Governors Committee On DUII's Votes To Support HB 3025!!
76th OREGON LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY--2011 Regular Session
NOTE: Matter within { + braces and plus signs + } in anamended section is new. Matter within { - braces and minussigns - } is existing law to be omitted. New sections are within { + braces and plus signs + } . LC 3089
Oregon House Bill 3025 Sponsored by Representative Deborah Boone
SUMMARY The following summary is not prepared by the sponsors of the measure and is not a part of the body thereof subject to consideration by the Legislative Assembly. It is an editor's brief statement of the essential features of the measure as introduced.
Clarifies that district attorney may take control of investigation and prosecution of any misdemeanor committed in county served by district attorney.
A BILL FOR AN AC Relating to district attorneys; amending ORS 8.660.
Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon: SECTION 1. ORS 8.660 is amended to read: 8.660. (1) The district attorney shall attend the terms of all courts having jurisdiction of public offenses within the district attorney's county, and, except as otherwise provided in this section, conduct, on behalf of the state, all prosecutions for such offenses therein. { + Notwithstanding any provision of ORS chapter 221, a district attorney may take control of the investigation and prosecution of any misdemeanor committed in the county served by the district attorney. + } (2) A district attorney shall not conduct prosecutions under this section when: (a) A city attorney is prosecuting a violation under ORS chapter 153; or (b) The district attorney is prohibited from appearing in a violation proceeding under the provisions of ORS 153.076 (Conduct of trial
(6) A district attorney or city attorney may aid in preparing evidence and obtaining witnesses but, except upon good cause shown to the court, shall not appear in violation proceedings unless counsel for the defendant appears. The court shall ensure that the district attorney or city attorney is given timely notice if defense counsel is to appear at trial. [1999 c.1051 §21])
(6) A district attorney or city attorney may aid in preparing evidence and obtaining witnesses but, except upon good cause shown to the court, shall not appear in violation proceedings unless counsel for the defendant appears. The court shall ensure that the district attorney or city attorney is given timely notice if defense counsel is to appear at trial. [1999 c.1051 §21])
11 comments:
So, this is what it's all about. Thanks for helping to clarify, Patrick. Josh wants to ensure his salary is not going to be changed if he pisses off the County Commission again. The Astoria Municipal Court thing is just a guise to secure his salary. What a wise use of the legislature's time.
Anonymous said... "So, this is what it's all about. Thanks for helping to clarify, Patrick. Josh wants to ensure his salary is not going to be changed if he pisses off the County Commission again. The Astoria Municipal Court thing is just a guise to secure his salary. What a wise use of the legislature's time."
Well, don't stop here "Anonym" take your complaint right directly to Oregon Rep., Debbie Boone by phone, email, letter for the public record on the legislation for HR-3025 and the other piece.
Of course you'll have to use your real name but, how important is it to you, or are you satisfied with just anonymously "Pissing" and "Moaning" on this site?
The bill about DA slary has much more to do with many of the OTHER 35 elected DAs who drafted the same bill last session.
Judges cannot have their pay redcuced during their term. In most states the law is the same for DAs for the same reason.
So nonsense like what happened here in 2007 doesn't happen.
That bill matters to all the other DAs who are tired of the state legislature threatening to single them out and slash their salary if they don't bend to the latest stupid piece of legislation.
You want a bill drafted?
Write your legislator.
It's not rocket science.
It has to go through committees and then pass both houses.
Lawyers never have liked muni courts and justices of the peace, because the judges did not have to be lawyers. So, this is just a continuation of the battle to require every judge to be a lawyer. Municipal and JP courts exist because of the belief that certain offenses are best handled locally with local officials and local penalities. Maybe that day is long gone and the guy that steals a pen from the dollar store should be prosecuted by a state officer, go to state court and face the consequences of state law. The Marquis/Boone law will allow that to happen. But, looking at costs, if we are going to let the DA cherry pick cases, why not just do away with municipal courts and justices of the peace? All the lawyers will be happy and the cities and counties will not have to budget for our so called justice system in Oregon.
Intersting that Debby Boone is carrying Josh's water on this one. To bad she has decided to help such a failed politician. It seems to me the legislature has many more important things than Josh's salary and his personal problems with Kris Kaino and Steve Roman. But, obviously, Debby
doesn't. Ah, well, we citizens get what we vote for.
I did not know the state legislature threatened district attorney's with salary reductions if they did not support certain state legislation. This is not right. Can you provide some additional information, such as, what piece of legislations were DAs required to support? I will be happy to contact other DAs to confirm this, Cop said, or Josh, and then contact Betsy Johnson if you will supply the background.
Kaino is a lawyer.
There is no JP court in Clatsop County and under Oregon law the DA prosecutes in JP courts.
Here is the article about the legislature holding DA pay hostage:
http://www.bendbulletin.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100224/NEWS0107/2240420/-1/RSSNEWSMAP
The Bend Bulletin Article On Oregon Legislature's Pay Cut In Oregn District Attorneys Salaries
The Bend Bulletin article says that the legislators say the DAs' salaries were cut because all other state employees took a cut (which they did. Some, but not all, DAs' say it was political because they did not support a particular law. So, the article does not prove or disprove the DAs allegations, it merely states what happened and what was said about it by those who feel damaged. Indeed, the wife of the Deschutes County DA is a legislator who voted for the cut. Her intention was to cut her husband's state salary because he disagreed with some law? She says no.
At the head of this outcry was, once again, DA Josh Marquis. And, Marquis is known far and wide for constantly exercising the lawyer's mantra of never letting the truth get in the way of his side of an argument (they teach this in law school, by the way).
Aside from DA Marquis unfounded allegations against the legislature, why don't District Attorneys concentrate on doing their jobs? Is there something in their job description that says they must tell the legislature what to do? Is there not enough crime that they have lots of time on their hands? If they want to dabble in politics, they should learn the downside, just like the legislators do.
The fact that comes out of all this is the worst enemies of district attorneys are district attorneys.
Yes, Kaino is a lawyer. So, has Josh filed a Bar complaint against him? No. Roman is a lawyer, Has Josh filed a Bar complaint against him? No. Gerttela is a lawyer. Has Josh filed a Bar complaint against him? No, in fact, Josh's office did not file the complaint that resulted in Gerttela's suspension, eventhough his office knew about the violation before a complaint was filed.
Has Marquis taken the matters he grieves to the Grand Jury for an indictment? No.
Josh has a lot of legal power in this situation, but he relegates the solution to complaining to the Astoria City Council and Steve Forrester's editorials. Why does he not take legal action? He has the power and, some might say, the obligation, if his complaints are true, that is.
So Marquis advised the other DAs NOT to make a fuss, so he is the ringleader? Why do you think the BULLETIN ran the story? Because there was an attempt to pick the DAs out from all other elected officials and punish them by cutting their salaries if they didn't go along with the program. The legislature got caught and the pay was restored.
The other claim is that if the other lawyers don't do what Marquis likes he should either file bar complaints against them or file criminal charges against them and that if he doesn't do these very nuclear options then he really doesn't mean what he says.
What would the various nay-sayers do if all of sudden Kaino ended up arrested on Official Misconduct charges? They'd go nuts and claim a massive abuse of power!
I thought a District Attorney was supposed to prosecute criminals. I also thought that DA Marquis wanted to prosecute even more criminals by taking over certain, if not all, cases in municipal courts. I believed that, as a lawyer, a DA was required to report other lawyers who he suspects have violated the Code of Professional Conduct of the Oregon Bar. I guess I was wrong on all counts. DA Marquis has none of these obligations. So, besides operating his obviously political agenda, what is he supposed to do for the money he gets paid?
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