This was going to be a much meaner post—I mean comparing anyone to Josie is pretty mean, isn’t it?  But, then I remembered one of Brad’s field representatives, Jessie Flores, did a big favor for me week before last, and I decided I should be a little nicer.  So, here goes the “nice” version of this post.

Brad, what the heck were you thinking?  We expect these kind of stupid decisions out of Josie because she is stupid ,and out of Paul because he is usually drunk, but we expect a tempered, well-reasoned decision out of you.  Today we did not get it.

In a 3-1 vote, with Supervisor Neil Derry dissenting and Chairman Gary Ovitt absent, the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors voted to appeal the decision by Superior Court Judge Michael Mink to award attorney’s fees to the San Bernardino County Public Attorneys Association.  The county of San Bernardino, i.e., two of our county’s three great legal minds, Ruthie and Doreen, sued our own attorneys and the case got thrown out by Judge Christopher Warner.    The defendants, having prevailed, came back and requested attorneys fees.

Now, had the Association lost on at least one cause of action, today’s decision by the Board of Supervisors could be justified.  But it never got that far!  It was thrown out!  Period!

Brad, think of it this way.  Let’s say someone sues you in a case that has no merit.  You would have to hire an attorney to defend yourself.  Wouldn’t having to waste that money really bug you?  When the case was thrown out, wouldn’t you want your attorney’s fees paid?  And don’t you think you righteously should have them paid by the party who filed the frivolous suit?  You know you would think that.  Well, this is the same situation.

The county didn’t just lose, it lost big.  It should have to pay fees of the opposing party.  That’s how it works.  I read that whole pleading.  There is a ton of case law to back up the Association’s contention.

If you don’t like the ruling, perhaps next time you should think twice before authorizing County Counsel to file a frivolous lawsuit.  Then we would not have this problem.

Even if the Court of Appeal were to reduce the amount owed, and I’m not sure that is within the scope of what they can do, this appeal is going to cost the county more than just paying the bill.  Why would the county appeal it?

This appeal is a perfect example of why Ruth Stringer needs to go and a professional attorney who has the county’s best interests should replace her.  As it stands, the county doesn’t care how much taxpayer money it loses just so long as it can be vindictive to those who oppose it.  As unethical as it may be, that tactic may work often, but it is foolhardy when the defendants in the case are a large group of attorneys, attorneys who actually practice law every day and have even appeared in court on occasion.

When the Fourth District Court of Appeal rules in the Association’s favor, expect a giant “I told you so” on the blog and expect a California Public Records Act request be filed to find out just how much this one frivolous lawsuit cost the county.

Brad, you should be ashamed of your actions today.