BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — The decision to grant former Kern County Supervisor Zack Scrivner mental health diversion continues to draw sharp criticism from local and state officials, with some calling for federal intervention in a case that could allow Scrivner to avoid jail time.
A judge ruled Friday that Scrivner qualifies for mental health diversion under state law, a decision that pauses criminal proceedings as long as he remains in compliance with court-ordered treatment and conditions. If successful, the charges against him could ultimately be dismissed.
The ruling comes nearly a year after an April 23, 2024 incident at Scrivner’s Tehachapi home, where sheriff’s deputies were called to investigate allegations that Scrivner sexually molested his child while under the influence of alcohol and drugs, according to Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood.
“If you look at what the attorney general articulated in the charging documents, they articulated a sex crime and then didn’t charge him with that,” Youngblood said.
Youngblood said his department conducted a thorough investigation but faced immediate legal hurdles because of a conflict of interest involving Kern County District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer, who is Scrivner’s aunt. Because of that conflict, sheriff’s officials were unable to immediately charge or arraign Scrivner.
“We had 48 hours to get him arraigned. We couldn’t do that,” Youngblood said. “We called the attorney general, and then the attorney general refused to handle the case. We went a week without anybody able to arraign him and the attorney general finally succumbed to the request and said, ‘Okay.’”
The California Attorney General’s Office eventually took over the case and, after several months, charged Scrivner in February with two felony counts of illegal possession of assault rifles and three felony counts of child endangerment. No sex crime charges were filed.
“In my opinion, the reason they didn’t charge him with that is because they knew they couldn’t divert that down the road,” Youngblood said.
Reaction to the court’s ruling was swift. Assemblywoman Jasmeet Bains, D-Delano, sent a letter to Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon and U.S. Attorney Eric Grant, requesting federal intervention. In the letter, Bains described the ruling as an “Epstein loophole” and part of what she called a disturbing pattern in which individuals accused of harming children receive preferential treatment.
State Sen. Shannon Grove, R-Bakersfield, also criticized the decision, writing online that it was “outrageous that a defendant’s claim of ‘depression, anxiety, and alcohol use’ can be used to justify diversion and potentially allow him to avoid jail time for the sexual assault of a child.”
“A program intended to promote treatment must never be allowed to erode accountability for the most serious and violent crimes against children,” Grove wrote.
Youngblood said responsibility for the outcome ultimately rests with prosecutors.
“I think it’s right in the lap of the attorney general,” he said. “I found those arguments in court pretty incomplete. H.A. Sala ran over the top of him — he’s a very good attorney and did a very good job for his client. But this all stems from the initial charging documents. At the end of the day, they reduced the charges in the beginning so that they could get to diversion — and of course, that’s my opinion.”
A status hearing is scheduled for January. Scrivner must remain in full compliance with the court’s conditions for mental health diversion in order for the charges against him to be dismissed.
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