CALIFORNIA'S DIRTY LITTLE SECRET By, Kenneth Gay 3 californts’s Direy Little Secret One of the most frequently ssked question s, why has it taken 30 yedes %0 process your appeal thcough state courtl ver o e Shencion”Ie Sinpla, eraud: The detatls of how this fraud is Seclted, {2 complicated. Ta'dedt: 1o fully nderatand hov the sppesl process has baen sleered, Lt is necessury o understand how Lt is Supposed to operate. e er Mornal sircunstanies, once you are comvicteds. an attorney. and wis Srfene il Geteraine that type-of tppeal to 1 sadto Uit ece: The iypes of appesl ars Dicect Appesi, chich challenges the niad ot Leials o any-ceher, irfogulactsies Shic the Course of the trisl. Or a UrLt of Habeas Corpus. T Challanges the conviction based upon neuly Zace, ‘or congtitutions] violations. Such ss 4 frocecutor uho withheld svidenca. Or 2 judge that sade a dscision D trety o eatablished lav. These sppeals aust be £1ied vithin on oo of che Sastancing. Ocdinacily, "The appeal veuld be lled fothe Lot ot Mhis 1o o faducal Sours that monitecs the outcones of senie criafucl ol fo enduti matthe accured conselcfona] Cihte vere Taspacted. This is the uay death penalty sppeals vere FeSiessnd peior to Juse 6, 1989: v ew he dfsteict courts; and the Colifornis Supreme Court covecatng 19 of al1 capital cases they rovieued: In 1986 Republican Poiiiietns Comvinced victin cights geoups that if slected they would B4 the State of the Libaral suprane court and Jusp start the death Fenalty. Governor Caorge beukesisn, and his Republican colleagy Bin'Lotiren, vere clested. As che naviy elected Attorney General, it Ua7 Ban”Lungren's responeibility to acgue on behalf of the state’in Favor of axecutions. Within theee yeacs of their election, Deukaejain o4 fungren vere abis to unsest justices, Rose Bird, Cru: Ranoso, and SoEeph Groginiron the Callfatnia Supress Coure. e goveooe qulckly Tepioced the justices uith his own ppointments. Justices, Eagleson, n; ond Auuaiiss. ey quickly Tovecse the crend of ine Former ‘e new.cours 793 06 a1l copital cases they revieued. Hovavar, capital cases vers still being sent to the federal district NNt Souathing had o bo done to atop these casos from belng verturned in the ficst plsce. OnSuna 6, 1989 the' California Supreme Court justices created Folicy 3 Uadet the United States Constitution any nev Laus must be ipproved by the legisiature. The justices kneu they had tremendous 1EBcay “unduc the néuly elected Atiorney Ganeral, vho ould not Chailtage their new Lavs. So they violoted separation ancted Fotiey 3" Tnid poric) gave the Galicoehi sop Coplete control aver skl aspects of capital cases. Ci Tomger bo.sent to the fadecal disteict Courts for review. Thus, Pt ively Dlocking, fedarsl court review of state court teisis. ALL apital cates vould e sant dicectly to the Californis Supreme Court. bt peTie, e Tt the colit fompiett omteolloter Thelyoe of Tppeetckat whuld be*Eiled. The attorney and his cliant vould shiy be ovad o file a Dirsct Appesi. The bl of Habeas Corpus vould be Seterrea’ntil afeer the OlFect Appesi was sdjudicated, This vas o Violation of the constitutionsl prohibition sgainst the suspension of the Uit of Habens Cocpus- These new levs could not have been enacted without the cooperation of the Govecnor and the Attorney Genaral. As cembers of the'axecutive beanch it vas their responsibility to challenge any Luws ‘that did not couply vith the state and fedaral constitutions. Bk sote Seportanty’ e new”iaut Cold not have"bets cracted “ithout the cooperation of the appellate defense attorneys. This type of discovered v Ocdinarily, attorney's uould be rendonly selesced fr Quet§ieo fowyers. 1e'a a 4% chatlen pion to I cnactnane o Fo1iey 3\ int) Created the Colifocnia Appeliste Projact. (GAF) Fros this point Forvard, s11 Lavyer s vho capressnted condenied innates vould'Rave to sign'a contraitual sgrecmnt ith CAF to defer. their Tagad teuning. ind conply Vith che neuly srested policies. The new polices gave spaciflc Giractions an what Lasuns to e xaised Any frvestigations s £iltogs requled prior approval of the couts. o exchange, the sftorney’s vould. be recarded CLth generous selariss: ‘The Republicans Who conspired to create this 11lepel sppeilate procass-belloved”thae they Veke oty 5o uae, this demish of ighis o Sipedite srecutions. Wmat they to Cealize vas, by sltaring the Constitution, they damaged the effectivensss of Lt. in pther crccytons e oteure IRy thun elghe yedcs O sontencing: 1F the sev i bort T bihert To e Sotebttitine sod sy iy ol appeais. the sppesls would be sxpadited into fadera . court Yould likely Caverss their decision fhetine nov. By altering. the constitution Srdinarily cost execution’ This vas sccomplished within eisht vears. As 4 re bolicy 3. ‘many sttorneys vho once were villing to tackie capitel e 00 longer ¥illing to represent the condemned. Suddenly. & Shortage of quelified attorneya. A condeaned prisoner how vaits for as long &s seven years on death o avaitim the appointaant of counsel. Onca counsel is sppointed, he or she is iced to file only the Direct Appeal. o' iavestigation into the constitutional violations, or other legal strategies is permitted by it coges. The avectze deiay i the iatesedyation sna EiTi of the Vrieof Habeas Corpus 1s 17.3 years. Much of the documents. win and foransic evidence that vas available shortly after Teial Lo hov lost. As 8 Fesult. 13 people have been execated at & cost of neatly two billion doliars * Alarcon. neacly tvo trillion doll. Capital punishegnt over the past tventy-four y Foue billion & TSN conplete copy of Justice Alarcon's report ‘A Roadaap to End o California's Legtslature’s Multi-sillion Dollar Dabacle. Etp: //uwe.ocg/cc a /documents/CCPAJFinalRaport .paf -~ Thece are 145 Habeas Corpus, capital attorneys in Californis Thece ace 730 condeaned brisoners. Each of these attorneys 3220 paz hour, five days par veak, for 27.6 years. A Dire betef ind the teply ace all filed vithin the Ficet thers is no other vork to be done. What attors “ho vould not. ippeilate proces owel ent theaselvas. It has aluays been 8 ‘any Lndividuni has Constitutionally guarantaed Tight to rapresent hisself if he should chose te do-so. The Californis Supceme Court justices rook Stap of prohibiting all e pent most prolific Wstory t prosper foc tuenty-fout yeats and Counting. The question on everyone s mind is, ho could this type of Eeaud oxist for #o longl Firat and forenast, the Clifornia ot Association has strict rules sgainst attornéy encrosching upon other Stiorney'a clients: Ro decent, honast atiornty would put his license o The Tine to Tepresant a mutderer. Evaryone sise 1nvolvad has greatly benefited fron the fraud. With the exception of the victins Sho'Vare pronisad exacutions, and thosa' fau ianocant. Lndividuis on desehro oo T 2 S0 et 1% M et ca adiudicated‘To the tuderal Sourta. I3 of a1l cases that sventually £achthe Tedaral courts ace ceversed: This demsnsirates and Confiims EheCalifornla Supeeme Coure’s violation of federal iee: The attorney's uho participate in this fraud, and ihe California Supcane Court. Justices, e drvolved o s Fraudul The colet has sppraved ten el fou Tamates: AL Direct Appe 0d the'sene Case citi Uication of these clafes £ 0f a1 Diract 1 31 Genfats quoth danied T e o cost of 20 plue atilion per e sims"of money fron tha-state ah 1776 G W diateibutes 1 to nd support s state Attorney Ganerl's office hires additional staft (pore Lawyers) Uho argue.in favoc of the 10 M Collective Mr. Kenneth E. Gay D-15601 3 - EB - 93 San Quentin, CA 94974 South Chicago ABG Zine Distro P.O. Box 721 "~ Homewood, IL 60430