Section 780. Sheriff liable for taking insufficient sureties

After the
  return of an execution, issued upon a judgment, rendered  in  an  action
  upon  the undertaking, an action, to recover the amount of the judgment,
  may be maintained against the sheriff, where it  appears  that,  at  the
  time when the undertaking was given, the sureties were insufficient, and
  the  sheriff  had reasonable grounds to doubt their sufficiency. Such an
  action may be maintained by the plaintiff, in whose favor  the  judgment
  was  recovered.  If  the  people  were  plaintiffs,  the  action must be
  prosecuted by the attorney-general or the  district  attorney;  and  any
  money  collected  therein must be disposed of, as prescribed in the last
  section.