Legislature(1993 - 1994)
03/03/1993 01:30 PM House JUD
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
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= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
JOINT SENATE/HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE
March 3, 1993
1:30 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Robin Taylor, Chairman
Senator George Jacko
Senator Dave Donley
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Rick Halford, Vice-Chairman
Senator Suzanne Little
HOUSE MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Brian Porter, Chairman
Representative Jeannette James, Vice-Chairman
Representative Pete Kott
Representative Gail Phillips
Representative Joe Green
Representative Cliff Davidson
Representative Jim Nordlund
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CONFIRMATION HEARINGS:
William Dam, Board of Governors Alaska Bar Association
Carol Eastaugh, Violent Crimes Compensation Board
Sara Pearson, Commission on Judicial Conduct
John Salemi, Public Defender
NO PREVIOUS SENATE COMMITTEE ACTION
ACTION NARRATIVE
TAPE 93-20, SIDE A
Number 001
Chairman Robin Taylor called the Joint Senate/House
Judiciary Committee meeting to order at 1:47 p.m. for
confirmation hearings.
SENATOR TAYLOR introduced WILLIAM DAM, candidate for the
Board of Governors of the Alaska Bar Association from
Anchorage, who testified off-net from Tacoma, Washington.
SENATOR TAYLOR invited MR. DAM to acquaint the committee
with himself, and why he was interested in the position.
MR. DAM disclosed he had lived in Alaska for 35 years,
retired from the military, was a family man with five sons,
and had been interested in public service for many years.
He has served on the Board of Governors for 8 months since
he was appointed last year, but not yet confirmed.
MR. DAM said there were 3000 members of the bar association,
and he explained the duties of the Board of Governors, such
as testing and keeping the lawyers in line. He considered
the position an important one and appreciated the chance to
serve on the Board of Governors.
SENATOR TAYLOR thanked MR. DAM for his testimony and opened
the meeting to questions by the members. REPRESENTATIVE
GAIL PHILLIPS had a question about his family.
Number 052
SENATOR TAYLOR thanked MR. DAM for volunteering to serve on
the Board of Governors, and MR. DAM signed off from Tacoma,
Washington.
......................
Number 151
SENATOR TAYLOR introduced MRS. CAROL EASTAUGH, who has been
re-appointed to the Violent Crimes Compensation Board, and
invited her to give her statement.
MRS. EASTAUGH said she had been on the board for 12 years,
had been re-appointed by each governor in that time, and
expressed her enjoyment at working with the other members.
She said it was interesting, and she liked being helpful to
the innocent victims of violent crimes.
REPRESENTATIVE PORTER complimented MRS. EASTAUGH for her
past service and hoped she would serve another 12 years.
REPRESENTATIVE KOTT questioned why she declined to file a
conflict-of-interest form, and she explained she had no
reason to do so. REPRESENTATIVE PHILLIPS indicated her
appreciation to MRS. EASTAUGH for serving again.
SENATOR TAYLOR asked MRS. EASTAUGH for her perspective and
any suggestions for the improvement of the Violent Crimes
Compensation Board.
MRS. EASTAUGH praised the legislature for adequately funding
the commission since there was an increase in the expenses
for counseling and medical attention. She was pleased that
claims were allowed for DWI victims and thought it should be
extended to victims of all car accidents, such as hit-and-
run accidents. She discussed with SENATOR TAYLOR whether it
would take a legislative change.
In addition, MRS. EASTAUGH thanked NOLA CAPP, Administrator
for the Violent Crimes Compensation Board, for her
assistance. She concluded with a discussion with SENATOR
TAYLOR on the difficulty of managing funds for too many
violent crimes.
SENATOR TAYLOR thanked MRS. EASTAUGH for her gracious
service and for her institutional memory.
........................
Number 335
SENATOR TAYLOR introduced a new member to the Commission on
Judicial Conduct, SARA PEARSON, who testifying from
Soldotna, Alaska, by teleconference.
SENATOR TAYLOR clarified she had heard the previous
testimony, and he introduced the committee members from both
the Senate and House. He invited her opening statement.
MRS. PEARSON explained she was born and raised in Alaska,
married, has two children, and has always been involved in
politics. She saw the Commission on Judicial Conduct as a
way to get involved, and from attending one meeting, she
thought she would be great on the commission.
SENATOR TAYLOR thanked MRS. PEARSON for her interest and
energy and opened the meeting to questions from the members.
REPRESENTATIVE PHILLIPS asked MRS. PEARSON if managing two
small children would present any problems in serving on the
commission. MRS. PEARSON reviewed her plans for the next
meeting in Juneau with respect to her family.
REPRESENTATIVE PHILLIPS expressed pleasure in knowing MRS.
PEARSON'S family.
Number 372
REPRESENTATIVE DAVIDSON asked MRS. PEARSON what she mean by
being "great" on the commission, what she would bring to the
commission, and why she felt qualified to judge the conduct
of judges.
MRS. PEARSON indicated she was concerned as to what happened
on the legal level and the things that happen of which the
public was not aware. She listed her curiosity about he
committees, her activism with people, and her understanding
of what the public wants. She described how these
attributes would help her decide on the conduct of a judge.
REPRESENTATIVE DAVIDSON picked up on her comment of "things
that go on that the public would not be aware of" and asked
her to expand on her comment.
Number 431
MRS. PEARSON talked in terms of complaints made against the
judges, and she thought, as a public member, she could
provide input as to what really happened.
REPRESENTATIVE NORDLUND asked if MRS. PEARSON had ever been
a party to a criminal or civil suit, or any incident in
which she thought a judge was unfair. MRS. PEARSON answered
"no" to both questions.
SENATOR JACKO noted her involvement in music, and she
reviewed her music commitments.
SENATOR TAYLOR thanked MRS. PEARSON for volunteering to
serve on the Commission of Judicial Conduct, and he stressed
the importance of the position. She expressed some concern
about her answer to the question dealing with a judge's
conduct and explained it in terms of being able to let the
public know what was going on in the commission meetings.
Number 496
SENATOR TAYLOR explained some of the statistical
significance of complaints against judges as being
groundless, or the act of someone wanting revenge. MRS.
PEARSON said she knew some of the complaints the commission
could do nothing about.
REPRESENTATIVE DAVIDSON suggested she would be in a position
to "judge the judges," and he asked for her understanding of
the process as a citizen member of the commission. He asked
for any special qualifications she has for this judgement.
MRS. PEARSON explained she didn't take the position lightly,
but she still felt some nervousness at the responsibility.
She said she was looking forward to the position, because
she thought she had an open mind and able to hear both
sides. She said she didn't judge on first impressions and
was glad she was part of a membership to help her understand
the meetings.
Number 547
REPRESENTATIVE DAVIDSON continued his line of questioning to
include her reasons for thinking she could do a good job and
be a good judge of people. She continued to explain her
reasons for feeling she would do well on the commission.
REPRESENTATIVE JAMES complimented MRS. PEARSON'S youth and
enthusiasm and thought these attributes would help her be
successful. MRS. PEARSON thought her assessment was
correct.
REPRESENTATIVE PHILLIPS wished MRS. PEARSON "good luck" and
thanked her for being willing to serve on the commission.
SENATOR JACKO thought MRS. PEARSON would bring a fresh and
solid perspective to the position - and wished her well.
REPRESENTATIVE KOTT agreed with all of the accolades given
to MRS. PEARSON, and he praised her fair approach.
............................
Number 575
SENATOR TAYLOR went off the teleconference network, and
called on JOHN SALEMI, a candidate for Public Defender in
Anchorage.
MR. SALEMI explained he was currently the director of the
Alaska Public Defender Agency, and he reviewed both his
personal and legal background. He agreed with MRS.
EASTAUGH'S comment on there being too much violent crime,
and he, also, would like to see a lot less. He portrayed
violence as an unfortunate reality of our current society.
MR. SALEMI explained how he became interested in being a
public defender, and his tenure in the office since 1979.
He characterized it as enjoyable and important work, rather
than what is seen on television, which he termed inaccurate.
MR. SALEMI described re-opening the Public Defender's office
in Nome in 1980 as being one of the best experiences he had,
working with the people in rural Alaska. He recognized the
importance of providing quality legal services in the Bush.
MR. SALEMI gave a statistical account of the 12 state-wide
offices, 54 lawyers, and 1700 cases in 1992 for criminal,
civil, child delinquency, mental health commitment hearings,
and a variety of other matters. He described public safety
as being very important, and in order for people to be safe,
he said there must be the expeditious processing of cases.
MR. SALEMI explained the process provided by public
defenders, and in a democracy, he said there must be
experienced, educated individuals in a courtroom setting
protecting the individual rights. He dispelled the notion
that public defenders were not concerned about crime, and he
used his wife and baby to express his concern about crime.
MR. SALEMI discussed the importance of not eroding
individual rights at the expense of only thinking of public
safety, which might diminish the quality of life in Alaska.
Number 785
REPRESENTATIVE GREEN asked for the success ratio in the
large number of cases from last year. MR. SALEMI said they
don't keep records, since they have only recently received
money for computers. He explained that all of their
statistic keeping is done manually, so there is no
sophisticated analysis. He suggested talking to the
Department of Law for some idea of their success ratio, and
he spoke to the difficulty in defining success.
REPRESENTATIVE GREEN told a story to ask MR. SALEMI what he
would do if, during the trial, he knew the defendant was
guilty. MR. SALEMI explained a person has the absolute
right to have a trial and effective legal representation,
and the burden of proof is on the prosecution. He explained
he was not charged with getting the guilty person off, but
insuring that the prosecution meets its burden of proof. He
discussed the benefits of the "presumption of innocence" in
our society.
Number 820
SENATOR JACKO expressed his belief in the importance of the
work done by MR. SALEMI and asked what the DNA Task Force
was on his resume. MR. SALEMI explained that DNA is the
genetic finger print, scientific evidence which is gaining
in popularity, because of its convincing power. He
described the properties of DNA as used in committing a
crime or in a paternity suit. He explained the task force
was formed to determine whether a law should be enacted to
allow the prosecution to admit DNA evidence, and he also
explained how other jurisdictions deal with admitting the
evidence.
REPRESENTATIVE PHILLIPS inquired about his association with
the Carpeneti Law Offices in San Francisco and questioned
the Public Defender's office v. the Office of Public
Advocacy. She thought there might be a duplication or an
overlapping of responsibility between the two entities.
MR. SALEMI said there was a common misunderstanding about
the missions of each of the agencies, and he explained there
was some overlap in the arena of criminal cases. He said
the Public Defender represents any individual accused of a
crime, when that individual can establish indigency and not
be able to hire private counsel.
TAPE 93-20, SIDE B
Number 001
MR. SALEMI continued by explaining how the public defenders
are appointed to a case by the judge, and when they find
they have a legal conflict of interest, the legal cannons of
ethics don't permit them to stay on the case. He explained
a case in which two people were involved in the same crime,
and only one could be represented by the Public Defender.
MR. SALEMI said previously a private attorney would be hired
to represent the second individual, but he explained it was
less expensive to have someone from the Office of Public
Advocacy. In addition, other duties were given to the
Office of Public Advocacy such as public guardianships and
guardian ad litem services.
Number 076
SENATOR TAYLOR expanded the examples to include other duties
for the Office of Public Advocacy.
REPRESENTATIVE PHILLIPS asked if this was work done by the
pro bono people, and SENATOR TAYLOR assured her they did a
lot of it, too. MR. SALEMI said the Office of Public
Advocacy had a pro bono program in their agency, and he
outlined the power of judges to appoint as they see fit.
Number 135
REPRESENTATIVE GREEN asked about his ambitions, other than
being a public defender. MR. SALEMI said the last two or
three public defenders have become superior court judges,
but he had no immediate plans to try. Rather, he explained
he aspired to other job related activities.
REPRESENTATIVE NORDLUND talked currently of increased case
loads, a lack of public understanding about the role and
need for a public defender, and what MR. SALEMI perceived in
terms of planning for the agency in dealing with an
increased case load.
MR. SALEMI explained, in the last five years, their case
load had gone up 45% and resources increased 2%, and he
spoke about the challenges of being a public defender. He
said he was going to continue to tell the legislature why
the Public Defender's office should be funded at an adequate
level, and he stressed it was for public safety. He
described the reasons for his enjoyment of his job, the
commitment of his staff, and the importance of doing what he
is doing.
Number 282
MR. NORDLUND asked what he was doing about expanded case
loads in the agency, and MR. SALEMI explained why the
computers would be very important in streamlining the office
procedures. He also explained how the offices would be able
to cut down on the need for more clerical support, which is
presently in short supply. He said it wouldn't totally cure
the problem, but was a step in the right direction.
MR. SALEMI stressed there was a need to get more training
for his staff members, which are usually hired as
inexperienced, and cheaper, lawyers. Unfortunately, these
lawyers must step into a case load, so there needs to be
additional training, and he described the present training
process. He also discussed the need to keep more experience
lawyers, since it makes the work go faster, and he described
the creative ways he kept his staff happy. MR. SALEMI
explained he was soliciting solutions.
Number 294
REPRESENTATIVE NORDLUND passed on a friendly comment about
his agency from CHIEF JUSTICE MOORE, in his address to the
legislature.
REPRESENTATIVE DAVIDSON asked MR. SALEMI how his agency got
cases, and they agreed the public defender can't reject
cases. MR. SALEMI quickly outlined the procedure by which
the court system builds their case load.
REPRESENTATIVE DAVIDSON reviewed his case load v. funding,
and asked how he prioritized his work. MR. SALEMI said that
none of the misdemeanor cases would get investigated, and
there was really no investigation except for felonies. He
described how he prioritized felony cases and cut appeals
for post-conviction relief.
REPRESENTATIVE DAVIDSON referred to the testimony from the
sentencing commission, and wished MR. SALEMI "good luck."
Number 435
REPRESENTATIVE PORTER asked MR. SALEMI if the prosecution
side of the equation was in about the same financial shape,
but MR. SALEMI thought it was an apples/oranges comparison
there. He did describe some cuts to the Public Defender's
office, and what it might do to them. He said both their
office and the prosecution office was to received federal
money, but only the prosecution office did.
REPRESENTATIVE PHILLIPS observed that MR. SALEMI was a good
advocate for his office, and he agreed the work they do is
very important.
Number 484
SENATOR TAYLOR expressed appreciation to MR. SALEMI for his
dedication to the Public Defender's office. He suggested a
system where by MR. SALEMI'S office could use the State
Troopers as investigators on a rotation system that would
allow police officers, prosecutors, and public defenders to
become used to working both sides of the fence.
There being no further business to come before the
committee, the meeting was adjourned at 3:00 p.m.
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