In Testimony, Orange County Sheriff Dismisses Evidence Of Jail Informant Program

Goethals questioned Hutchens about the sheriff’s department’s continued failure to disclose all records related to the informant issue even now, more than four years after he issued his first order that it do so. Goethals has repeatedly lambasted Hutchens  for indicating that all pertinent documents have been turned over, only to additional documentation “wash ashore” into his courtroom later.

“I’ve heard time and again that all documents have been turned over,” Goethals said. “I’m not trying to give you a hard time, but the buck stops with you. You’re Harry Truman.”

Hutchens responded that she’s aware of the “embarrassing” criticism, adding that the agency has changed some policies pertaining to training deputies in how to use informants and disclosing evidence gleaned from them. Goethals acknowledged the importance of those changes, but said, “The fact that the barn door has closed on this after the horse has left the barn doesn’t help me so much.”

Sanders then confronted Hutchens about a letter she sent to staff following the release of the grand jury report. Sanders, who obtained the letter through an unnamed source within the sheriff’s department, emphasized that Hutchens used a very different tone in the letter than she did during her courtroom testimony. In the letter, Hutchens blasted the allegations against the department, the critical statements of “public officials” and the fact that the Dekraai litigation was continuing to probe informant issues. Although she initially said she couldn’t remember which “public officials” she was referring to, she said later that she had been talking about legal scholars who called for a U.S. Department of Justice probe  into the informant allegations. The Justice Department announced an investigation  into official use of jail informants in the county last year.

Hutchens’ letter appears below: