CALIFORNIA ELECTIONS ATTORNEY GENERAL : Smith Admits Campaign Manager Used ‘Poor Judgment’ on Probe

Dist. Atty. Arlo Smith acknowledged Friday that his campaign manager in the race for state attorney general exhibited “very poor judgment” when he phoned Smith’s chief prosecutor to urge swift action in a politically sensitive probe.

Court documents made available this week revealed that Smith’s campaign manager, Marc Dann, called San Francisco Chief Deputy Dist. Atty. Robert Podesta late last year to discuss an investigation into allegations that opponents of a proposed new ballpark in San Francisco had illegally concealed the source of funds for a last-minute campaign mailer.

Five men--including Sacramento developer and sports promoter Gregg Lukenbill--were indicted by a San Francisco grand jury on misdemeanor campaign disclosure charges in connection with the initiative to build a new home for the San Francisco Giants. That measure was defeated by San Francisco voters in November. A trial for the five is set for June.

Details about Dann’s phone call to Podesta were contained in a taped interview Dann gave to the prosecutors in the district attorney’s office who headed the probe concerning the ballot measure. Dann was being interviewed because he said he had information about the source of the money directed against the ballpark measure.

“I called Bob (Podesta) and I encouraged the investigation,” said Dann on the tape. Dann said he went on to remind Podesta that quick action in the case would enhance Smith’s reputation.

“I don’t care how things turn out,” Dann said on the tape. “But there is a certain way of handling issues, there is a certain way of presenting yourself as district attorney--the ability to handle issues quickly . . . and responsibly portrays that.

“(It) would help Arlo politically if we could do it quickly as well as responsibly.”

Smith told reporters Friday that Dann’s call to Podesta was “out of order.” Smith added, however, that the call did not influence Podesta. Smith also said there was nothing wrong with Dann’s sentiments since, “speeding up the case is a perfect thing to do.”

Smith made his comments after the taping of a TV debate with Los Angeles Dist. Atty. Ira Reiner, his foe for the Democratic nomination for state attorney general. During the KRON-TV debate, which will be broadcast in the Bay Area on Sunday, Smith did not criticize his campaign manager in response to a question about the ballpark controversy.

The most furious exchanges of the day took place off the air after the taping. First, Smith conceded his manager’s indiscretions to reporters. Then Reiner followed up by accusing Smith and his campaign of engaging in unprofessional conduct.

“It’s so easy to understand the damage that this does,” said Reiner. “The most profound corruption you can have in any prosecutorial office is where decisions as to whether to investigate or to prosecute are made not for professional reasons but for political reasons.”

Reiner also scored Smith on another recent revelation concerning the ballpark issue--that Smith had a second member of his campaign staff prepare a press release on the official letterhead of the district attorney’s office.

Smith countered that he saw no problem with the political aide assisting him, since the press release was issued on a weekend, a time when Smith’s district attorney’s office staffers were unavailable.

Seeking to deflect the issue, Smith asked reporters to question Reiner about whether he had engaged in politics in his decision to retry McMartin Pre-School teacher Ray Buckey on child molestation charges. Reiner, reiterating his frequent remarks on the subject, said the decision to retry Buckey after his acquittal on most charges was not political.

During the TV encounter, the only scheduled televised head-to-head debate between Reiner and Smith before the June 5 primary, the two Democrats blamed each other for engaging in campaign mudslinging.

They also had the same answer for one other question. Asked by KRON-TV reporter Belva Davis whether they had ever used illegal drugs, the two candidates for the state’s top law enforcement post, responded: “Absolutely not. Never.”