|
Back to Calendar
Return
|
| |
Consent-General Government # 13.
|
| Board of Supervisors |
County Counsel |
|
|
|
| Subject |
| Approve $20,000 in extra compensation to four attorneys for pretrial preparation in People v. Sandeno. (No general fund impact) (Pogledich) |
| Recommended Action |
| Approve $20,000 in extra compensation to four attorneys for pretrial preparation in People v. Sandeno. |
| Strategic Plan Goal(s) |
Operational Excellence
Thriving Residents
Safe Communities |
| Reason for Recommended Action/Background |
The indigent conflict defense panel handles the representation of indigent criminal defendants when the Public Defender has a conflict of interest or is otherwise unable to provide representation. Panel attorneys provide services under identical contracts with the County that specify a standard rate of compensation and provide for extra compensation in certain instances, including for pretrial or trial work that requires an extraordinary commitment of time or other resources.
This Board item concerns a request by four panel attorneys (Ava Landers, Jim Granucci, Rod Beede, and Jeff Raven) for $5,000 in extra compensation each for pretrial preparation in People v. Sandeno, a homicide case arising from a fatal stabbing at the KetMoRee Restaurant in Davis. This request is separate from a request for additional compensation during trial, which the Board previously considered and approved on May 23, 2017, The Board's May 23 action included extra compensation during trial for the Sandeno case and a separate criminal action (People v. Hernandez). The Hernandez case went to trial in mid-2017 and concluded near the end of the calendar year.
The Sandeno case went to trial at in late-December 2017. On January 2, 2018, the District Attorney dismissed the defendants represented by each panel attorney from the Sandeno case. The dismissal was preceded by the preparation and filing of a motion for dismissal by the panel attorneys, as well as substantial pretrial preparation (including reviewing over 13,000 pages of discovery, additional USB drives and discs, and preparing expert and percipient witnesses to testify). The attorneys had presented a request for $5,000 in additional compensation for pretrial preparation prior to the commencement of trial, and they renewed this request following the dismissal of their clients on January 2.
Extra compensation requests are relatively rare and are considered carefully by the Office of the County Counsel. This request appears well founded due to the extraordinary nature of the Sandeno case and the attorneys' representations regarding the amount of pretrial work required. Also, the request will not impact the general fund due to cost savings realized by the dismissal of the four defendants following the first week of trial (and despite the unanticipated length of the Hernandez trial, mentioned above, and the additional compensation paid as a result). For these reasons, the Office recommends approval of this request. |
| Collaborations (including Board advisory groups and external partner agencies) |
| None. |
| Competitive Bid Process |
| Not applicable |
|
| Fiscal Impact |
|
|
| Source of Funds for this Expenditure |
|
|
Explanation (Expenditure and/or Revenue) |
| Further explanation as needed: |
| The dismissal of defendants represented by the four attorneys avoids most of the anticipated financial impact of the trial in the above-referenced matter. Even with the additional compensation proposed in this item, the total financial impact is less than initially expected and well within the amount budgeted for attorneys' fees incurred in providing legal representation to each indigent defendant. |
|
|
|
|
|