From the Jackson campaign:
The Arcata Police Association represents the rank and file employees of the Arcata Police Department. We are privileged to serve the city of Arcata and all of it’s citizens.
The Arcata Police Association is proud to announce that it will endorse Allison Jackson for Humboldt County District Attorney.
The Arcata Police Association believes this election will have a significant impact on the City of Arcata. Quality of life, community safety and victim’s rights are all at stake in this election.
The Arcata Police Association cites the following cases:
- A case in which a suspect embezzled $139,000 from a local credit union, pled guilty and received probation.
- A case in which a suspect, along with two other suspects, bound and gagged three victims, assaulted them and stole their property. The suspect pled guilty to the theft and received probation.
- A case in which a burglar was caught by residents in the act of committing his third burglary at this particular apartment complex. The burglar, still wearing a mask, gloves and carrying a pry bar, also possessed a stolen gun. The burglar pled guilty and was offered probation.
The Arcata Police Association strongly urges citizens to vote for Allison Jackson for Humboldt County District Attorney.
15 comments
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September 20, 2010 at 8:20 pm
Ed Denson
I’m sure the fine members of the Arcata police department realize that a judge had to sign off on all of these outcomes. Judges can, and do, reject plea bargains if they find them out of line. So, it is fair to say, that none of these deals was out of line enough to cause the judge who ok’d them to reject them. It seems odd to blame the District Attorney for them as he, or his deputies, did not act without judicial oversight.
September 20, 2010 at 8:28 pm
Eric Kirk
Yeah, I really think it’s pointless to bring up individual cases in an election campaign unless you have some solid evidence that the D.A. dropped the ball. There are reasons for plea bargains which are not particularly satisfying often having to do with the strength or weakness of the evidence, the interest of the victims (particularly if it would involve a child victim testifying), and numerous other issues. While I expect it from anonymous blog posters, self-serving two or three sentence summaries of cases without context are particularly egregious from a professional organization. The judgment of the courts are also called into question, and maybe all the facts and evidence aren’t being considered.
September 20, 2010 at 8:29 pm
Eric Kirk
This is an important endorsement however. Paul Hagen did very well in Arcata and I’m sure Allison is trying to scoop up some of his votes.
September 20, 2010 at 9:11 pm
Fred Mangels
This is an important endorsement however.
Law enforcement endorsements certainly do carry some weight with a lot of people but, not to digress, I just read today that the California Correctional Peace Officers Association (prison guards) endorsed Jerry Brown.
I’m curious just what group of people would consider voting for Jerry Brown because of a CCPOA endorsement? Perhaps a few right wing types(?), but I would think most in this state are getting a bit fed up with the prison guard unions helping suck the state coffers dry.
Then again, there’s always that lefty authoritarian guy, Robert Cruickshank. I’ve read him defend the extravagant (and unsustainable) public safety pensions as being good for the economy.
September 20, 2010 at 9:22 pm
mresquan
Eric wrote,”While I expect it from anonymous blog posters, self-serving two or three sentence summaries of cases without context are particularly egregious from a professional organization.”
Case in point,go check out the humboldt mirror’s latest post.
September 20, 2010 at 9:25 pm
Eric Kirk
Fred – unions of any stripe except for the Teamsters circa 1984 tend to vote for Democrats because Republicans are generally funded by union busters. It’s about pay and work conditions more than anything else.
September 20, 2010 at 10:00 pm
Anonymous
The Arcata Police are among the worst in the county. This endorsement figures.
September 21, 2010 at 8:50 am
Pete Malloy
Anon @ 10:00 PM
Thank you, Mr Gallegos
September 21, 2010 at 1:22 pm
Not A Native
I’d say the embezzlement rap is bogus if complete restitution was made. Prison time for that level of embezzlement won’t be a deterrant to others or protect future employers from the perp. If it was a guilty plea to a felony, its a big deal.
The robbery crime sounds horrific, but as I recall it was a pot deal and all involved were lawbreakers. Doesn’t excuse the robbery but it also wasn’t a scary random break-in crime by a career perp who would likely reoffend. I recall the perps in the Cutten pot robbery that resulted in a death received stiff prison sentence.
September 21, 2010 at 2:17 pm
Eric Kirk
I’d say the embezzlement rap is bogus if complete restitution was made.
That doesn’t make any sense at all.
September 21, 2010 at 3:52 pm
Anonymous
Those criminals deserved probation!
September 21, 2010 at 6:50 pm
moviedad
Recently in the “Sentencing” section of the Times Standard Sunday paper. Two drug offenders got more jail and probation than a Murderer and a Child Molester; on the same page. Seriously.
September 21, 2010 at 11:57 pm
Ed Denson
I am not familiar with the specific cases described in the press release, but I will say this: you can not get a decent idea of what a case involves from police press releases. If you want to understand an outcome, or to predict one, you need to at the least read the police reports and do that with an educated eye for exageration or weak points. Better, of course, you also see whatever evidence the defense has provided the prosecution. Then you might be able to say, intelligently, what the actual crimes, if any, were and how reasonable the outcome was. Otherwise it is just speculation and hot air
September 22, 2010 at 7:08 am
Eric Kirk
Yep.
September 22, 2010 at 1:34 pm
Anonymous
Like we keep telling you Eric, Arcata’s been drifting in a reactionary direction for years.