‘I’ve Had No Attorney to Discuss It With’ : Mayor Refuses to Enter Pleas on 3 New Charges

Still uncertain about who will be his defense attorney, Mayor Roger Hedgecock refused to enter a plea in Superior Court Monday on three new criminal charges brought against him, a move that forced a judge to enter innocent pleas on his behalf.

Superior Court Judge Barbara Gamer entered the pleas for Hedgecock at a court hearing Monday morning during which she also agreed to delay for a week a determination on who will represent the mayor during his second felony trial, tentatively scheduled to begin May 8.

Hedgecock’s attorney, Michael Pancer, has asked to be removed from the case because the mayor is no longer able to pay him. But Hedgecock says he is having difficulty finding another attorney willing to represent him.

The question of Hedgecock’s legal representation--a crucial issue that may determine the starting date of the second trial on conspiracy and perjury charges--was to have been decided at Monday’s hearing before Gamer.

The decision was put off when Pancer convinced Gamer to reschedule the hearing for April 1. Gamer granted the delay after Pancer said there was a “good chance” that Hedgecock would be able to name a new defense attorney by then.

During the hearing, Gamer arraigned Hedgecock on the three new charges and set a tentative May 8 trial date. The two counts of felony perjury and one misdemeanor charge of conflict of interest were filed against the mayor by prosecutors Feb. 20.

Although Monday’s hearing settled little in legal terms, it underscored how intricate the legal maneuvers and bitter the feelings have become during the continual judicial wrangling to get the mayor to trial once again.

The hearing angered prosecutors, who said Hedgecock is trying to fight a second trial through legal delays.

At one point during the 15-minute hearing, Asst. Dist. Atty. Richard D. Huffman tried--without success--to serve Pancer with copies of a district attorney’s motion to combine the three new charges with the previous 13 felony counts. Gamer scheduled a hearing for April 29 to consider the request, but Pancer refused to take the papers from Huffman’s hand during the hearing. He asked that Huffman mail copies of the motion to his law office.

Pancer, who is eager to be released from the case, complained to Gamer during the hearing that he would be unable to prepare legal motions or give advice to Hedgecock because he has to represent other clients. But Gamer said Pancer will have to stick by Hedgecock for the time being.

Hedgecock, an attorney, told reporters after the hearing that he refused to enter a plea because “I’ve had no attorney to discuss it with and no real understanding of what it is we’re talking about, what the strategy ought to be.”

Reminded that less than two weeks ago he told Municipal Court Judge Frederic L. Link he would plead “not guilty” to the charges, Hedgecock responded: “Again, I wasn’t aware what this hearing had in relationship to (that) one . . . .”

The mayor declined to say what other attorneys are willing to spell Pancer, although he hinted he may not have the answer by Monday’s hearing.

“Next Monday is kind of an arbitrary date,” he said. “I don’t know whether we’re going to make it or not. There are several (attorneys interested). There are several attorneys who have said no, because there isn’t any money. It’s a very tough situation.”

But Huffman, who is fighting Hedgecock’s move to relieve Pancer, said the mayor is only interest ed in using the issue of his attorney to delay a second trial.

Irked by the legal maneuvers used by Hedgecock and Pancer during Monday’s hearing, Huffman said: “It’s certainly juvenile. It’s also stalling.”

Hedgecock also said Monday he has talked to at least one of the three San Diego businessmen who are trying independently to work out a plea bargain between the mayor and Miller.

Baseball executive Ballard Smith, banker Murray Galinson and businessmen Malin Burnham have met with Miller and been working to craft a legal agreement that would require Hedgecock to plead guilty to some crimes and resign in return for the right to keep his law license.

“They are apparently independent efforts by concerned citizens, and I really don’t know anything more about them,” Hedgecock said Monday.

“I have had no contact with them, other than an initial interview in which they told me what they’re doing,” Hedgecock said. “And I didn’t have a comment one way or another on whether they should do it or not.”

Hedgecock said he has authorized only Pancer to negotiate with the district attorney’s office during court-appointed “settlement conferences.” Neither Pancer nor Huffman has commented on the confidential negotiations.

Ruling out a possible plea bargain, Hedgecock said he “guessed” he would undergo a second trial on charges that he conspired and covered up a scheme to funnel tens of thousands of dollars illegally into his successful 1983 mayoral campaign. The first trial ended in a mistrial Feb. 13 with the jury deadlocked 11-1 in favor of conviction on all 13 felony counts. “I don’t know what choice I have,” he said. “The charges are false. I didn’t do these things as charged, so I guess I have to go through this hoop as many times as I need to to make that point.”

The mayor also said he will continue to press a lawsuit he filed to challenge a ruling by City Atty. John Witt restricting donations to his legal defense fund to $250.