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This afternoon the Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury dropped its seventh report from the 2022-23 session. This one reports on an investigation into the county’s Child Abuse Services Team, or CAST.

In a press release, published below, the Civil Grand Jury has some nice things to say, noting the importance of the work done by CAST personnel and tipping a cap to the “dedicated, hard-working professionals” in the team and noting that the system functions well “for the most part.”

Naturally, some things could stand improvement. Front-line responders to child abuse situations could use more — and more current — training, the report says. And the understaffing that currently plagues the whole county naturally affects CAST as well.

The report, which you can download in full via a link below, lists seven recommendations. Among them is one stating that the District Attorney’s Office should lead the development of training for first responders in “culturally appropriate best practices” to situations of alleged child abuse.

All law enforcement agencies in the county should receive such training, the report notes.

Below is a press release from the Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury, followed by a link to the full report:

Children are the most vulnerable members of our society. When they are subjected to abuse, be it sexual, physical, or emotional, there is a team who come from a variety of agencies here in Humboldt County that works to minimize trauma and hold criminal offenders responsible for their actions.

This is the Humboldt County Child Abuse Services Team, more commonly referred to as CAST.

The 2022-23 Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury, while investigating a complaint that involved a juvenile, discovered that CAST was a little-known and even less understood organization. 

We investigated Humboldt County’s CAST, learning that this complicated system involves many players.  We found dedicated, hard-working professionals focused on protecting children, and a system that for the most part functions well. 

We also discovered that some of the front-line responders to child abuse situations would benefit from additional training, and that an issue common to most governmental agencies in Humboldt County — understaffing — makes accomplishing the already difficult mission of CAST more difficult than it could be.

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DOCUMENT: Civil Grand Jury Report on the Humboldt County Child Abuse Services Team

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Previous 2022-23 Civil Grand Jury reports:

• ‘IT’S OK TO VOTE’: Grand Jury Issues Its First Report of This Cycle, Focused on Humboldt County Election Integrity
• In its Second Report of the Year, the Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury Tackles the ‘Dysfunctional’ State of Child Welfare Services in the County and the ‘Toxic’ Work Atmosphere Within the Department
• CITY of MCKINLEYVILLE? It’s Time for Real Talk About Incorporation, Grand Jury Sez
• Civil Grand Jury Finds ‘Appalling and Dangerous Conditions’ at Humboldt County Animal Shelter
• ‘Not Adequately Prepared’: Civil Grand Jury Says Humboldt County Must Improve Its Disaster Planning