Audit of the Nantucket County Sheriff’s Department

This is a Massachusetts State Auditor performance audit of the Nantucket County Sheriff’s Department covering July 1, 2018 through June 30, 2020.

“This report details the audit objectives, scope, methodology, findings, and recommendations for the audit period, July 1, 2018 through June 30, 2020.”

Auditors looked at whether the department followed its own rules when preparing civil process paperwork, serving papers, and collecting fees.

“In this performance audit, we examined certain NCSD activities related to the civil process.”

If one person can handle a transaction from start to finish without review, mistakes or misuse of money are harder to catch.

“Without segregation of duties and management oversight, NCSD cannot ensure that civil process transactions are accurately processed, recorded, and reviewed.”

For residents and people using the sheriff’s civil process services, better records and fee tracking mean clearer accountability for services and payments.

“As a result, NCSD may not be able to identify what fees have been collected for the services provided.”

The department had weaknesses in oversight, recordkeeping, and fee collection for civil process services.

“Specifically, NCSD did not develop appropriate internal controls over civil processes, fill out its civil process spreadsheet completely, or record and collect all fees for civil process services provided.”

The auditor recommended clearer written procedures, restricted spreadsheet access, more review, and better accounting and case management systems.

“NCSD should obtain an accounting system and a case management system to help record services provided and document fees collected.”

The audit matters because the department handled 924 civil processes during the period, and auditors found missing or inconsistent fee and case information in the records they reviewed.

“Our data analysis showed that from the population of 924 civil processes, 68 were missing the fee amount, 3 were missing the type of service provided, 9 were missing the plaintiff’s name, and 2 were missing the defendant’s name and address.”

“Civil process” means the sheriff’s work serving legal documents such as summonses, complaints, subpoenas, and notices.

“The NCSD Civil Process Division is responsible for serving documents (summonses, complaints, subpoenas, and notices) for attorneys; individuals representing themselves; the state Department of Revenue; and district, state, and federal courts.”