Hollister
– A year after the Board of Supervisors dismissed her, former
San Benito County Counsel Karen Forcum started work Friday as a
deputy district attorney, according to District Attorney John
Sarsfield.
Hollister – A year after the Board of Supervisors dismissed her, former San Benito County Counsel Karen Forcum started work Friday as a deputy district attorney, according to District Attorney John Sarsfield.
Forcum will take over drunk driving, auto theft and vehicular manslaughter cases – about a quarter of the office’s case load – according to Sarsfield. Forcum is a much-needed addition to the district attorney’s office, which lost two out of three deputy district attorneys to higher paying jobs in March, he said.
“It’s a help that’s really needed. We’re overwhelmed. We’re still in bad shape,” Sarsfield said, adding that he hopes to hire a third deputy district attorney in July.
Forcum declined to comment on her return to San Benito County government.
Forcum was hired for a four-year term as San Benito’s county counsel in 2000. In August, 2004 the Board of Supervisors extended her contract for another four years. After three new supervisors took their seats last year, however, the board voted to extend Forcum’s contract only six months.
Supervisors won’t discuss their decision to dismiss Forcum, saying it’s a personnel matter. But when they made their decision to fire her, however, they released a statement saying that it was, “not based on concerns with Ms. Forcum’s performance as county counsel.”
On Friday, Sarsfield, who said that he sought Forcum out for the deputy district attorney job, called the board’s move to fire Forcum , “a short-sighted thing to do.”
“I always had the highest regard for her professional ability,” he said, declining to comment on what Forcum has done between the time she was county counsel and being hired as deputy district attorney.
“I don’t want to get into her personal stuff,” Sarsfield said.
Supervisor Anthony Botelho said that he hopes the addition of Forcum will allow the district attorney’s office to better pursue the cause of justice.
“A prosecutor position is absolutely vital for the justice system to function in San Benito County,” he said. “(The district attorney’s office) is not functioning now with vacancies for an extended period of time.”
Supervisors have been critical of Sarsfield and his performance.
In March, following the revelation that Sarsfield overspent his budget by $91,000, the board voted 4-1 to declare “no confidence” in the district attorney and request that Attorney General Bill Lockyer’s office investigate him. This week representatives of the Attorney General said that they wouldn’t investigate Sarsfield during a meeting with two supervisors and county staff.
Sarsfield has also requested an additional $300,000 to prosecute the Los Valientes case, in which an anonymous group alleges widespread county corruption. Superior Court Judge Steven Sanders has given the county until the end of this month to make a decision regarding the request for additional funds.
Throughout it all, Sarsfield has claimed that the majority of board members are trying to interfere with his investigation of Los Valientes because they are part of the group or associated with it.
Supervisors deny the accusations.
Luke Roney covers local government and the environment for the Free Lance. Reach him at 831-637-5566 ext. 335 or at lr****@fr***********.com
