San Diego Lawyer Fights to Thwart Indictment

In an apparent effort to stall his imminent indictment, a San Diego lawyer has gone to a federal appeals court in a bid to get prosecutors thrown off the case.

San Diego lawyer Patrick Frega, represented by lawyer Dennis Riordan, has asked the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco to overturn a ruling by a federal judge that said the office of U.S. Atty. Alan Bersin does not have a conflict of interest in pursuing a bribery, tax evasion and racketeering case against Frega.

Last week, ex-Superior Court Judge Michael Greer pleaded guilty to receiving $75,000 in bribes from Frega to provide assistance in more than 40 of his civil cases. Greer said ex-Judges James Malkus and G. Dennis Adams also took bribes from Frega.

In mid-February, Frega had sought to have Bersin’s office blocked from pursuing the case on the grounds that Bersin employs a prosecutor who, while in private practice, represented Frega when state authorities investigated the same case.

But Judge Edward Rafeedie on March 6 rejected that contention and noted that the attorney mentioned by Frega has had no role in the investigation of Frega.

Frega wants Rafeedie’s ruling overturned. While the matter is on appeal, he would also like the ruling to be stayed from taking effect, which would block an indictment.

The U.S. attorney’s office is opposing the Frega motion to stay Rafeedie’s ruling.