Candice Hooper continues to turn in a rock-solid job performance as San Benito County district attorney as she has since her election in June 2006 when it was reported that her predecessor, in a classic example of sour grapes, immediately dumped his entire criminal caseload on her following his failed reelection bid. D.A. is a job where the best performers often get the least credit because the public approaches the justice system on an emotional basis while a good D.A. has to approach it on both a legal and practical basis.
No drama queen, Hooper has personally stayed out of the spotlight. That’s exactly what a good D.A. should do, and the voters rewarded her excellent work with reelection in 2010 when she ran unopposed. Lately her office has faced a series of headline-grabbing cases including a mother accused of shooting her infant child, social media-connected rape, and most recently, charges of a gang-related retaliatory murder by adults and juveniles acting in concert. That’s a lot of serious criminal activity for a small county such as ours and it would be easy to play the headlines for self-aggrandizement and higher political office, but Hooper has kept the lid on it going about her business like a true professional.
While the public constantly bemoans plea bargains, this D.A. knows that they lubricate the justice system and the cost and consequences of full prosecutions are only justified in a handful of cases. Typically, the D.A. over-charges and the defendant under-pleas and the result of plea-bargaining is where it should be or thereabouts. California’s penal system is stretched beyond the breaking point and under federal court order to reduce the prison population; every time someone is pushed in the front door, a prisoner has to be spit out the back door. There are those in the community who would say, “That’s not the D.A.’s problem,” but it is; she has to live in the real world. With limited space and soaring costs, only the worst cases should be incarcerated for long periods.
Another feather in the cap of D.A. is the reputation of her office with the court system. Unlike some district attorney organizations in the state, Hooper and her professional staff appear to be fulfilling their public duty of providing exculpatory evidence to the defense and charging defendants judiciously in court; that’s the way the justice system was designed to work.
If I had a single bone to pick, it is with the handling of so-called white-collar crime. I’m convinced that long-running white-collar crime is one area where deterrence can have an effect and, considering the cost to the victims, the penalties of restitution and small fines are inadequate. The fines should be substantial and some local jail time, even a little, might serve to get the attention of the next person considering this path. There is really no difference to the victim if someone steals something from their garage or from their bank account – in fact, the latter is likely to be worse. However, that is a system-wide societal problem, not just that of the local D.A.
I truly believe that while each of us can point to a specific case and complain about the outcome, the only fair measure of a district attorney is to judge his or her performance as a whole. Using that standard, San Benito County District Attorney Candice Hooper and her staff have done an excellent job and we are lucky to have them.
Marty Richman is a Hollister resident. His column runs Tuesdays.
