LOS ANGELES—As Los Angeles County moves closer to reimagining the criminal justice system and closing the Los Angeles County Men’s Central Jail, the Board of Supervisors passed a motion Tuesday to create a new justice reform department that will adopt and centralize incarceration alternatives to avert people away from the jail system. The motion brought forth by Supervisor Sheila Kuehl will direct the county CEO to report back in 90 days with a staffing plan to catapult the Justice, Care, and Opportunities Department, which will be the county’s central hub for programs created to levy their “Care First, Justice Last” initiative (pdf). The initiative seeks to divert those with mental illnesses, the homeless, and substance abuse away from jails, claiming that the justice system is “ill-equipped” to respond to these conditions. “Unfortunately, as this hard work has progressed, it has become clear that standing up programs and housing advisory bodies …