☛ TS Gallegos' case management
Humboldt County and its District Attorney Paul Gallegos have been through a lot together. When Humboldt County voters decided to oust longtime incumbent Terry Farmer in favor of the young surfer DA, it was with an eye on cultivating some fresh blood and adding an infusion of vigor and energy in the District Attorney's Office.
It was hoped that Gallegos would bring a new perspective, and challenge that status quo.
Gallegos has done that -- he's challenged entrenched powers, and he's certainly shaken up things in Humboldt County.
The problem, though, is that nearly every major undertaking by Gallegos has ended in failure, and with each of those has come a colossal waste of time and resources, as well as an increasingly divided community.
Whereas it was initially hoped that Gallegos would bring the community together by progressively representing the bulk of the county's voters, instead he has sponsored division and rancor in nearly everything he's touched.
The case against Pacific Lumber Co., which led to a huge battle in the community that included a recall effort against Gallegos? Dismissed. The case against Fortuna Councilwoman Debi August? The same.
The case against former Chief Dave Douglas and Lt. Tony Zanotti? Dismissed.
In hindsight, we fear that with each of these cases, Gallegos has tried to live up to his own progressive legend at the expense of critical thinking.
At times, Gallegos tries to hang major cases on legal minutiae, or rarely cited bits of law, that leave other legal scholars scratching their heads. Given the preeminence of his position, and the fact that he's gambling with public chips, he needs to proceed much more carefully in his remaining time in office.
He has wasted resources, directing attention away from his office's main task -- criminal cases -- and woefully divided the community with very little if anything to show.
This newspaper endorsed Gallegos in his last election, a decision we stand by given his competition at the time. But our support, and that of the public, will be much harder to earn the next time around, given that Gallegos sometimes appears too interested in attracting headlines for filing major cases that he almost invariably loses.
If he doesn't change his stripes and fast, a loss at the polls for Gallegos may be the only victory he can secure for the rest of us.
SoHum Parlance - Times Standard tears into Gallegos
heraldo - T-S gives Gallegos too much credit
it's about time someone pointed this out, and about time the TS recognized and wrote about the obvious. wonder if this blog had anything to do with it. gundersen's his last chance to prove his worth...imagine the backlash if he gets off.
ReplyDeleteGood work, Rose, for being ahead of the curve. Gallegos is being toppled as he needs to be--another Dan Hamburg abandoned by his Lefties once they've used him. Maybe Paul will find Baba Free John or Babalooie or Parabonanza Yogi Cranola. Me, I'll stick to my Krishna Kritters snack treats, thank you.
ReplyDeleteWow !! This is a pleasant surprise.
ReplyDeleteThe string of special interest, vexatious litigation this nutjob has pursued at public expense is even more than those cited by the TS, yet the local press has been largely silent in their criticism of this misuse of public office.
Bravo to the TS for stepping up to the plate and calling this as it is.
I don't care if you are a communist, atheist, leftist, rightist or libertarian ... if you run for dog catcher, catch the freaking dogs instead of using the office to divert public resources to pursue personal agendas.
... a loss at the polls for Gallegos may be the only victory he can secure for the rest of us. That must have left a welt !!
Kimberly Wear is the fresh new editor at the TS.
ReplyDeleteShe gets it and it's a sign of good things to come.
I agree. I first saw Kimberly Wear during the Debi August trial. I took copious notes, and went home to write down what happened and gather my thoughts. It was a daunting task.
ReplyDeleteAnd the next day her coverage was in the paper - and not only had she nailed it, narrowed it down and made it understandable, but she had it right. And that is the rarest thing of all, usually when you know something about a story, and you read the article, you say, what? That's not right and that's not right. That didn't happen in her case. That's the highest praise I have.
I've only met her once, but I have watched her progress and I have continued to be impressed - and I think the TS made a good choice in making her editor.
Somehow, though, I don't think this editorial is what Marcy Burstiner had in mind with her latest criticism of the TS. LOL.
Dare I predict "yougofree.com" will offer a rebuttal telling us how great Paul is?
If PVG were in private industry he would have been fired long ago. If he were in the military he would be court martialed.
ReplyDeleteThe hiring of yougofree.com should get him tarred and feathered.
Maybe the Grand Jury can indict PVG for criminal negligence or something even sweeter.
Yougofree?
ReplyDeleteMarcy
Sitting in a tree....
Nope...she has no bias.
Just a pedant with an opinion and no experience to back it up,
But, tenure pays better than actual work. Institutional impunity.
You'd think the journal could hire an actual journalist.
It is funny to look at the old Times Standard endorsement which looks like it is going to go for Worth Dikeman all the way up until the end, saying in effect, as good as he is, and he is good, we still stick with Gallegos because we feel sorry for him...
ReplyDeleteAnd then you have this ringing endorsement from James Faulk - springing off a point about John Edwards coming to town and the local haridressers hoping to get a $500 job ...embittered by recent Humboldt County elections, pointed to the rifts created in their industry in last race for district attorney.
Paul Gallegos, flush with a full head of hair, seemed an obvious choice for the local beauty industry. But Worth Dikeman, man of the charming flesh-colored dome, had friends at least who needed haircuts, and many of those have been known to drop generous tips.
So the bloodbath ensued -- hairdresser versus stylist, sister versus sister, mother versus daughter, stylish man versus talkative woman.
In the end, youth and beauty won the day...
Tells ya alot.
And look what a disaster Mr. PVG was or should I say is. But the six minute video sure was entertaining
ReplyDeleteYougofree.com should go t!o jail for accepting a paycheck from the county. Oh well. We could always go back go talking about Tim Stoen!
I am still not convinced I can trust the TS. I quit reading their paper long ago. But I must say this is a breath of fresh air. Hopefully it will spread to the entire staff and we might just get an honest, unbiased newspaper back. Dare I hope?
ReplyDeleteD.
Here's the way I see it - Gallegos made a mistake when he - ummm, shall I say LIED? - to the TS reporters who were talking to him about his assault team proposal. There was no need to lie, but he did it reflexively, the way he always does. And they were shocked. And their eyes were opened that day, because they met the real Paul.
ReplyDeleteAm I right? I don't know. Just guessing.
But the old adage about not pissing off people who buy their ink by the barrel - you know, don't lie to reporters. It's a dumb thing to do.
But the TS stands by its old endorsement, "given the alternative" or words to that effect?
ReplyDeleteYou mean integrity, hard work, the
support of staff and co workers,
a life of selfless service, the
respect of the bench and the
(not owned by dopers) bar?
That's the alternative the TS
chose to spurn, and spurns again?
So who do they want for DA,
Clanton or Denson? Or Schwartz? Or Schectman? Or Stoen? Sure don't want to see a prosecutor in the prosecutor'a office.
It seems to me the electorate of Humboldt, and its media, have effectively hung a great big
"beware" sign on the DA's office, and no one in his or her right mind wants the job. Which explains the current occupant.