Thousand Oaks defends wild animal practices in wake of critical grand jury report

Thousand Oaks officials are pushing back against a Ventura County Grand Jury report that criticized the city’s policies and practices regarding the regulation of dangerous wild animals kept within its borders.

“Staff has reviewed the facts/findings, conclusions and recommendations contained in the Grand Jury’s report,” Mark Towne, the city’s community development director, wrote in a staff report to City Manager Andrew Powers for the City Council’s July 10 meeting. “In many cases, staff wholly or partially disagrees with the statements made by the Grand Jury from a factual basis, or believes statements indicate a misunderstanding of the context of the information in the facts/findings, conclusions or recommendations.”

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The grand jury issued its report in May following an investigation sparked by what it said were “high-profile incidents in the city involving venomous snakes, alligators and other potentially deadly reptiles.”

It cited, for instance, a 2014 incident in which a cobra was on the loose for several days before being captured.

It also cited a 2017 case in which authorities found dozens of animals, including cobras, alligators and birds at the home of Todd Kates, who was later charged with 14 counts of animal cruelty and 26 related misdemeanors.

The grand jury’s report made several findings.

It concluded that the roles, responsibilities and communication between the city and the Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control, which is the city’s provider for animal control services, “are not clearly defined and understood, resulting in confusion and gaps in enforcement.”

The city disagrees.

“Staff believes that communication and the understanding of responsibilities under the Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement are clear and being implemented as both parties expect, and as required to provide animal control services in the city,” Towne’s memo, prepared by Geoff Ware, the city’s code compliance manager, stated.

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Don Belton, public information officer for the Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control, did not respond to a request for comment.

The grand jury said its investigation also revealed that the state does not require wild-animal permit applicants to provide any documentation that they are in compliance with local laws. 

“The grand jury recommends the city consider establishing a process to obtain information about applications made to State Fish and Wildlife to keep dangerous animals in and around the city,” the grand jury report stated.

Towne responded that the city contacted that state agency after receiving the grand jury’s report and was told that the city “is welcome to request records pursuant to a California Public Records Act request, but (the department) would not proactively share information with the city on active applications being processed.”

Finally, the grand jury found that the city appears to have “little will to enforce or prosecute municipal code violations.”

The city “appears to request inspections of wild-animal sites only when there is unfavorable public attention,” the grand jury wrote.

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“The grand jury recommends the city be more proactive in enforcing (the) Thousand Oaks Municipal Code regarding wild animals, as lax enforcement poses a substantial risk to public safety,” the grand jury wrote.

But Towne’s report said “the city and DACC staff investigate all known (wild animal) issues ... when raised by the community.”

“The city attorney prosecutes animal control violations on a regular basis based on referrals from DACC,” he wrote. “The city has no record of referring these types of issues to the (Ventura County) District Attorney.”

The Kates case, however, was referred to the district attorney “due to allegations being primarily state code violations, not Municipal Code violations,” Towne wrote.

The City Council authorized Mayor Andy Fox to communicate the city’s response to the presiding judge of the Ventura County Superior Court.