Capizzi Cleared of Alleged Wrongs in Baugh Prosecution

The State Bar of California has closed its investigation into Dist. Atty. Michael R. Capizzi’s prosecution of Assemblyman Scott Baugh, finding no evidence of prosecutorial misconduct as alleged by Baugh and Rep. Dana Rohrabacher.

The two Republican lawmakers from Huntington Beach asked the State Bar and Atty. Gen. Dan Lungren in February to investigate allegations that overzealous prosecutors perjured themselves before the Orange County Grand Jury that indicted Baugh, improperly recorded Baugh’s private phone conversations and sought to pressure a Superior Court judge who had ruled against prosecutors into removing himself from the case.

The State Bar’s clearance of Capizzi came on the eve of Baugh’s preliminary hearing today before Municipal Judge William L. Evans, who will determine if Baugh should stand trial on five felony perjury counts and 13 misdemeanor charges. He is accused of various violations of state campaign reporting laws.

Los Angeles attorney Don Mike Anthony, who conducted the bar’s inquiry, said the allegations against the district attorney’s office were serious. But he determined that they amounted to “a lot of smoke and no fire.”

“I concluded that there was not probable cause to go any further, based on the material presented by the assemblyman and the congressman” and on responses from Capizzi’s office, Anthony said Monday.

Lungren’s office also closed its inquiry into the complaint.

The complaint filed with the bar made much of an allegation that Capizzi’s office attempted to “blackmail” Superior Court Judge James L. Smith, who dismissed most of the charges contained in the grand jury’s original indictment.

In dismissing the charges, Smith had blasted prosecutors for misconduct before the jury, and subsequently two deputy district attorneys asked Smith to disqualify himself from further handling of Baugh’s case, which involves the assemblyman’s alleged failure to properly report loans and contributions to his election campaign.

In a closed-door meeting with Smith, the prosecutors said his continued involvement in the case might require disclosure of Smith’s own failure, 13 years earlier, to properly report acceptance of what appeared to be a gift of stolen property that Smith ultimately surrendered to authorities.

Smith refused to withdraw from the Baugh case, and prosecutors refiled their charges against Baugh, bypassing the grand jury and taking them directly to court.