John Chiv: "This is a public interest lawsuit to protect the public's right to a qualified Public Defender "

Mar 10, 2017

"This is a public interest lawsuit to protect the public's right to a qualified Public Defender "

This morning, as expected, Mr. Patrik Griego filed a writ in Humboldt Superior Court against the County of Humboldt this morning. The writ is in response to the Humboldt County's hiring of a new public defender, Mr. David Marcus.

The entire writ is 10 pages long. The points outlined on the writ have been referred to in previous coverage, in the links below so I am not going to upload the document.

Patrik Griego, Esq. CSB#194216

JANSSEN MALLOY LLP

730 Fifth Street

Eureka, CA 95501

Telephone: (707) 445-2071

Facsimile: (707) 445-8305

Attorneys for Petitioners

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

IN AND FOR THE COUNTY OF HUMBOLDT

DOES 1 through 10, Petitioners, v. COUNTY OF HUMBOLDT; HUMBOLDT COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS; and DOES 1 through 50, Respondents.		Case No. VERIFIED PETITION FOR WRIT OF MANDATE AND COMPLAINT FOR DECLARATORY AND INJUNCTIVE RELIEF AND ATTORNEY’S FEES

INTRODUCTION

1. This is a public interest lawsuit to protect the public's right to a qualified Public Defender who has, at a minimum, practiced in the courts of California for the year prior to appointment. As set forth by the California Supreme Court with respect to Public Defenders, “It is essential that the public have absolute confidence in the integrity and impartiality of our system of criminal justice. This requires that public officials not only in fact properly discharge their responsibilities, but also that such officials avoid, as much as possible, the appearance of impropriety.” As detailed herein, the Humboldt County Board of Supervisor’s appointment of an unqualified Public Defender, under a highly unusual hiring process, undermines public confidence in our system of criminal justice.