Defender’s Defense

Deputy Dist. Atty. Matt Hardy’s April 23 letter attacking the office of the public defender contains a number of inaccuracies.

First, he suggests that a recent court case in which the issue of prosecutorial misconduct was raised because of witness intimidation is “legally privileged character assassination.” In no way is the deputy public defender engaging in character assassination. He is only properly raising the issue of misconduct because a key defense witness was arrested on traffic warrants outside the courtroom before the witness had a chance to testify, and the prosecutor was the driving force behind the arrest. This issue of witness intimidation is properly before the Superior Court and may be also reviewed by the Court of Appeal.

Hardy accuses the public defender’s office of deliberately orchestrating press attacks on victims. In reality, a conscientious Los Angeles Times reporter was on the scene when a deputy public defender was expressing concern about a case in which an 85-year-old Oxnard man was charged with the sexual battery of a 20-year-old woman, and the deputy public defender had determined the “alleged woman victim” was herself the subject of a police investigation concerning allegations that she had stolen thousands of dollars from senior citizens. Significantly, prosecutors later dropped the sexual battery charge after determining the woman had a “serious” credibility problem.

Hardy also alleges the public defender’s office is guilty of “dragging out” criminal proceedings. The public defender’s office is obligated to ensure that its clients receive fair and complete preliminary hearings and trials, particularly in view of the district attorney’s “no plea bargaining” policy, and the recent “three strikes and you’re out” legislation.

Prosecutor Hardy says that some counties are looking to abolish public defenders’ offices and return instead to the appointment of individual lawyers. The opposite is true. For example, counties such as Los Angeles and San Diego have established second public defender offices to handle those cases in which the public defender has a conflict. These counties recognize that the public defender system is the most economic way to represent indigent defendants and to provide quality legal representation to the accused.

Hardy also complains that the Board of Supervisors diverted money under Proposition 172 to the public defender’s office. Prop. 172 was approved to benefit public safety; the Board of Supervisors quite properly understood the intent of this law that in order to accomplish this goal, a small percentage of the monies needed to be allocated to public defense.

Finally, Hardy attacks our Superior Court as being “dominated by liberal Brown appointees.” The Ventura County Superior Court is widely and accurately known as one of the toughest and most conservative in the state. In fact, quality judges such as Robert Bradley, Fred Jones, Charles Campbell, Ken Riley and Charles McGrath were appointed by either Govs. Deukmejian or Wilson, or were elected.

I hope, on calmer reflection, Hardy will recognize that the allegations in his letter are misguided and that he will share the pride in the work of the public defender’s office that is felt by fair-minded observers in the legal community.

KENNETH I. CLAYMAN

Public Defender

*

I found a lot to disagree with in Matt Hardy’s letter to the editor on April 23, 1994, but what really stunned me was the preposterous assertion that the public defender’s office was the evil force taking money away from firefighters. The Board of Supervisors realizes that they need to give the public defender’s office a little slice of the pie whenever they give the district attorney’s office a big one to maintain some semblance of equilibrium in our local criminal justice system.

In the courtroom to which I am assigned, there are two deputy public defenders and five deputy district attorneys. Although other defense attorneys appear there, we handle more than two-fifths of the caseload. If anyone wants to know who has the power in this county, all they have to do is compare the budgets of the public defender and district attorney’s offices to remove any doubt. I’m sure the firemen know the answer.

D. ZANE SMITH

Port Hueneme

D. Zane Smith is a deputy public defender .