O.C. Public Guardian Resigns One Day After Being Replaced

Orange County's public guardian/public administrator announced her retirement today, one day after officials appointed someone else to take over her job in a reorganization of the offices.

Lucille Lyon, who has been the county's public guardian/public administrator since July 2011, has had a 38-year career in the mental health field.

The Orange County Board of Supervisors Tuesday postponed a decision on Lyon's job and appointed someone to take over her duties in the meantime.

The decision was not related to any disciplinary issue, Orange County Supervisor Todd Spitzer said, but part of the county's reorganization of the public guardian and public administrator posts.

Kevin Smith, an administrative manager in the Health Care Agency, will take over public guardian duties until county officials can recruit a new public guardian, Spitzer said.

"It's more of a bureaucratic position now, and not an elected position," Spitzer said.

The county's public guardian is charged with attending to the welfare of ill or elderly county residents who have no one else to look out for them, and the public administrator oversees the estates of those who die without legal heirs.

Lyon was appointed public guardian in July 2011 to replace John Williams, who had been stripped of his duties following a storm of criticism on how he handled his office, including two negative grand jury reports.

Williams, who headed the once-combined office of public administrator and public guardian, eventually was forced out and the supervisors split the offices.

Last month, the supervisors shifted the vacant public administrator job to the District Attorney's Office. Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas will run in June for top prosecutor and Public Administrator.

The public administrator helps the coroner, hospitals and mortuaries following a death in the county. In the case there's no immediate family, the administrator can take control of and manage assets.

The Board of Supervisors asked voters in 2011 to make the public administrator an appointed position instead of an elected post, but the electorate rejected the proposal.

In February, the board also directed staff to begin the process of moving the Public Guardian's Office to the Orange County Health Care Agency.

"We're very thankful for Lucille's willingness to help Orange County during a troubled time and we wish her all the best in retirement," Orange County Board of Supervisors Chairman Shawn Nelson said.

--City News Service