New O.C. Grand Jury to Resume Probe

SANTA ANA — The 1996-97 Orange County Grand Jury, sworn in Tuesday, is soon expected to continue its predecessor’s investigation into possible wrongdoing leading to the county’s bankruptcy.

The civilian panel of 12 men and seven women has been praised for its 37% minority composition, a more diverse makeup than most of the county’s previous grand juries. The Superior Court judges who pick grand jurors had come under fire for naming panels with few minority members.

But the new jury will probably make news for other reasons. Prosecutors have said it will resume the investigation of people in and outside county government involved in the bankruptcy, an investigation that forced the 1994-95 grand jury to extend its term six months.

The grand jury is expected to focus on municipal finance firms and their dealings with the county before its investment pool collapsed.

Superior Court Judge David O. Carter, who oversees the grand jury, commended the retiring panel, which he said “responded to the public’s need and extended their term for another six months.”

That group left office Tuesday after a sometimes contentious term that saw the county declare bankruptcy in December 1994.

By the end of its service, the panel had indicted former Assistant Treasurer Matthew R. Raabe and former Budget Director Ronald S. Rubino and accused Supervisors Roger R. Stanton and William G. Steiner and Auditor-Controller Steve E. Lewis of civil misconduct. It also issued reports criticizing county government, including one concluding that systemic mismanagement by the Board of Supervisors led to the financial catastrophe.

Mario Lazo Jr., a retired advertising executive who was foreman of the outgoing jury, declined to say what work the grand jury had left undone. But he said the secret testimony before his panel, detailed in The Times last week, was “eye-popping” at times. Among the revelations: Former Treasurer-Tax Collector Robert L. Citron, who managed the county investment pool, relied upon a mail order astrologer.

Citron pleaded guilty to six felony counts and awaits sentencing in February.