Pages

12.07.2006

TS My Word - A law enforcement perspective on the DA recall

A law enforcement perspective on the DA recall
My Word by Christopher Andrews The Times-Standard
Friday, February 13,2004

My name is Christopher Andrews and I've been a law enforcement officer for over 15 years, the last seven in Humboldt County. I've worked closely with members of the DA's office and I am a founding member of the Humboldt County Child Abuse Services Team. Today I am writing this letter as a private citizen. I would like to share some personal observations about Mr. Gallegos and why I support the DA recall and Worth Dikeman for DA.

Prior to being elected DA, Mr. Gallegos was a defense attorney. He defended alleged child molesters and other persons charged with criminal acts. The DA is supposed to represent the people of the state of California, not the defendant that is charged; that is the job of the public defender or another attorney. in many high-profile cases Mr. Gallegos has failed to represent the victims of crimes. Instead, he has actually sent his own investigators to speak with defendants and their families prior to making a plea-bargain and not even consulted with the victims or their families. I'm not surprised at his lack of enthusiasm for the DA job when I recall Mr. Gallegos' comment before the election that he only ran for DA because he couldn't run for judge.

California law allows for child victims, in certain cases, to avoid testimony. It also holds child molesters to very severe sentences, hundreds of years in some cases. Prior to Mr. Gallegos, hundred-plus-year sentences were common practice in Humboldt County. The recent Hernandez case is another, sad example of Mr. Gallegos' bias towards criminals, not the victim nor public safety.

Another serious concern that I have with Mr. Gallegos is his dishonestv. He often savs one thing and then turns around and actually does the opposite. In the Hernandez case he reported to the that the federal government would ensure Hernandez's future incarceration. I'm curious to know how Mr. Gallegos came to this conclusion when the federal Department of Justice (DOJ) was not even aware of the Hernandez case at that time and could not even prosecute Hernandez for "child molest," only "immigration violation." Mr. Gallegos even attempted to rectify his deception by sending a deputy DA to the DOJ in San Francisco after he made his bold statement to the public.

Mr. Gallegos has demonstrated serious problems with his ability to lead. He enacted his 99-plant marijuana policy last year without even consulting law enforcement, the very folks who need to enforce the policy. He then sent out a press release without even notifying the investigators in his own office. When citizens asked DA staff about the newpolicy the common response was "read the newspaper" because none of the investigators knew what the policy was. (eventually, the policy was made available to the DA staff). Mr. Gallegos has demonstrated from his actions his complete disdain for law enforcement. He publicly stated at a recent School and Law Enforcement meeting that students, teachers and even someone from his own staff could come to school or work under the influence of marijuana as long as that person had a valid Prop. 215 card. There are too many other examples to mention in the short space that I am allotted.

Worth Dikeman, on the other hand, is the most honest person that I have ever met in my entire life. He is extremely dedicated to the people of this county, he works long, hard hours, and he's an incredibly gifted prosecutor. He would much rather prosecute cases than run the office, but due to the current morass in the DA's office he is running for DA to save the citizens of this county from future problems. Worth Dikeman will restore the integrity that the DA's office is lacking. I urge you to vote yes on the recall and Worth Dikeman for DA. Even if you feel that the recall process is wrong, Worth Dikeman is the best qualified candidate running.

Christopher Andrews
Fortuna

No comments: