BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — The California Department of Justice has filed a writ of mandate seeking to challenge former Kern County Supervisor Zack Scrivner’s mental health diversion ruling.
In December, a Kern County judge granted Scrivner mental health diversion, a decision that sparked public backlash. During the hearing, the court ruled Scrivner met the legal requirements for diversion.
The case stems from a 2024 incident in which Scrivner was accused of taking mind-altering substances and molesting a child. According to the attorney general’s office and charging documents, the allegations included sexual penetration, though Scrivner was not charged with a sex crime.
Following the diversion ruling, Lauren Skidmore, CEO of the Open Door Network, launched a petition calling for an appeal.
“Diversion can be helpful in some cases, but it should never be used as a scapegoat after harming a child,” Skidmore said.
About two months after the diversion decision, the state filed a writ of mandate with the 5th District Court of Appeal. Scrivner’s attorney, H.A. Sala, said the petition does not argue Scrivner’s mental health played a role in the child endangerment charges. Instead, he said the state contends weapons charges in the case were unrelated and should not have been granted diversion.
Sala initially said the writ had been rejected. However, we reached out to the state DOJ's office regarding the rejection and they said, "There was a formatting error that we corrected and have resubmitted the writ petition. There has been no ruling on the petition."
Skidmore said she believes the attorney general’s office is “being earnest and following the law” and hopes the effort shows support for victims.
If Scrivner completes the diversion program and the ruling stands, he would not serve jail time.
In response to the appeal, local Assemblywoman Dr. Jasmeet Bains — who has remained critical of the initial ruling — said in a statement:
"What took so long? The DOJ had enough evidence to describe the sexual assault of a child by Zack Scrivner in court documents, but then they didn't charge him with a sex crime. This injustice must reversed and I'm glad the DOJ finally agrees."
Congressional candidate Randy Villegas offered a statement saying:
"For far too long we have seen political elites be given special treatment under the law and victims robbed of justice. Scrivner deserves to be punished to the full extent of the law. We must call on those handling this case to ensure that these loopholes will no longer be tolerated. As a community, we will continue to fight the abuses of power by officials in office and we will hold those accountable for their actions. We deserve full transparency and accountability."
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