The Superior Court of California, County of Ventura County, is the branch of the California superior court with jurisdiction over

Ventura County Ventura County () is a County (United States), county in Southern California, the southern part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 843,843. The largest city is Oxnard, California ...

History

Ventura County was formed on March 22, 1872. The original Ventura County Courthouse was completed in 1875 by William Dewey Hobson and T. B. Steepleton from a design by Hobson. Additions were made in 1879 and 1884, and the building was remodeled in 1900. The first courthouse was demolished around 1920; the site is now occupied by the May Henning School on Santa Clara Street. A bond measure was passed, authorizing for a new courthouse in 1911. The new Ventura County Courthouse was designed by architect Albert C. Martin Sr. and completed in 1912. The new building was officially dedicated on July 7, 1913. A new jail wing was added in 1931–32. After the 1912 building was declared unsafe in November 1968, the City of Ventura purchased the 1912 building and it was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1971. After the city completed an extensive renovation, partially defrayed by grants from the

United States Department of Housing and Urban Development The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It administers federal housing and urban development laws. It is headed by the Secretary of Housing and Ur ...

and the

Economic Development Administration The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that provides grants and technical assistance to economically distressed communities in order to generate new employment, help retain exist ...

, it has served as the Ventura City Hall since 1974. The County of Ventura purchased land in eastern Ventura for a new Government Center. The current main courtrooms and administrative offices of the Ventura County Superior Court are at the Ventura Hall of Justice, which was completed in 1980 as part of Phase 2 of the Ventura County Government Center. The design is credited to the architectural firms led by

John Carl Warnecke John Carl Warnecke (February 24, 1919 – April 17, 2010)Brown, "John Carl Warnecke Dies at 91, Designed Kennedy Gravesite," ''Washington Post,'' April 23, 2010.Grimes, "John Carl Warnecke, Architect to Kennedy, Dies at 91," ''New York Times,'' Ap ...

and

Dan Dworsky Daniel Leonard Dworsky (October 4, 1927 – January 19, 2022) was an American architect who was a longstanding member of the American Institute of Architects College of Fellows. Among other works, Dworsky designed Crisler Arena, the basketbal ...

. The East County Courthouse in

Simi Valley Simi Valley (; Chumash: ''Shimiyi'') is a city in the valley of the same name in the southeast region of Ventura County, California, United States. Simi Valley is from Downtown Los Angeles, making it part of the Greater Los Angeles Area. The ...

opened in March 1991. Although the East County Courthouse was intended to provide services for communities east of the

Conejo Grade The Conejo Grade is a 7% grade incline on a section of US 101 (the Ventura Freeway). Also known as the Camarillo Grade, it links Thousand Oaks and cities of the Conejo Valley, with Camarillo and the cities on the Oxnard Plain. With a summit ...

, it was nearly closed in 1993 over a budget dispute and only staffed by court commissioners, whose scope was limited to traffic, small claims, and family cases until 1995.

Venues

The main court is located at the Ventura Hall of Justice in Ventura. Juvenile cases are primarily held at the Juvenile Justice Center in

Oxnard Oxnard () is a city in Ventura County, California, United States. On California's South Coast, it is the most populous city in Ventura County and the 22nd-most-populous city in California. Incorporated in 1903, Oxnard lies approximately west ...

. Cases are also held at the East County Courthouse in

. It is notable as the site of the 1992 trial for the police officers who were accused of beating

Rodney King Rodney Glen King (April 2, 1965June 17, 2012) was an African American man who was a victim of police brutality. On March 3, 1991, he was beaten by Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers during his arrest after a pursuit for driving whi ...

. The East County Courthouse had opened in 1991.

References

External links

* {{coord missing, Ventura County, California Superior Court Superior courts in California