Vacancies Mean Justice Delayed in Municipal Court, Judges Complain : Judiciary: Backlog of cases in Santa Ana and Westminster branches grows as jurists await long-delayed appointments.

Short-staffed since late 1990 because of vacancies on the Municipal Court, jurists in Santa Ana and Westminster are knee-deep in a backlog of cases, and relief is still several months away.

The lengthening docket means longer hours for judges and longer waits for people involved in civil cases.

“The lawyers involved know that there’s nothing we can do about the long wait with the manpower that we have, and thank goodness, they’ve somehow explained it to their clients,” said Municipal Judge Dan C. Dutcher, presiding judge at Municipal Court in Westminster.

James M. Brooks, presiding judge at Municipal Court in Santa Ana, likens the situation to “a car running on three tires . . . or a baseball field, and you’re playing without your center fielder: You’re playing one person short so that other people have to pick up the workload.”

The first vacancies occurred in late 1990, when Judge Frank F. Fasel from the Westminster court and Judge Randell L. Wilkinson from the Santa Ana court were elevated to Orange County Superior Court by then-Gov. George Deukmejian.

In April, a third judge, Alan N. McKone in the Westminster court, was elevated to Superior Court.

The governor’s office said it has not filled the posts because, simply put, Gov. Pete Wilson hasn’t had the time. He has been preoccupied with a series of major events since he took office in January, 1991, said his appointments secretary, Charles S. Poochigian, citing earthquake relief efforts, the Oakland fire, Robert Alton Harris’ execution and the Los Angeles riots.

Poochigian pointed out that earlier this year, there were more than 100 vacant judicial seats in the state, half of which the governor filled in January and February. He predicted that the remainder will be filled by year’s end.

Dutcher said he is “appalled by the response” that the governor is too busy with other duties to make the judicial appointments.

“As a resident of California, and not just as a judge, I would hope that he performs the other functions of the office in a more timely manner,” Dutcher said.

Although they understand the governor’s frenetic pace, many of the judges said it does not make up for the fact that some cases are getting inadequate attention because judges have to rush to other awaiting cases.

Last year in the Westminster court, about 22,000 civil and 35,000 criminal cases were filed. During the same period in the Santa Ana court, about 26,000 civil cases and 48,000 criminal cases were filed. (A large chunk of the civil docket consisted of small-claims cases; most of the criminal charges were misdemeanors or related to traffic.)

Because criminal cases must be given top priority, the number of civil cases grows heavier by the day, judges say.

The two Municipal Court branches have a total 23 judges and three commissioners. With vacations, sick time and professional seminars, the courts are sometimes down four or five judges.

“We’ve been basically working overtime for months, and I can see it affecting the whole court,” said Judge Donald Macintyre, who for the past two months has been handling all civil cases in the Westminster court.

To make sure he keeps up with his court calendar, Macintyre comes into his office at 6:30 a.m. to attend to paperwork so he can conduct trials during the day. He spends his lunchtime and evenings going over law and motions with lawyers.

Jurists at the two courts are not the only ones struggling with a heavy docket. Because of the rising number of civil filings throughout the state, a statute passed by the Legislature last year enables Municipal and Superior Court judges to work together to ease the lengthy backlog. Called the Trial Court Realignment and Efficiency Act of 1991, that legislation allows Municipal Court judges to preside over Superior Court trials.

“But that’s not going to be possible anytime soon, because we have our own load to handle, so we can’t help out” the Superior Court, Brooks said.

Presiding Superior Court Judge Donald E. Smallwood, whose own court has been one jurist short since April, said: “We make do with what we have, but unfortunately, what we have is not enough to handle the cases and trials waiting for us.”

He added: “Municipal Court needs their two judges before they have enough people to help us like the law says they could. We need their help. We need the governor to make those appointments.”