The San Joaquin County Public Defender’s Office is making no effort to recover fees for legal services; there are no procedures among county agencies for vetting defendants for their ability to pay, and there is no system to track if fees owed are actually paid, an investigation by the 2015-16 San Joaquin County Civil Grand Jury found. The Jury recommends that the County Board of Supervisors study the feasibility of appointing a Chief Financial Evaluation Officer or designee to properly vet a defendant’s ability to pay. The Grand Jury’s findings and recommendations, made public this past week, are based on a months-long investigation that included witness interviews, court visits and the review of internal county documents.