Systemic Corruption in California State and Federal Courts: Judge Misconduct, Prosecutor Misconduct

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BAY AREA NEWS GROUP » SUNDAY, MAY 5, 2019

Sunday Business MORE LOCAL NEWS » MERCURYNEWS.COM » EASTBAYTIMES.COM

001 SECTION E

Q&A » Interview with Joseph Tully, author and criminal defense attorney

JOSEPH TULLY PROFILE

Position: Criminal defense attorney Previous jobs: Public defender, attorney since 1999 Age: 50 Education: UC Davis and Golden Gate University Residence: Martinez

ARIC CRABB — STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Criminal defense attorney Joseph Tully works in private practice in Martinez and takes on high-profile cases throughout California.

T H E U G LY T RU T H B E H I N D C A L I F O R N I A’ S

“The thing that most people don’t know is that positions of power attract psychopaths. Right off the bat you get a lot of bad people attracted to positions of power.”

JUSTICE E SYSTEM

— Joseph Tully on the problems with the criminal justice system

Veteran criminal defense attorney sheds light on the power struggles and dynamics from the inside By Nate Gartrell » ngartrell@bayareanewsgroup.com

C

alifornia’s justice system — especially the ranks of cops, district attorneys and judges — are “Machiavellians,” “sadists” and “sociopaths.” That’s the message put forth in “California: State of Collusion,” a book written by longtime criminal defense attorney Joseph Tully. He started practicing law in the late 1990s, with the Fresno County public defender’s office. Now, he’s in private practice in Martinez, taking on high-profile cases throughout the state. Tully estimates his win rate is around 90 percent but says he doesn’t go out of his way to keep track. plenty busy.

Both he and his law partner, Jack Weiss, make a point of saying they will not take on “snitches” or “rats” as clients. “State of Collusion,” Tully’s first attempt as an author, made its debut at No. 1 in Amazon’s civil rights category.

I was always struck by the fact that people are justifiably supportive of law enforcement. I am A too; I like good cops. People do ride-alongs with

made you want to become an author? Sounds like your law career is keeping you Q What

police officers, or watch the cop shows and stuff, but I felt there was this big disparity between reality and what was being presented on TV and what

most people thought. Most people think from the outside, criminal law is not a respectable profession, and that all the people accused are guilty scumbags and all the cops are Eagle Scouts or something. And, a lot of times the disappointing behavior that I see are in cops, DAs and judges. I wanted people to know what it was like, the truth from the inside. That was the first reason. The second reason is there are good cops, there are good DAs, there are good judges. The good ones are some of the best people you’ve met in your life. And I wanted to give voice to those people; I wanted to let them know that they don’t have to be silent while the majority are doing bad things. You say in the first chapter that “before you’re arrested in California, you’re already Q screwed.” You want to expand on that? (Laughs) Take a thousand different reasons. Have someone, anyone, from the public go and A sit in a motions courtroom. What they’ll see is deTULLY » PAGE 2

PERSONAL TECHNOLOGY

TECHNOLOGY

Infrastructure updates need to focus on future

Like ‘Uber for organs’: Custom drone delivers kidney to Maryland woman

unavailable because they As I thought about depend on cellular service President Trump’s recent that wasn’t available. My White House infrastrucphone’s navigation app ture meeting with “Chuck was also unable to get and Nancy,” I recalled a route information. drive I took in January on Later I pulled onto ana rural highway about 20 Larry Magid other highway where the miles from Las Vegas. road was a lot smoother I noticed two things on Digital crossroads and the cellular network that drive. One was that was strong. But suddenly the road was bumpy and the car’s autopilot warned full of potholes. The other me that I needed to take control, was that my car’s navigation and entertainment systems were MAGID » PAGE 2

By Karen Zraick The New York Times

A custom-made drone delivered a kidney recently to a Maryland woman who had waited eight years for a lifesaving transplant. While it was only a short test flight less than 3 miles in total, the team that created the drone at the University of Maryland says it was a worldwide first and a crucial step in its quest to speed up the delicate and time-

sensitive task of delivering donated organs. The team’s leader, Dr. Joseph R. Scalea, an assistant professor of surgery at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, said he pursued the project after constant frustration over organs taking too long to reach his patients. After organs are removed from a donor, they become less healthy with each passing second. He recalled one case when a kidney from Alabama took 29 hours to reach

his hospital. “Had I put that in at nine hours, the patient would probably have another several years of life,” Scalea said Tuesday. “Why can’t we get that right?” To carry out the project, Scalea’s team of medical experts worked with colleagues in aviation and engineering at the university, as well as the Living Legacy Foundation of Maryland, which oversees organ donations. He performed DRONE » PAGE 3


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