TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Bruce Moe, City Manager
FROM:
George Gabriel, Assistant to the City Manager
SUBJECT:Title
Consider Request by Councilmember Franklin and Councilmember Hadley to Discuss Revisiting the Request to the District Attorney’s Office to Prosecute State Misdemeanor Crimes (City Manager Moe).
(Estimated Time: 45 Min.)
DISCUSS AND PROVIDE DIRECTION
Line
_________________________________________________________
Recommended Action
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council consider the request by Councilmember Franklin and Councilmember Hadley to discuss revisiting the request to the District Attorney’s Office to prosecute state misdemeanor crimes.
Body
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
There are no fiscal implications associated with the recommended action.
BACKGROUND:
At the July 5, 2022, City Council meeting, Councilmember Franklin requested and received concurrence from Councilmember Hadley to discuss revisiting the request to the District Attorney’s Office to prosecute state misdemeanor crimes.
Council will recall that staff has provided various reports regarding prosecution services to the City Council that are summarized below.
At the March 16, 2021, meeting, City Council directed staff to agendize Council consideration of homeless court and an analysis of potential funding sources for various homeless services.
Staff provided a report on the matter at the June 1, 2021, City Council meeting. In the analysis, staff indicated that homeless court services were offered by the City of Redondo Beach City Attorney’s Office, specifically by their City Prosecutor.
Following discussion at the June 1, 2021, meeting, Manhattan Beach City Council directed staff to continue exploring homeless court, identify necessary funding and perform a cost-benefit analysis. Additionally, Council directed staff to provide information on the process to request the authority from the Los Angeles County District Attorney to prosecute state law misdemeanors.
Staff provided this analysis at the July 20, 2021, City Council meeting to: 1) continue staff’s analysis of contracting with the City of Redondo Beach for prosecution and
homeless court services, 2) report back to the City Council once the City of Redondo Beach provides a cost estimate for prosecution and homeless court services,3) not contact the District Attorney's Office yet regarding County requirements for
consent to prosecute state misdemeanors and 4) continue to pursue the opportunity to discuss homeless court services with Los Angeles County.
At the September 21, 2021, City Council meeting, Council authorized staff to negotiate a contract with Redondo Beach for prosecution and homeless court services, seek the Los Angeles County D.A.'s consent to prosecute state misdemeanors, and explore options for prosecution services during the period of negotiations.
At the January 18, 2022, meeting, City Council considered a draft one year agreement with the City of Redondo Beach for prosecution and homeless court services in the amount of $300,000. Following discussion, City Council directed staff to:
1. Accept the draft concept agreement with the City of Redondo Beach for prosecution and homeless court services, subject to approval by Redondo Beach and Manhattan Beach City Councils;
2. Continue to pursue consent from the District Attorney's Office to allow City prosecution of state misdemeanors; and
3. Have staff conduct due diligence to research other private firms and cities that may provide prosecution services.
At the February 15, 2022, meeting, City Council directed staff to agendize a presentation by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office to discuss prosecution services.
In response to City Council direction, staff reached out to the District Attorney’s Office and scheduled a presentation for the March 15, 2022, City Council meeting. The presentation consisted of Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office services, impacts from recent directives, and local data on how prosecution is being addressed in Manhattan Beach. It was also noted that the City Council subcommittee comprised of Mayor Stern and Councilmember Montgomery held a meeting with the District Attorney’s Office on March 9, 2022. In the meeting, the District Attorney’s Office indicated that they would not provide consent for the City (or other jurisdictions) to prosecute our own state misdemeanors. However, the District Attorney’s Office did indicate a willingness to add homeless court services in Manhattan Beach in the future. Given the complexity and collaboration involved to implement this at the County level it was uncertain when this could be accomplished.
Following discussion at the March 15, 2022, meeting, City Council authorized Councilmember Montgomery and Mayor Stern to meet once more with the District Attorney's Office without City staff present so as not to utilize further staff time.
DISCUSSION:
Following City Council direction provided at the March 15, 2022, meeting, staff has not been involved in discussions with the District Attorney's Office. However, summarized below are three developments as they related to the District Attorney’s services.
Recall
On July 9, 2022, the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk (RR/CC) Dean C. Logan announced that his office has completed the first step in the review of the petitions submitted on July 6 in the Los Angeles County District Attorney Recall Attempt. The RR/CC conducted a raw count of signatures submitted on the petitions and determined that number to be 715,833. The date of a recall election will be based on the timing of the verification and determination of sufficiency. The earliest a recall election could be held would be the November 8, 2022 General Election.
Bail
On May 12, 2022, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón lifted an order that prohibited prosecutors from seeking cash bail for defendants charged with nonviolent crimes. Following this action, the Manhattan Beach Police Department has reinstituted its bail schedule.
City of Whittier (Charter City)
On June 28, 2022, the Whittier City Council directed staff to draft language for a potential Charter amendment ballot measure that would allow Whittier voters to decide whether the City should prosecute its own misdemeanor offenses. As a Charter City, Whittier has more local control than general law cities such as Manhattan Beach (albeit on increasingly limited matters). Any amendment to the Charter must be presented to the voters. If the Charter amendment is placed on the ballot, and receives 50%+1 of the votes, the powers and duties of the City Attorney specified in the Charter will be amended to include prosecution of local misdemeanors.
CONCLUSION:
Staff recommends that the City Council consider the request by Councilmember Franklin and Councilmember Hadley to discuss revisiting the request to the District Attorney’s Office to prosecute state misdemeanor crimes, and provide direction to staff.
LEGAL REVIEW:
The City Attorney has reviewed this report and determined that no additional legal analysis is necessary.