San Diego
Retired Superior Court Judge Hugo Fisher pleaded no contest Friday to drunken driving and other charges involving a hit-and-run accident early this year--a third offense punishable by a mandatory 120-day jail term.
Fisher, 66--once a state senator, Democratic Party leader and member of former Gov. Edmund G. (Pat) Brown’s Cabinet--was not present in San Diego Municipal Court when the plea was entered by his attorney, Richard Whalen.
The charges stem from a two-car collision Jan. 17 on a ramp leading from Harbor Drive to Harbor Island. No one was injured.
A breath test indicated Fisher’s blood-alcohol level was 0.19. The legal standard for drunkenness is 0.10.
Besides the drunken driving charge, Fisher pleaded no contest to leaving the scene of an accident and driving without a license. He faces a maximum penalty of two years in jail on the charges.
Fisher had pleaded guilty to the drunken driving charge in May, but withdrew the plea when he, Whalen and city prosecutors were unable to find an alcoholism treatment program acceptable to all parties in which he could serve his sentence.
Fisher was twice charged with drunken driving in 1981, while he still was on the Superior Court bench. In 1982, he was censured by the state Supreme Court for mishandling a $5 million conservatorship case. He retired from the bench six months later.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
