Recover Financial Losses
If you have been a victim of a violent crime, the California Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board (VCGCB) can help you recover financially. THE VCGCB may pay bills only for expenses due to the crime and that are not covered by insurance or other sources. VCGCB does not pay for lost, damaged, or stolen property or for pain and suffering. Click here to Read More In order for the victim to obtain assistance from this agency, the victim must first file a VCGCB application within one year of the crime. The victim advocate staff of the Crime Victims’ Assistance Unit can help with the application process. Victims may also contact the VCGCB by visiting their web site: https://victims.ca.gov/ or by calling (800) 777-9229. The following losses may be covered by the VCGCB: The following losses cannot be paid by the VCGCB: Victims Have the Right to Restitution It is…
December 16, 2022
District Attorney Erik Nasarenko announced that Zarbab Ali (DOB 01/04/97), of Hawthorne, has been arraigned on murder charges in the death of Simi Valley resident Rachel Castillo. He entered a not guilty plea today to the murder charge and special allegations.
Mental Health Unit
Our Mental Health Unit is comprised of five attorneys and one paralegal handling mental health treatment courts (Mental Health Court, Mental Health Diversion, and Veteran’s Treatment Court), cases involving individuals that are incompetent to stand trial, gun forfeitures, and civil commitments. To more humanely address the too-common crossover between mental health conditions and criminal behavior, the District Attorney’s Office created a Mental Health Unit in 2021. With two mental health unit attorney positions having been approved last year by the Board of Supervisors, the unit is currently comprised of four attorneys and one paralegal, who handle Mental Health Court, Mental Health Diversion, Veteran’s Treatment Court, and civil mental health commitments. These specialty courts focus on treatment of the underlying mental illness and successful completion of an approved treatment plan that can result in dismissal of their pending charges. In addition, cases involving defendants who are severely mentally ill and dangerous,…