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| -Lurid Crime Tales- |
| Judges Conspire To Circumvent Law |
| 2007-04-18 |
| The decision to not ask newly booked criminal defendants about their citizenship came from a former high ranking judge, according to a written statement released Tuesday by Maricopa County Superior Court. Judge James Keppel, who used to oversee Maricopa County’s criminal court, approved the don’t ask-don’t tell policy in response to Proposition 100, a measure voters approved in November that denies bail to illegal immigrants suspected of serious felonies, the statement said. Presiding Judge Barbara Rodriguez Mundell, who oversees all county judges, released the statement to announce she had concluded her inquiry into the origin of the policy. She has said she knew nothing about it until March 30, when the Tribune obtained copies of memos about it. Those memos were written by Penny Stinson, director of Pretrial Services. She sent them to her staff and copied them to Commissioner Sheila Madden, who oversees commissioners that set bail at defendants’ initial appearances. Stinson and Madden "made a nationwide inquiry of pre-trial interview procedures prior to the passage of Proposition 100 and made a good faith determination that the court’s staff should not ask questions that might incriminate defendants because the court must remain a neutral and impartial tribunal," Mundell wrote. Stinson and Madden then presented their conclusion to Keppel. Court spokeswoman J.W. Brown said Mundell would not comment beyond her written statement. Keppel also declined comment, except to say he had "the highest respect" for Stinson and Madden. Keppel resigned from his leadership post March 23 and will take over the duties of Judge John Gaylord, who was killed April 6 in a motorcycle wreck. Brown said Keppel’s resignation had nothing to do with the Prop. 100 controversy. Mundell said that from now on, any procedures to enforce changes in the constitution must be reviewed by her, a judicial committee and the Arizona Supreme Court. The memos came to light after the Tribune revealed a paperwork mishap that allowed Ruben Perez Rivera, an illegal immigrant accused of kidnapping his ex-girlfriend, to be released from jail March 16 to the custody of the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Mesa police say that Perez returned from his deportation to Mexico and stabbed his cousin to death March 27. Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas accused Maricopa County Superior Court of intentionally trying to circumvent Prop. 100 by ordering Pretrial Services workers to avoid asking about citizenship. Barnett Lotstein, office spokesman, said Mundell’s statement on Monday leaves questions unanswered. It is still unknown whether Stinson and Madden acted on their own or were given a directive, he said. Also, he said, Stinson’s memos show court workers asked about citizenship before voters approved the proposition, so why not after? "All we’re asking them to do is follow the law," Lotstein said. After the Tribune reported on Stinson’s memos, Arizona Supreme Court Chief Justice Ruth V. McGregor ruled on April 3 that court workers can legally ask about citizenship. Lotstein said that despite McGregor’s ruling, the court has taken new steps to circumvent Prop. 100 — and this time, it is using publicly funded defense attorneys to do it. The new controversy centers on Thomas’ decision to staff the 24-hour initial appearance court held in jail, where bail for newly booked defendants is set. Historically, neither prosecutors nor defense attorneys attended initial appearance court. But the county contracted defense attorneys to staff the court, and Lotstein contends they are advising people to remain silent on questions pertaining to citizenship. One of the attorneys, Lisa Posada, said she advises clients against talking about their charges, which is their right. But on the issue of citizenship, she said it is not the court’s role to ask incriminating questions. "The county attorney seems to want the court to take the role of the law enforcement investigative phase," Posada said. Peter Ozanne, assistant county manager for criminal justice, said the goal of hiring the defense attorneys was to protect the rights of the accused and ensure fairness by balancing out the state’s presence. Lotstein said people accused of a crime who can’t afford an attorney have a constitutional right to one, but not at an initial appearance. The court won’t appoint a publicly funded lawyer until it has determined the defendant’s financial status, so contracts may be an illegal expenditure, he said. |
| Posted by:Anonymoose |
| #4 [lawyer rant] Where are the lawyers and judges protecting my ability to secure a living wage job? Where are the lawyers and judges protecting me against illegal aliens? Where are the lawyers and judges protecting my civil rights? Where are the lawyers and judges actually protecting this nation? We have to damn many lawyers and almost none of them are of any use to the average citizen in fact they are detrimental to the life and civil rights of the average citizen. A mere hand full of decent and proper acting lawyers doesn't redeem the majority who are a useless waste of human skin. Lawyers and judges damn them all to hell. [/lawyer rant] |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet of Doom 2007-04-18 16:35 |
| #3 But on the issue of citizenship, she said it is not the courtÂ’s role to ask incriminating questions. "The county attorney seems to want the court to take the role of the law enforcement investigative phase," Posada said. However, lawyers before the bench are officers of the court and can not themselves engage in actions which are criminal or make them party to criminal activity. It appears that loyalty to something other than the law is at play amongst the wannabe princes. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2007-04-18 11:33 |
| #2 Boo hoo. If they are illegal, they don't have the right to our constitution. They ain't Americans. Foreign and domestic enemies there. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2007-04-18 11:25 |
| #1 Enemies both foreign and domestic. |
| Posted by: Icerigger 2007-04-18 11:12 |