2 On Jul 17, 10:35 am, Patrick McGee wrote:

“Except as expressly provided by general law”

Perhaps “Oregon General Law” should be clearly defined and examined to determine the potential to sustain an appeal.

Doesn’t the Constitution say “expressly provided”? If that’s the case … ORS 8.83 doesn’t “expressly provide” a county’s charter can be amended to “affect” the DA’s pay.

If it does say “expressly provided”, and the courts rule it’s “implied” in ORS 8.83 … they are altering the law, and the judge should be impeached.

4 On Jul 17, 09:26 pm, Not an attorney wrote:

From Section 10, Article VI of the Oregon Constitution:
Except as expressly provided by general law. a county charter shall not affect the selection, tenure, compensation, powers or duties prescribed by law for judges in their judicial capacity for justices of the peace or for district attorneys.

Let’s take a few minutes to examine the “general law” as it pertains to the office of the District Attorney.

ORS 8.690 Advising and representing county officers and employees. Upon request of a county officer, the district attorney and deputies of the district attorney shall advise the county court and other county officers on all legal questions that may arise. When any action is instituted against any county officer or county employee for damages for an alleged wrongful act or omission in the performance of official duty, the district attorney shall defend such action. The district attorney shall also prosecute and defend all actions, suits, and proceedings to which the county may be a party. For such services the district attorney shall receive no compensation other than salary.

So, the county was not required to pay for legal advice from the DA. In fact, even now, the county could request legal advice from the District Attorney and he would be bound by law to respond. It might be fun to have the Commissioners request a formal opinion on the petition from Mr. Marquis- or one of his deputies.

ORS 8.700 Register to be kept. The district attorney must keep a register of official business, in which the district attorney shall make a note of every action, suit or proceeding commenced or defended by the district attorney in official capacity, and the proceedings therein. The register shall, at the expiration of the term of office of the district attorney, be delivered by the district attorney to the successor in office.

This takes us back to one of the primary causes of this mess. By law, the District Attorney is required, by statute, to keep a record of what the office does. Thus, creating performance measures could have been as simple as providing a copy (edited for confidentiality) of this register.

I do not see any reason why this register could not be requested via a standard public records request. If it is not being maintained, then the DA should be held accountable. If it is, then all of the questions and concerns regarding workload would be immediately answered.

ORS 8.790 Compensation of district attorney and deputies limited to salaries. No salary, fees, percentage or compensation of any kind shall be allowed, paid to or received by any district attorney or deputy district attorney except as provided in ORS 8.110 to 8.150, 8.160 and 8.670 to 8.852.

So, we know where to look when trying to determine whether or not the petition is valid. Most of the statutes pertain to duties and the limiting actions and payments.

Some highlights:

ORS 8.720 prevents a district attorney from receiving any fee or reward from any private person for services in any criminal action._

ORS 8.726 prohibits a DA from private practice (unless they live in Gilliam, Sherman, Wallowa or Wheeler County and DO NOT receive additional compensation from the county.) This statute also allows for volunteer or pro bono legal work- our DA could legally volunteer with the Death Penalty Representation Project!

Finally:

ORS 8.760 Deputies may be authorized and paid by county. The county court or board of county commissioners may empower the district attorney to appoint one or more deputy district attorneys whose compensation shall be fixed by the county court or board of county commissioners and paid out of the county funds in the same manner as county officers are paid.

ORS 8.830 Additional compensation from county for district attorney and deputies paid by state. Whenever, in the judgment of any county court or board of county commissioners, the salaries paid by the state to the district attorney, or to any deputy district attorney, are not commensurate with the character of the service performed, the county court or board of county commissioners may pay out of the funds of the county such additional amounts as will properly compensate said officers for the service performed.

The common thread on both statutes is that the “county court or board of county commissioners” is responsible for determining the pay rates for lawyers in the District Attorney’s office. (Clatsop County has a Circuit Court, but not; to my knowledge; a County Court.)

Thus, the voter’s representatives are responsible for determining the pay rate, in much the same way the state budget is determined by the legislature rather than the voters directly. Most disbursements of public monies are handled in this manner. In addition, mandating the stipend would invalidate the intended oversight provisions of ORS 8.830.

Of note in ORS 8.830 is the phrase “are not commensurate with the character of the service performed.” Several Commissioners stated that the District Attorney was not cooperative during the budget process, and it is now apparent that they were operating in accordance with the law (both in letter and in spirit).

What’s more, the distribution of public monies is governed by ORS Chapter 294- County and Municipal Financial Administration. Mandating a stipend seems to come into conflict with several statutes and circumvents the checks and balances in place.

This petition and proposed charter amendment seems to actually “spit in the face” of the Constitution and laws of this great state. Hardly something I would expect from an attorney, especially one charged under oath, of supporting and upholding the constitution and laws of the United States and the State of Oregon.

The next question is, of course, is where it all goes from here.

6 On Jul 17, 10:56 pm, K.C. wrote:

On Jul 17, 10:35 am, Patrick McGee wrote:

… they are altering the law, and the judge should be impeached.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

The world’s foremost authority has spoken!!

8 On Jul 18, 08:02 am, The Guy Who Writes This wrote:

“The Committee to Retain the Independence of the Office of District Attorney” What the hell does this mean? If he wants to be independent he needs to resign and start his own practice. To remain independent while in office, he should be paid by only one source, the State. You don’t grow more independent by being paid by more entities; that only makes you more dependent.

10 On Jul 25, 03:41 pm, THartill wrote:

Uh oh…..so the roles are reversed…now you are bringing it public….looks like mom is happy that bling is hanging out with such a stand-up guy. Ha Ha!