[ SECRET POST #3447 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #3447 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 03 pages, 56 secrets from Secret Submission Post #493.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

Re: Question thread

[replicantangel]

Short answer - no.

Long (like, really long) answer? People don't know what the heck they're talking about when they talk about petitioning the Bar. The Bar is the licensing agency for lawyers - each state and federal district has one. Speaking generally, the Bar collects professional dues and decides who gets to practice law. They also put on classes so that lawyers can pay more money and learn about the updates to law. Licenses can be either suspended or revoked completely. Generally, you get suspended for either not paying your dues or completing your continuing legal education hours or for a number of criminal/civil infractions. The most common infractions are for mismanaging client funds (they take very serious views on it) or substance abuse that interferes with competently representing their clients to the best of their ability. To get your license revoked, you have to do something VERY serious, like straight up embezzle client money or repeated substance abuse issues or defraud your client - one that gets a lot of press is when district attorneys withhold evidence in criminal trials (a la the Duke lacrosse case). In other words, most things that get your license revoked are criminal in nature.

So, while repugnant, nothing Persky did is a violation of law. It's not even careless or ignorant of the law. He was acting as a judge with the full weight of qualified immunity (meaning he can't be punished for things he does, as long as they are within his job description) within the confines of permissible punishment.

And here's the cherry on top - the The State Bar of California can do exactly NOTHING to Persky. He's a judge. They don't even consider him to be a member of the State Bar while he's on the bench (this is to prevent conflicts of interest between lawyers and judges). If people want to petition anybody, it'd be the Commission on Judicial Performance. They are the ones that review judicial misconduct.

The CJP can only *remove* a judge for actions that "constitute willful misconduct in office, persistent failure or inability to perform the judge's duties, habitual intemperance in the use of intoxicants or drugs, or conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice that brings the judicial office into disrepute." That last one might give people hope, but I'd bet it has to be a pattern before they act. Generally, lawyers and judges don't want to act against someone that they might hear cases with/against/in front of every day. It usually requires horrific injustice for a judge to be removed. Now, they can censure him or publicly/privately admonish him, but that does little to nothing to affect him professionally.

Basically, he's not going to stop being a lawyer. He might, however, stop being a judge - not because of the CJP though, but because of a recall through the voters. For all the naysayers (especially lately), democracy occasionally shifts the status quo. He will be recalled, just as Californian voters did to their governor Gray Davis in 2003. So if you live in his voting district and are registered to vote, THAT is the way to remove him - sign that petition and get that asshat recalled! If you don't, then stand back and bask in the warmth of that democratic movement.

Re: Question thread

[(Anonymous)]

DA. I just want to say that I really appreciate you taking all the time to write this out! It's very informative and presented clearly.