka and […]
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The Jury is In
The Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury released 11 reports in the last two weeks that delved into subjects as diverse as jail safety, animal control, water quality and the very future of Humboldt County. Every year the HCCGJ conducts lengthy and thorough investigations into issues related to county government; the agencies or departments identified in […]
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The Grand Juror Who Was Banned for Life
The California Fish and Game Commission voted unanimously in closed session June 20 to permanently ban former Humboldt Bay Harbor, Conservation and Recreation District Commissioner and current Humboldt County Civil grand juror Aaron Newman from obtaining a recreational hunting or fishing license. The commission’s action is rare. According to California Department of Fish and Wildlife […]