The stipulated judgment between the state of California and the Kern County Sheriff’s Office was extended for another two years last month, as the department works to finalize terms of the agreement.
According to Sheriff Donny Youngblood, the judge didn’t cite a specific reason for extending the terms of the judgment, which was originally meant to last five years.
Youngblood said the department is working on a number of policies, the wording and verbiage of which goes through a lot of back-and-forth with the monitoring team.
KCSO entered into the stipulated judgment in December 2020 after the state DOJ concluded the agency violated residents’ civil rights. Youngblood has previously denied any of the violations alleged by the DOJ.
Speaking to The Californian this week, Youngblood said that while the judgment costs the taxpayers more than $1 million a year to facilitate, working with the monitor “certainly has been a benefit.”
“We think that anything that helps us get closer to our community, helps them understand what we do, is a good thing,” he said.
The Kern County Sheriff’s Office monitor did not respond to request for comment, but annual reports indicate the department is complying with the terms of the agreement.
“We are pleased to say that KCSO has been extremely responsive to our input, recommendations, and considerations, even on issues that are not (stipulated judgment) mandates,” the monitor’s 2025 annual report said. “All the policies submitted are now being collaboratively reviewed by the monitors and DOJ.”
Youngblood said the department will continue working to improve its policies, even after the end of the agreement. “We’re not changing to get DOJ to leave, we’re changing for the better of the county,” he said.