What is the difference between a fair hearing and a criminal prosecution?

[651 P.2d 332] Although fair hearings and criminal prosecutions require different burdens of proof, this fact does not preclude a finding in this case that the issues were identical in the two proceedings. Since a fair hearing is civil in nature, the preponderance of evidence standard had to be met by the County. (Cf. Pereyda v. State Personnel Board (1971) 15 Cal.App.3d 47, 52, 92 Cal.Rptr. 746.) This burden is not as great as the state's burden at a criminal proceeding where an accused's guilt must be proved beyond a reasonable doubt. As a result, if the County fails to prove its allegations by a preponderance of the evidence at the fair hearing, it follows a fortiori that it has not satisfied the beyond a reasonable doubt standard.