Ventura County adds 7 deputies, $2.5M for jail mental health staff

The Ventura County Board of Supervisors approved seven new fixed-term deputy positions and a $2.48 million expansion of mental health staffing at county jails, responding to findings from a disability rights investigation.

The vote came during the board's August 4 regular meeting. The new positions and contract amendment with California Forensic Medical Group Inc. add 5.9 full-time-equivalent mental health professionals and psychiatric technicians to the county's two jail facilities, according to the sheriff's August 4 board letter.

Disability Rights California, the state's protection and advocacy system for people with disabilities, is inspecting Ventura County's jail system and has designated the Prison Law Office as its authorized agent. The investigation focuses on treatment of incarcerated people with disabilities, including mental health disabilities.

On March 3-4, 2026, DRC and PLO met with jail leadership, custody staff, CFMG leadership, and county legal representatives. The discussions identified mental health programming and restrictive housing practices as the most significant areas for improvement, per the sheriff's board letter.

DRC found the jail lacks a level-of-care system to assess individuals' needs and provide appropriate services. It also found too little therapeutic programming due to insufficient mental health and custodial staffing.

The contract amendment increases the annual CFMG contract to a not-to-exceed amount of $25,222,173 for year five of the agreement. The seven new deputy positions, effective January 1, 2027 through December 31, 2029, will provide supervision and security for expanded group programming.

Sheriff Jim Fryhoff's office noted that since the original contract took effect in 2022, the jail has seen a marked increase in incarcerated individuals with serious mental illness. The jail is increasingly functioning as a de facto mental health treatment environment, the board letter states.

The cost to expand mental health staffing will be funded by 2011 Realignment Community Corrections funds and the General Fund. The net county cost for fiscal year 2026-27 is $1.83 million.