Book, Movie Do Not Require Disqualification Of Prosecutor

There is an interesting article in the June 2008 California Bar Journal by Diane Karpman. She discusses two recent California Supreme Court decisions in cases where disqualification of the prosecutor had been sought. One matter involved a "lead prosecutor who moonlighted as a novelist, writing a fictional account of a heroine prosecutor's decision whether to try a rape case involving an intoxicated victim." The prosecutor had the book published while responsible for the prosecution of such a case. The other involved cooperation with a movie where it was alleged that confidential information had been shared. The defendant in the case has the perfect movie name: Jesse James Hollywood. The movie of the Hollywood case is called "Alpha Dog" and was released in early 2007.

In both cases, the trial court had held a hearing and denied the motion. The Court of Appeal had overturned the denials. Here, the court concluded that the trial courts had not abused their discretion. In neither case was disqualification ordered. (Mike Frisch)