Dear Judge Tobias:

As required by statute, on behalf of the 1999 - 2000 San Benito County Civil Grand Jury, it is our duty and pleasure to present to you our Final Report. This report is the culmination of our year's work and we, the Grand Jurors are proud to have had the opportunity to serve the county and our fellow citizens.

Having served on the previous Grand Jury, we were not surprised to discover the wealth of talent and expertise that our fellow Grand Jurors brought to the 1999-2000 Grand Jury. Nonetheless, it was exciting to witness the seriousness with which nineteen individuals of disparate experience, background and opinion, came together to research, investigate, deliberate, form a consensus, and report on the state of the various county agencies and respond to citizen complaints.

Frequently, we found that suggestions made in the course of an investigation were implemented by an agency. It was gratifying to find that the Grand Jury's investigations were producing effects even before the issuance of its Final Report.

In many ways, the cities and the county resemble large corporations, subject to the same strengths and foibles. Over time, it can become easy to lose perspective and a sense of obligation to one's employers, whether they are stockholders or taxpayers. This is particularly so when the employer is the collective citizenry of the cities and the county. In the process of complying with its mandate to investigate and report on the needs of the county officers and departments, the Grand Jury acts as a reminder to them of their need to perform duties with respect, as well as diligence. It also offers the Grand Jury an opportunity to observe and report that most, if not all, county and city employees, department heads, and elected officials are honest, efficient and conscientious. They often perform excellent work under difficult circumstances, with limited budgets, and they deserve our respect. We thank those whom we came into contact with this year for their candor and assistance.

One of our proud accomplishments this year is the initiation of the Grand Jury's own web page, www.sanbenitocountygrandjury.org. An edited version of the 1998 - 1999 Final Report is posted on the site thanks to Grand Juror Andy Rollins, who painstakingly scanned last year's report, page by page, onto a disk for us. This year's report will be posted after its release, as well as Grand Jury Applications and Citizen's Complaint Forms. We owe thanks as well to Hollister Internet for its assistance in creating the website and for its ongoing support.

We acknowledge the valued assistance of our advisors, the presiding justices, county counsel and Attorney Frank Ubhaus of Berliner Cohen who advised us when a conflict of interest arose with the District Attorney's Office.

We thank you for the opportunity to serve with the 1999 - 2000 Grand Jury.

Respectfully submitted,  

Dian Wood Picone and Robert Graves,