D.A.’s Runoff Puts Strain on Relationships in Office

When Chief Deputy Dist. Atty. James G. Enright decided just hours before the filing deadline in March to run for district attorney, he knew he had no time to put together a campaign or raise any money.

But because Enright won enough votes Tuesday to force Dist. Atty. Michael R. Capizzi into a November runoff, that’s all changed.

Enright took a vacation day Wednesday and met with a group of lawyers and businessmen who want to help him launch his campaign.

“I think it’s looking very good,” Enright said. “I really believe now that I can win this thing.”

Capizzi admitted that he is “seriously thinking” about asking Enright to step down as chief deputy. With five months to go in the campaign, Capizzi said, it may be a strain on office efficiency for things to continue the way they have been.

Enright did not seem worried about the prospect of losing his position. What’s important, he said, is that he can still carry the title of chief deputy on the November ballot.

Enright, scheduled to be on vacation the rest of the week, quipped: “I won’t know until I walk into the office Monday morning whether I’m still going to have my job.”

For Capizzi, Wednesday was a day to regroup. And despite his disappointment in falling short of the 50% he needed to prevent a runoff, he was buoyed by the telephone calls he received. Supporters assured him that they would be there for him, and with their checkbooks.

“We had a tough nut to crack trying to win it all Tuesday,” Capizzi said. “But it seems to me the only thing Jim will gain is two votes he didn’t have before.”

Capizzi’s quip was a reference to Assistant Dist. Atty. Edgar A. Freeman and Deputy Dist. Atty. Thomas Avdeef, the other two prosecutors on the ballot, who Tuesday night pledged their support to Enright.

The totals for the district attorney’s race showed Capizzi with 41.2% of Tuesday’s vote and Enright with 29.1%, a 40,000-vote difference. Avdeef ran third at 15% and Freeman was close behind him at 14.2%.

Capizzi, 50, and Enright, 63, each sees the vote totals in his favor. Capizzi said it shows that he is a much stronger candidate than Enright.

Enright responded: “I think the numbers show that there’s 59% of the vote out there against him (Capizzi). And that’s with him having all the money and everything.”

The “money” means Capizzi’s sizable campaign chest, close to $200,000. By contrast, Enright had just $11,000 to spend.

The “everything” includes Capizzi’s sophisticated campaign organization. Political consultant Eileen Padberg, who has run many successful campaigns, including those for longtime Dist. Atty. Cecil Hicks, is on Capizzi’s campaign team. Capizzi has also put together a sizable list of endorsements: U.S. Sen. Pete Wilson, all five members of the Board of Supervisors, the associations for deputy prosecutors and deputy sheriffs, along with several statewide and regional narcotics officers’ associations.

Enright’s endorsements come primarily from old friendships. Kenneth Williams, the district attorney before Hicks took office, backed Enright. So did former County Administrative Officer Bob Thomas.

Enright has strong ties to many judges and to many members of the defense bar. And he’s convinced that between now and November he can put together a respectable campaign staff.

But one much discussed topic within the district attorney’s office Wednesday was how well the two candidates will work together between now and the Nov. 6 election.

They are longtime competitors who held nearly co-equal titles during the Hicks years--Enright was chief deputy and Capizzi was chief assistant. Now that Capizzi has been appointed to replace Hicks, who took a judgeship, he and Enright share a secretary and a suite of offices down the hall from the other deputies and assistants.

Enright describes their relationship as “cordial but cool.”

Capizzi’s supporters say it’s to his credit that he has not interfered with Enright’s role in the office, despite their strong adversarial positions.

Another potential obstacle facing Enright is his courtroom work. For one thing, he is scheduled to prosecute a death penalty case involving three defendants in September.

The defense lawyers in the case have all asked that he be removed, not wanting prospective jurors to know that the prosecutor before them is someone they may end up voting for later.

Capizzi said that it’s not the defense lawyers who concern him.

“I am concerned that it’s extremely difficult to take on two major projects at once,” he said. “If Jim is campaigning, can he really devote 200% to a trial, which is what a case like this takes?”

No final decision has been made, and the case could end up postponed until after the election.