End of the Month

Judge Leland Tipton to Retire…Judicial Elections Reform Bill Advances…State Bar Dues Bill Remains in Committee

Judges, Lawyers Under Scrutiny

Benjamin Lawson Adams
Entertainment Attorney

Adams, 31, pled not guilty Aug. 26 to having sex with a 14-year-old boy.
He faces three counts each of lewd acts upon a child, oral copulation of a person under 16, two counts of sexual penetration by a foreign object and one count of sodomy of a person under 16. Prosecutors, in announcing the charges last summer, said Adams sexually assaulted the victim during the months of September and October 2015, after initiating contact via a social media app and then arranging to meet in person.

Jeff Ferguson
Orange Superior Court Judge

The Commission on Judicial Performance on May 31 publicly admonished Ferguson for an inappropriate Facebook post attacking a prosecutor who tried to unseat one of his colleagues in last year’s election.
Ferguson displayed a “knowing or reckless disregard for the truth” and violated several ethics rules in connection with his post about Deputy District Attorney Karen Schatzle, the commission said in a formal decision. The judge elected to proceed under CJP rule 116, which permitted him to waive formal proceedings that would have been open to the public, instead appearing with counsel at a closed-door meeting of the commission to contest the discipline.
The public admonishment ends the case, because a judge who proceeds under rule 116 waives the right to petition for Supreme Court review.

Carmen Trutanich
Former Los Angeles City Attorney

On April 10, the State Bar Court granted Trutanich’s motion to abate/stay disciplinary proceedings. The court also granted his motion to seal documents related to the request, so the reason for the action is not public.
The next scheduled action in the case is a status conference scheduled for Aug. 28.
The Office of Chief Trial Counsel has alleged that Trutanich, as the deputy district attorney prosecuting a capital murder case in 1985 and 1986, suppressed evidence favorable to the defendant.
In a notice dated Feb. 9, bar prosecutors alleged that Trutanich knowingly or negligently failed to inform the defense that a prosecution witness had falsely identified another person who had witnessed the charged killing, and also failed to provide that witness’s address.
Trutanich, who served as city attorney from 2009 to 2013 and is now at Tucker Ellis LLP in Los Angeles, is also charged with allowing a police detective to testify falsely at a pretrial hearing in the same murder. Trutanich has repeatedly denied the charges.

Judiciary: Vacancies, Appointments

Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals

There are four vacancies on the 29-judge court. Judge Harry Pregerson took senior status Dec. 11, 2015; Judge Barry Silverman took senior status Oct. 11; and Judges Richard Clifton and Diarmuid O’Scannlain took senior status Dec. 31. Libby A. Smith took over the position of Cathy A. Catterson as circuit executive. Senior Circuit Judge John T. Noonan, Jr. died April 17th.

There are five vacancies. Judge Audrey B. Collins retired Aug. 1, 2014 to join the state Court of Appeal; Judge Margaret Morrow took senior status Oct. 29, 2015 and subsequently left the bench to become president and chief executive of Public Counsel; Judge Dean Pregerson took senior status Jan. 28 of last year; Judge Christina A. Snyder took senior status Nov. 23 of last year; and Judge George H. King retired Jan. 6.

Justice Kathryn M. Werdegar is retiring Aug. 31.

Second District

Presiding Justice Paul A. Turner of Div. Five died May 18.
There is a prior vacancy in that division, due to the retirement of Justice Richard Mosk, who left the court March 30 of last year and died 18 days later. There are also vacancies in Div. Two, due to the Jan. 31 retirement of Presiding Justice Roger Boren; Div. Three, due to the Oct. 5, 2015 retirement of Justice Patti S. Kitching; and Div. Seven, due to the retirement of Justice Fred Woods on March 31, 2015.
Among those whose names have been sent to the Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation as possible appointees to the court are Los Angeles attorneys Kent Richland and Bradley Phillips; Ventura Superior Court Judge Tari Cody; Los Angeles Superior Court Judges Gail Ruderman Feuer, Ann H. Egerton, Rita Miller, Richard Rico, Helen Bendix, Ann Jones, and Sanjay Kumar; and Southwestern Law School professor Christopher Cameron.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Dennis Landin to Div. Five through today. Serving through July are retired Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Allan Goodman, Div. Two; Los Angeles Superior Court Judges Michael Johnson and Monica Bachner, Div. Three; Orange Superior Court Judge Kim Dunning, Div. Five; Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Frank Menetrez, Div. Seven; and Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Douglas Sortino, Div. Eight.

Fourth District

Justice Alex McDonald of Div. One died Sept. 8.

Seats in other districts are filled.

Los Angeles Superior Court

Gov. Jerry Brown named Fernando L. Aenlle-Rocha, Robert S. Harrison, Sarah J. Heidel, Gus T. May, Rubiya Nur, Nancy A. Ramirez, Lynn H. Scaduto, Neetu S. Badhan-Smith and J. Christopher Smith as judges of the court on May 22. Aenlle-Rocha comes to the bench from White and Case LLP and fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Jane L. Johnson.
Harrison had been a commissioner of the court. He fills the vacancy created by the resignation of Judge Jeffrey K. Winikow.
Heidel has served as an assistant U.S. attorney. She fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Emilie Elias.
May has been vice president of legal services and fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Robert E. Willett. Nur has been a sole practitioner and fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Peter P. Espinoza.
Ramirez was a commissioner of the court and fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Tia G. Fisher. Scaduto has served as an assistant U.S. attorney and fills the vacancy created by the death of Judge Daniel L. Brenner.
Badhan-Smith has served as a Los Angeles deputy public defender and fills the vacancy created by the conversion of a court commissioner position. Smith was a commissioner of the court and fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Russell S. Kussman.
Judge Leland H. Tipton is slated to retire July 31. Judge Lloyd Nash retired March 3 and Judge David Minning April 6.
Vacancies that remain to be filled from last year were created by the retirements of Judge Soussan Bruguera Dec. 15, Sally Meloch Dec. 10, Steven Van Sicklen Nov. 1, and John Henning Sept. 8.
Among those whose names have been sent by the governor to the State Bar Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation as possible appointees to the court are West Los Angeles attorney Mark DiMaria; Deputy Alternate Public Defender Tracee May-Brewster; Altadena attorney Cynthia Cannady; Deputy Public Defenders Jose Colon and Lisa Brackelmanns; Bakersfield attorney Bernard Barrman Jr.; Century City attorney Jonathan Rosenbloom; Deputy District Attorneys Kerry White, Candace Foy Smith, Leonard Torrealba, and Kathleen Tuttle; retired Deputy District Attorney Brentford Ferreira; Los Angeles Deputy City Attorney—and former city attorney candidate—Michael Amerian; attorney/mediator Michael Diliberto; former Superior Court Referee Stephanie Davis; Los Angeles attorneys Angel Navarro and Lisa Mattern; Superior Court counsel Brett Bianco; Beverly Hills attorney Edward Tabash; South Pasadena attorney Mark S. Priver; Court of Appeal staff attorney Kenneth E. Roberson; Superior Court Commissioners Karin Borzakian, Timothy Martella, Pamela Davis, Collette Serio, Marilyn Kading Martinez, Robert Kawahara, Alan Rubin, Emma Castro, Jane Godfrey, Sharon Lewis Miller, Mark Zuckman, Dennis Mulcahy, Terry Truong and Kenneth Taylor; State Bar Court Judge Richard Honn; Deputy County Counsel Julie Ann Silva; Glendale attorney Kenneth Wright; and Assistant U.S. Attorney Wesley Hsu.

Legislation of Interest to the Legal Community

The Legislature took the following action on bills of interest to the legal community in June.

•AB 3 by Assemblymember Rob Bonta, D-Oakland, which would, as amended, require the State Department of Social Services to seek proposals and issue grants to provide indigent immigrants with assistance in seeking relief from the consequences of past criminal convictions, subject to appropriations. The bill was amended May 9 and sent to the Appropriations Committee, then amended again and passed by that committee May 26 by a vote of 11-6, then amended again May 30.

•AB 42 by Assemblymember Rob Bonta, D-Oakland, which, as amended, would implement a revised pretrial release procedure. The bill passed the Appropriations Committee May 26 by a vote of 9-7 and was amended in the Assembly May 30. On June 14, it was referred to Senate committees.

•AB 84 by Assemblymember Gene Mullin, D-South San Francisco, which would move the statewide primary election for all offices, including judges, to the first Tuesday after the first Monday in March, in presidential election years only. The bill passed the Assembly May 4 by a vote of 52-20 and was sent to the Senate, where it was referred to the Committee on Elections and Constitutional Amendments May 18. A hearing was scheduled for June 5 but was cancelled at the request of the author.

•AB 360 by Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi, D-Torrance, which would require the State Bar to coordinate legal aid programs for indigent veterans. The bill passed the Assembly May 11 by a vote of 77-0 and was sent to the Senate, where it was referred to the Judiciary Committee May 24.

•AB 638 by Assemblymember Anna Caballero, D-Salinas, which, as amended, would prohibit nonlawyers from practicing as immigration consultants unless authorized by federal law to represent persons before the Department of Homeland Security or the Department of Justice. The bill passed the Appropriations Committee May 26 by a vote of 12-5 and was amended in the Assembly May 30. It was passed May 31 and sent to the Senate where it was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, amended, and on June 26 was re-referred to that committee.

•SB 6 by Sen. Ben Hueso, D-El Centro, which, as amended, would create the Expanding Due Process Act, and would, among other things, appropriate $12 million to pay lawyers to represent immigrants, other than those convicted of violent felonies, facing removal from the United States. The bill, which passed the Senate as an urgency measure April 3 by a vote of 28-11, was referred to the Assembly committees on Judiciary and Human Services May 18. A June 20 hearing was canceled at the request of author.

•SB 8 by Sen. Jim Beall, D-San Jose, which would expand mental health diversion, currently available only to misdemeanor defendants, to those charged with low-level felonies. The bill passed the Senate May 30 and has been sent to the Assembly Committee on Appropriations.

•SB 29 by Sen. Ricardo Lara, D-Bell Gardens, which would prohibit local governments from contracting with private entities to detain immigrants facing deportation. The bill passed the Senate on May 30, was approved by the Assembly Judiciary Committee June 28, and has been referred to the Appropriations Committee.

•SB 36 by Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson, D-Santa Barbara, which would authorize the State Bar to impose 2018 and 2019 dues in the same amounts as in 2016. The bill would also replace the current 19-member Board of Trustees with a 13-member board consisting of seven attorneys and six public members, and spin off the State Bar sections into a separate organization. The bill passed the Senate May 15 by a vote of 38-0 and was sent to the Assembly, where it was referred to the Judiciary Committee May 26.

•SB 235 by Sen. Ben Allen, D-Santa Monica, which would regulate the use of ballot designations by judicial candidates. The bill passed the Senate May 22 by a vote of 34-1 and was sent to the Assembly. It passed the Elections Committee June 28 by a vote of 6-1.