California lawmakers are blasting an “Epstein loophole” after a Kern County politician accused of sexually assaulting his own child has dodged jail time by entering a mental-health diversion program.
Zack Scrivner, the former Kern County supervisor, was charged in Feb. 2025 with felony child abuse and possession of assault weapons — but did not include a sexual-assault charge despite a state complaint stating Scrivner was under the influence of drugs when he climbed into bed with a child and touched them “inappropriately.”
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While the charges themselves remain under scrutiny amid Scrivner’s deep political ties, including being the nephew of Kern County District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer, the latest backlash stems from a Dec. 19 ruling that allowed him to skirt jail time altogether and instead enter a mental-health diversion program.
Critics of the diversion program law, which took effect in 2018, say it’s being misused to give serious offender a get out of jail free card.
“I specialize in family and addiction medicine, so I know the value of mental health diversion. … It was designed to help people get treatment and rehabilitation in appropriate cases, not to provide an escape hatch to sexually assault children,” Assemblymember Dr. Jasmeet Bains said in a statement, the LA Times reported. “This Epstein loophole needs to be closed.”
