A judge ordered all the attorneys involved in a grand jury
indictment of lawyer Michael Pekin to stop distributing copies of
the grand jury transcripts Friday, and to adhere to all the rules
of professional conduct when speaking publicly about the case.
Hollister – A judge ordered all the attorneys involved in a grand jury indictment of lawyer Michael Pekin to stop distributing copies of the grand jury transcripts Friday, and to adhere to all the rules of professional conduct when speaking publicly about the case.
Judge Steven Sanders called an unscheduled hearing Friday afternoon where he chastised the attorneys involved in the case for allowing copies of the voluminous grand jury transcripts to be made public 10 days before they were legally allowed to be released, and for speaking unprofessionally about confidential matters to the press.
Pekin, his son, Patrick, one of Pekin’s attorneys, Arthur Cantu and Deputy District Attorney Denny Wei were present.
“I understood that there may have been some dissemination so I needed to address it,” Sanders said after court.
By law, the grand jury transcripts were supposed to remain sealed until March 24 – 10 days after Pekin was arraigned on Tuesday. However both the Free Lance and The Pinnacle newspaper were given copies.
“(Sanders) asked for no further distribution,” said Alex Calvo, court executive officer. “There’s no intention to go out and ask the attorneys to collect things that have been posted on the Internet or circulated in the community.”
The 393-page transcripts detailed the exact dialogue between Special Deputy District Attorney John Picone, who oversaw the proceedings, the witnesses and the jurors during the grand jury trial.
Pekin was indicted last month by at least 12 of the 18 grand jurors on five felony charges including obstructing justice, eliciting perjury and filing frivolous lawsuits. The charges stem from Pekin’s lawsuit against the county and former Supervisor Richard Scagliotti alleging corruption and involving the anonymous group Los Valientes, along with an attempted restraining order Pekin tried to obtain against Planning Department Director Rob Mendiola.
However, Pekin, who gave a copy of the transcripts only to the Free Lance, believed he had permission to disseminate the transcripts the day he was given a copy, he said.
During the meeting, Sanders also discussed keeping any matters discussed confidentially in the judge’s chambers out of the news and not impugning the integrity of the court, Cantu said.
“The court took offense that chamber’s discussions were being inappropriately discussed,” Cantu said. “(The court) is a professional organization and the courts have the right to defend its integrity.”
Specifically called into question were statements Picone, said about a closed-door meeting involving Pekin and Sanders that were printed in The Pinnacle.
Picone told The Pinnacle he asked Sanders in chambers that Pekin be given a psychiatric evaluation before the case proceeds, which Sanders denied, according to an article printed on March 17. Picone told The Pinnacle he made the request so that if Pekin loses he can’t appeal the verdict on the grounds that he was mentally unfit to stand trial, according to the article.
Picone did not return phone calls Friday, and District Attorney John Sarsfield said that he was not able to comment on any part of the judge’s order.
“The judge has issued an order and we’re going to bend over backwards to comply with the spirit of it,” Sarsfield said.
Pekin was also uncharacteristically mum on the subject, except to say that Sanders was attempting to get an out of control situation under control as expediently as possible.
“I’m the defendant, so I need to be the most cautious of anybody because I’m out on bail,” Pekin said. “I don’t want to do the least thing to be placed back in custody – so you’ll find me very guarded in the coming matters.”
Speaking out of turn and releasing the transcripts 10 days too soon aren’t the only problems surrounding the hoopla of the indictment.
By law, anyone given a copy of the transcripts is required to pay for them, Calvo said. The court reporter is required to make two copies of the transcripts, which cost $220, and one was given to Pekin and the other was given to the county, according to the reporter. No one else paid for a copy.
Pekin’s next court date is scheduled for April 1.
Erin Musgrave covers public safety for the Free Lance. Reach her at 637-5566, ext. 336 or
em*******@fr***********.com
