Guilford: a Judge Sirica for our times (4/30/09)

Let's hear it for love of county

By FRANK MICKADEIT / The Orange County Register

A federal judge said the following after listening to tapes of public officials engaged in a cover-up: "I found the whole thing disgusting. A lifetime of dealing with criminal law . . . had not hardened me enough to hear with equanimity the low political scheming that was being played back to me."

Those were the words of John Sirica, who ordered Richard Nixon to turn over the Watergate tapes and then listened to the president and his men obstruct justice. But if you omit the reference to criminal law, they could well have been spoken by Judge Andrew Guilford this week upon his sentencing of ex-Sheriff Mike Carona to 66 months in prison

Through months of court hearings and trial, Guilford held his tongue as Carona's misdeeds were exposed, most devastatingly via a tape on which the sheriff talked about lying to a grand jury. Finally, on Monday, Guilford could say what he thought. And he spent 45 minutes at it.

I wanted the public to have access to the entirety of the judge's comments. Why? One, for sheer news value; they detail the judge's rationale for the sentence he gave. Two, because they reveal one man's devotion to a principle (truth) necessary for justice, and his frustration at the abrogation of it. And three, his comments are an antidote of sorts for another transcript the Register provided readers, that of the Carona tape. The Guilford comments counter the kind of cynicism that reeks from those transcripts - a cynicism Guilford addresses. I guarantee you'll feel good when you read them. (To read the full transcript, click here.)

As I watched Guilford speak Monday it appeared the judge was only occasionally referring to notes. In an e-mail, Guilford said, "I only use a rough outline, partly because I want to be free to change my mind after I hear everything, and reading a statement is so impersonal to a man I'm sending away for a long time." Fortunately, a kind court reporter, Donald Hilland, expedited providing us a transcript.

You'll see the Guilford his friends know and love. You'll see a direct reference to the impact he believes Carona's actions had on his beloved Orange County. You'll see him not just as a member of his profession but someone who feels a responsibility for making it function at a very high, almost utopian, level.

We also see the Guilford one sees if one is so unfortunate as to have him believe you've wronged someone. I saw this side when, as a lawyer representing Anaheim, he went after Arte Moreno, whom he believed sold out Anaheim by using a very cynical reading of a contract in order to slap L.A.'s name on our baseball team.

That's when you get the Guilford who will pick away at your suspect words or actions and throw them back at you with devastating effect. "One of the defendant's campaign promises was that he would be there to protect victims not coddle criminals," Guilford said to Carona. "Well, what goes around comes around. â¦ There will be no coddling here."

Guilford said he realized Carona couldn't admit guilt because of his appeal, but said, "It's a different thing to celebrate the verdict with proclamations of victory and proclamations of innocence. If we're going to celebrate and thank the jury â¦ for the first five counts, we've got to honor the jury for that remaining count. And I did not understand the unrestrained celebration and proclamations of innocence and complete vindication. â¦ Again, more cynicism, which is the curse of our time."

It wasn't until I read the comments closely that I realized the celebrating added to the sentence. Guilford: "The sentence I am imposing is tailored to promote respect for the law, to provide deterrence from this conduct happening again, and to protect the public. Now, on the issue of protecting the public, that's protecting the public basically from Mr. Carona. â¦ Mr. Carona's conduct gives no indication that he wouldn't again ask someone to lie. â¦ That is partly because he was rather celebrating the entire result, which included conviction for a felony."

How many months did Carona's whoo-hooing add? Guilford himself probably couldn't say. But when Guilford's comments are read as a whole, it's clear Carona's delusions didn't just invoke upon him the judge's verbal wrath, but almost certainly cost him some precious freedom.

To read the full transcirpt, click here.

Mickadeit writes Mon.-Fri. Contact him at 714-796-4994 fmickadeit@ocregister.com


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