District Attorney's office secures grants for fraud investigators, victim services and restitution work

The Budget and Finance Committee on Sept. 27 voted to send three District Attorney resolutions to the Board of Supervisors for approval: a retroactive California Department of Insurance grant of roughly $1,000,000 for workers' compensation insurance-fraud investigations; renewal of a $75,000 revolving fund agreement with the California Victim Compensation Board (CalVCB) to expedite emergency payments to victims; and authorization to accept approximately $92,000 per year for three years (totaling about $275,000) from CalVCB to continue a criminal restitution compact.

Tina Nunez, managing attorney for the DA's Economic Crimes Unit, told supervisors the fraud grant primarily funds salaries and benefits for investigators and prosecutors and supports training: "Through this grant, we're able to fund two DA investigators and partially fund the salaries of three DAs," she said, adding that fraud investigations are often complex and litigation-intensive. Monifa Willis, chief of victim services, described how the revolving fund expedites emergency assistance for victims for items such as funeral expenses, relocation and medical care and said CalVCB reimburses the office within 30 days.

Willis also described the restitution-compact position that focuses on recuperating CalVCB payouts to victims, scheduling restitution hearings and supporting victim-rights processes; she said one staff member currently handles restitution matters and that, as of the 2023 calendar year, $117,000 in CalVCB restitution orders were at some stage of recovery.

Vice Chair Rafael Mendelmann asked to be a co-sponsor. A public commenter urged transparency and conflict disclosures. The committee recorded three ayes and forwarded the items to the full board.