“Yesterday is not ours to recover but tomorrow is ours to win or lose”
Lyndon B. Johnson
For well over a year Judicial Council Watcher has promoted an agenda of checks and balances on the leadership of a branch of government out of control. For some time now there has been this belief that a small group of appointed judges, justices and court executives that meets only about six times per year actually governed the branch.
.
.
Today we know that is not the case. The judicial branch is governed by the Administrative Office of the Courts with depressing results and monumental waste and mismanagement. All of this waste has come at the cost of our trial courts and local court operations, yet we probably would have known little about this waste if it weren’t for three people named Paula, Jack and Michael, some 400 judges from around the state and a few legislators who agreed that there were big problems in Baghdad by the bay.
Against a backdrop of waste that continues to go unacknowledged by the judicial branch leadership, while a number of courts are already suffering with a product called CCMS V1, V2 and V3; while the vaporware known as V4 has spent some eight years in development with no end in sight; while preventive maintenance is deferred at less than two dollars per square foot so that the AOC can spend approximately seven dollars per square foot for remediation later; while California courthouses represent some of the costliest public buildings per square foot on the whole planet, the Alliance of California Judges has taken the gloves off in a fight for this states’ trial courts and released a report that is a stunning rebuke of Judicial Council and AOC mismanagement. That report, labeled “Restoring Balance” is a report that every judicial branch employee, state legislator and attorney must read.
We’ve been warning for some time that Tani’s effort to work with her BFF, the California Chamber of Commerce’s President Alan Zaremberg would be a fruitless effort. While the Chamber came out against AB1208 and called it a “job killer” they can’t seem to get much traction on that from their own membership. While the chamber sponsors meetings around the state to encourage others to lobby for more state revenue, the unacknowledged waste is causing that message to fall upon deaf ears in Sacramento. We’ve stated that unless the Judicial Council and the AOC showed some real leadership and competent management that the Judicial branch should be preparing for further cuts to their operations, legislative realignment or both. Around the halls of Sacramento, both is appearing a likely scenario.
While we don’t agree that the judicial branch should or could sustain further cuts, we wholly agree that funding to the trial courts directly should flow to the trial courts without further reduction. Each court has its own management already. To add several other layers of AOC management on top of existing court management represents all on its own a management overhead in excess of 20%, yet they contribute nothing to managing a single court.
Judicial Council Watcher supports the realignment of this states trial courts as well as the Judicial Council and the AOC and AB1208 is just a first step. The charades and boondoggles that are being put on by the Judicial Council and the AOC must come to an end.
Related articles
- LAO Report Misses The Mark: Funding Reform Needed (judicialcouncilwatcher.wordpress.com)
- What the Judicial Council and the AOC is engaged in that they shouldn’t be… (judicialcouncilwatcher.wordpress.com)
- Letter from Michael Paul to the Judicial Council. Ouch. (judicialcouncilwatcher.wordpress.com)
- Bill Girdner – The Masks Fall (CourthouseNews.com)
- Maria Dinzeo – California’s Reform Judges Push Bill To Send Money To Local Courts (CourthouseNews.com)
- Judge David Lampe – Restoring Balance (AllianceOfCaliforniaJudges.com)
Wendy Darling
December 9, 2011
Published today, Friday, December 9, from the Legal Pad and The Recorder, by Cheryl Millier:
Council Asked To Stay Neutral on AB 1208
Cheryl Miller
Is a Judicial Council brouhaha brewing over AB 1208? Could be.
The council on Monday will consider its legislative priorities for 2012. On the list is a proposal to “continue” opposing AB 1208, Alliance of California Judges-sponsored legislation to curb the council’s role in doling out trial court money.
read the post at: http://legalpad.typepad.com/
Miller’s post notes the following:
“Among those who will be asked to endorse the council’s legislative agenda– and oppose AB 1208 — is state Sen. Noreen Evans, D-Santa Rosa, who is a voting council member and chairwoman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. If AB 1208 passes out of the Assembly next month, the bill will likely go to her committee for a vote. An Evans spokeswoman confirmed that the senator will attend Monday’s meeting in San Francisco, where the council will honor her with the Stanley Mosk Defender of Justice Award.”
Long live the ACJ.
anna
December 11, 2011
Just asking…… how does Noreen Evans sit on a “judicial branch entity” [as a member of the JC], and at the same time, be a legislative member???? No judge can hold two positions. You cannot be a member of both branches of govt. at the same time. WTF???
Where is the separation of the branches of govt.????
unionman575
December 11, 2011
The Judicial Council consists of the following positions:
• The Chief Justice
• One associate justice of the Supreme Court
• Three justices of the Courts of Appeal
• Ten judges of the superior courts
• Four attorneys (appointed by the Board of Governors of the State Bar of California)
• One member from each house of the Legislature (appointed by legislative leaders)
• Two nonvoting court administrators
• Other nonvoting positions as determined by the counci
Been There
December 12, 2011
And if you place names with the JC members over the past several years, the same names appear. Marvin Baxter has been on the JC for more years than I can remember. For many years prior to his retirement, Justice James Ardaiz, who is Justice Baxter’s brother-in-law, held one of the Court of Appeal slots on the Council. Take a look too at Superior Court Judges on the Council in years past — how many are now Justices on the Courts of Appeal?
Take a look too at which court administrators have been appointed multiple times to the JC and follow their careers — how many moved to the AOC?
You have a court governing Council where membership (and your being perceived as very likable and also as one who goes along with the program) can lead to greater power in the organization and career enhancement beyond your wildest dreams.
Wendy Darling
December 12, 2011
Published today, Monday, December 12, from The Metropolitan News Enterprise:
Alliance Asks Council for Neutrality on AB1208
By a MetNews Staff Writer
The directors of the Alliance of California Judges on Friday called on the Judicial Council to not take action to oppose AB 1208 at the meeting set to take place today and tomorrow in San Francisco.
In a letter addressed to California Supreme Court Justice Marvin Baxter, chair of the council’s Policy Coordination and Liaison Committee, alliance directors asked that Judicial Council itself abstain, and request that its governmental affairs office take no position on the measure, in order to “allow the legislative process to go forward in a manner where all judges and courts can state their views on the bill directly to the Legislature….”
http://www.metnews.com/
Long live the ACJ.
Wendy Darling
December 12, 2011
Published today, Monday, December 12, from Courthouse News Service, by Maria Dinzeo:
Judicial Council Axes Two New Courthouses
By MARIA DINZEO
SAN FRANCISCO (CN) — The Judicial Council on Monday axed the construction of two new courthouses in Northern California, announced two measures intended to reduce maintenance and construction costs, and put off discussion of a contentious legislative bill that would direct a greater share of the overall court budget to local trial courts.
Read the entire article: http://www.courthousenews.com/2011/12/12/42177.htm
Long live the ACJ.
Michael Paul
December 12, 2011
Okay, It’s official: That brings the total to 92+ million that I’ve saved the people of the state of California, part of which was wasteful expenditures, part of which was unlawful expenditures.
I can divulge from experience the following: When an architect begins to meet with the people in the courts and the AOC to begin design, they already have a money target that the projects will be delivered for based on AOC’s “we will pay this much for this building” published on the web.
If you want to save money, spend more time in design, engineering and constructability and put out a more comprehensive set of detailed design plans so that the AOC isn’t snowballed with RFI’s which inevitably amount to change orders.Additionally, many of the integrated systems that I was working on (voice, video, data, security, building management, etc) can all be value engineered with less expensive, yet equally as capable equipment and the AOC could work directly with manufacturers to lower those costs by specifying specific products, which would also lower support costs across the board.
Building jails inside of these courthouses and building prison grade detention control systems drives up costs on these courthouses dramatically. Perhaps thinking about how moving prisoners more efficiently in a just-in-time manner might serve to eliminate many of these costs. Not even the feds build courthouse detention control like the state does (ie three paths thru a building, public, workers and prisoners) with the prisoners square footage costing the most and getting the least on a per square foot basis.
Think more about solar panels covering whole parking lots over living roofs and bio-swales. At least the people will get a two-fold return on their investment by generating power and providing shaded parking for vehicles.
I can go on and on……
Wendy Darling
December 13, 2011
Published today, Tuesday, December 13, from Courthouse News Service, by Maria Dinzeo:
California’s Reform Judges Push Bill to Send Money to Local Courts
By MARIA DINZEO
SAN FRANCISCO (CN) — With roughly $2 billion at stake, a group of trial court judges argues in a report published Wednesday that California’s court bureaucrats should have their ranks gutted.
The report savages the officials in the Administrative Office of the Courts over their perceived arrogance and inability to safeguard public monies, describing them as “bloated, unresponsive and wasteful.”
Read the full article: http://www.courthousenews.com/2011/12/08/42081.htm
Long live the ACJ.
antonatrail
December 13, 2011
Regarding Siemens IT, how entangled is the AOC with this concern? Is Siemens IT so huge, the AOC can distance itself from this SEC inquiry? According to some resources on the ‘net, Siemens IT put together CCTC …
http://www.courthousenews.com/2011/12/13/42185.htm
I wish the feds would start digging.
unionman575
December 13, 2011
“According to some resources on the ‘net, Siemens IT put together CCTC …”
Please list your sources here. Thanks.
antonatrail
December 13, 2011
Wikipedia. Please don’t laugh. I used to be a union steward, brother. I googled “california courts AOC Siemens IT.”
I’ll tell ya, I am so sick of watching the AOC plough on and on with their excesses, abuses and lies, I am just hoping and praying that some one with power (and of course it ain’t me or the AOC would be a memory now) will investigate this gang and eliminate it or bring it back to pre-George size and scope.
unionman575
December 13, 2011
I’m not laughing. I am glad you were Union too.
I don’t see any connection between the Siemens misdeeds in Argentina and here. Siemens IT does work all over the world, not just on the CCTC in Tempe.
Neither did the State Auditor, ELAINE M. HOWLE, CPA, in her February 2011 report: http://www.bsa.ca.gov/pdfs/reports/2010-102.pdf. Search “:Siemens” in the report and it’s not in there, anywhere. Howle did some good work, too bad the powers that be have chosen to ignore it despite ongoing pressure from many Californians that seek to end waste and corruption in the Judicial Counicl and the AOC with all their wasteful pet projects that are KILLING ALL OF US THAT WORK IN OR LITIGATE IN COURTS THROUGHOUT CA..
Siemens took a shitload of cash for some really shitty product work on CCTC. But who is to blame? The Judicial Council and the AOC are to blame for this fiasco, not Siemens, or any other greedy business entity that feasts on us. The buck stops in ‘Frisco at the JC/AOC Deathstar.
antonatrail
December 13, 2011
Agreed. I’m just frustrated at the Deathstar’s endurance. It’s so obvious to so many that the AOC is stupid, power-hungry and greedy. Capone seemed unstoppable for awhile too until the IRS had to bring him down. Yes, I believe the AOC creature and Capone are comparable. Any crack in their teflon exterior is worth charging through. [sigh.]
Wendy Darling
December 13, 2011
Published today, Tuesday, December 13, from The Recorder, the on-line publication of CalLaw, by Kate Moser:
San Joaquin Courts Get Emergency Funds
Kate Moser
Tossing a lifeline to San Joaquin County Superior Court, the Judicial Council on Tuesday approved an emergency funding package for the cash-strapped court.
Full article requires subscription access: http://www.law.com/jsp/ca/PubArticleCA.jsp?id=1202535473508&San_Joaquin_Courts_Get_Emergency_Funds
Maybe someone out there with subscription access to The Recorder could share a synopsis of Moser’s article . . .
Long live the ACJ.
Jon Wintermeyer
December 13, 2011
Let me chime in regarding Siemens and the AOC. When I was Director of Facilities in Contra Costa Superior Court, anytime we contacted the AOC’s ERS unit about a problem with the metal detectors or X-ray machines that they provided to our court and were on a service contract the persons sent to make the service call were from Siemens.
I was told that Siemens had an AOC state wide contract for maintenance repair services, by the techs that showed up on site. I had some exisitng machines that our court had purchased prior to the AOC ERS contract with Siemens and used a local contractor/supplier that lived in our county. The Siemens techs were always travelers from outside the Bay Area, with plane fares to SFO or Oakland, rental cars, somtetimes hotels, etc, etc.
The AOC would not let me use the local company for their supplied machines. This was similar to the Team Jacobs arrangement where the contract vendors had to be from their list and were never a local to our county so the costs were always two and three times higher.
In my pre-court career as a consulting engineer, Siemens was a known service and equipment supplier to general contractors to bid on projects and also provide service for maintenance work during the warranty period.
Michael Paul
December 13, 2011
Siemens was the initial contractor supporting the CCTC when they were in Newark. Then the contract was put back out to bid and SAIC was awarded the contract and moved the CCTC to Tempe Arizona and a whole lot of people working for Siemens (including several of my bosses, like Michael Derr and Mr. CCMS Mark Moore) suddenly became managers and assistant directors in positions that no one could compete for. They just magically opened up and these were the only applicants. Go figure.
At the time of the CCTC termination, Siemens was crying about filing suit against the AOC (at least that was the word in information services…at the time) over the contract being awarded to SAIC. The noise about that disappeared and Siemens (another division of…) was awarded the contract for ERS’s security equipment.
I think it’s fair to state that the manager positions awarded non-competitively to the Siemens folks bent a whole lot of people who worked hard and were aspiring to compete for those positions. That never happened. About 5 former Siemens people became managers or supervisors within the AOC (all earning over 120K)
antonatrail
December 13, 2011
And this happened generally during the time of the wicked queen’s reign? The woman with a high school education acting as program manager of CCMS?
Michael Paul
December 14, 2011
All of this happened during Calabro’s reign but I’m not sure she had much input into the vendor. I think it was the IT department that worked the CCTC contract.
sharonkramer
December 14, 2011
“In its dueling report, the Judicial Council, led by the chief justice, says the bill is ‘an inappropriate intrusion into the fundamental governance of the judicial branch.’ The council says it recognizes the Legislature’s oversight authority but AB 1208 goes far outside that role and ‘dictates how the branch is to govern and manage itself.”
Those sure look like artfully crafted inflammatory sound bites to me “inappropriate intrusion” “fundamental self governance” “dictates”. The Chief Justice needs to be directly called upon to clarify and provide evidence to support those sound bite words.
She needs to be made to define and evidence how AB1208 inappropriately intrudes into this yet to be defined or evidenced fundamental “self” governance/management being practiced by yet to be defined selves.
Wendy Darling
December 14, 2011
Published today, Wednesday, December 14, from the Metropolitan News Enterprise:
Judicial Council Approves Legislative Priorities, Opposes AB1208
By a MetNews Staff Writer
The Judicial Council, during a meeting yesterday, resolved that its top legislative priority for 2012 will be advocating for a judicial branch budget that will protect critical services to the public and keep courts open, a spokesperson reported.
The council also voted to continue to oppose AB 1208, introduced in February by Assemblyman Charles Calderon, D-Industry, which proposes increasing administrative and financial autonomy for trial courts.
Read the entire article: http://www.metnews.com/
Long live the ACJ.
Wendy Darling
December 14, 2011
Published today, Wednesday, December 14, from Courthouse News Service, by Maria Dinzeo:
Central Valley Court Bailed Out
By MARIA DINZEO
SAN FRANCISCO (CN)- By a 13-3 vote Tuesday, California’s top court council sent $2 million to to a struggling and historically underfunded San Joaquin Superior Court in the heart of the Central Valley.
Judge David Rosenberg from Yolo County suggested giving the court half its request and making the rest of the amount a loan. In September, the council approved a $2.5 million loan to San Francisco Superior Court, to be repaid over five years and the condition that the court report to the council on how the money was used.
“We are not in a position to repay a loan,” Appel said. “We are not San Francisco. If we take it as a loan we would be lying. We would never pay it back to you, it would not be possible unless miracles happen in the state.”
http://www.courthousenews.com/2011/12/14/42243.htm
Long live the ACJ.
antonatrail
December 14, 2011
http://www.theunion.com/ARTICLE/20111214/NEWS/111219897
The JC’s AOC is still keeping its options open … no surprise.
antonatrail
December 14, 2011
http://www.courthousenews.com/2011/12/14/42250.htm
Little Tani apparently finds this a laughing matter. GO SEIU!
Judicial Council Watcher
December 14, 2011
Go SEIU & AFSCME. In their little world of selective recognition in the council, they managed to convince themselves that the SEIU had no idea what they were sponsoring and they appeared all proud of themselves for that observation.
Yet all we see is not so humble pie. Michelle Castro has been tracking this legislation since its inception like a dog might track a prime rib roast. Most of us in the know, know this to be the case.
Jobs are at stake when they don’t need to be. Especially when it comes to white elephant vaporware that takes more personnel and man-hours to file cases than any current system.
Wendy Darling
December 14, 2011
It’s amazing how fast the Chief Justice, the Judicial Council, and the AOC, can trot out the “separation of powers, co-equal branch of government” excuse as justification for everything, and especially controlling funding and for demanding more money from the State Legislature, while at the same time failing time and time again to practice or engage in any kind of accountability, transparency, honesty, or ethics. Even the Office of the State Auditor and Elaine Howle came to the inescapable conclusion that the Judicial Council and the AOC have “mislead” (lied to) the State Legislature, regarding CCMS and the AOC’s hiding the ball on spending. Not to mention the ever-fictitious “hiring freeze,” the unlicensed contractors, the $100+ in non-accounted for/missing emergency funds, the exorbitant marked-up court construction and court maintenance costs, secretly trying to re-write State law to strip the trial courts of autonomy and vest it with the AOC then falsely blaiming another State office when they get caught, the undeclared “gifts” . . . the list just gets longer and longer.
And no one, in any position of authority, who could do anything about this, will. Apparently, accountablity, transparency, and the law, just doesn’t apply to the judicial branch, and the message from branch adminstration, law enforcement, the courts, and State legislators, is “accept it and get used to it.”
Come November of 2012, every Californian would be wise to vote “yes” for a part-time State Legislature, “no” for every single judge up for retention that opposes AB 1208 or who has aligned themselves, or their court has aligned themselves, with the Judicial Council, and “no” on every single measure to increase taxes or State spending.
Long live the ACJ.
anna
December 20, 2011
Not only does the law not apply to the judiciary, checks and balances, of the other two branches, doesn’t apply.
That was the reason there are three different branches, to check each other, and balance power between them.
According to these latest power hungry criminals, the reason that there were three branches instilled.[checks and balances] does not exist.
Talk about a glass bubble. and hubris to match.
Perhaps they should offer us cake, and let us eat it too.
Wendy Darling
December 20, 2011
Well, anna, they won’t offer us cake, or let us eat it either. They’ll just let us look at it, and watch as they eat the cake . . . and the lobster, the steak, and the Grey Goose, and then make us pay the bill.
Long live the ACJ.
katy
December 21, 2011
Do you think they really think they can get away with this forever? Or do you think they know they can’t and are just making hay while the sun shines?
Delilah
December 21, 2011
Checks and balances, that’s a quaint idea anymore. Money and power can get you anything when you know where and how to wield it. It’s happening right before our very eyes in CA and everywhere else.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/12/20/1047387/-Justice-who-cast-vote-for-Wisconsin-union-busting-law-got-over-$10K-from-law-firm-arguing-the-case?via=blog_1
We’ve passed the tipping point.
___________________________________________
From JCW (and pasted in this post by JCW)
Posts: 290
Comments: 5,000
You win an award for being the 5,000th comment as soon as she who notified us of the award makes up their mind as to what it is. Check your email periodically over the next couple of days as we query them.
unionman575
December 15, 2011
Michelle Castro is a piece of shit.
antonatrail
December 15, 2011
Shame, shame, unionman! As I recently heard, “please list your sources here” for that observation. I know I’ve been out of the dance for years, but I’m all ears. I thought she managed pretty well in that wicked and treacherous environment that is labor, management, politics and the legislature.
unionman575
December 15, 2011
So is Michael Bolden.
antonatrail
December 15, 2011
An LA news writer’s view of jury duty at the San Fernando mental health court:
http://www.ladowntownnews.com/news/oy-the-jury-doing-one-s-civic-duty-leads-to/article_bebe7c74-22c3-11e1-bd27-0019bb2963f4.html
Judicial Council Watcher
December 21, 2011
We’re not sure that anyone else noticed but JCW was the recipient of a communique that indicated the following:
From a concerned citizen:
Dear JCW,
The Domain Name of the AllianceOfCaliforniaJudges.com expired on December 18th and their site has been redirected to GoDaddy.com’s parking page.
Please notify the AllianceOfCaliforniaJudges.com that a gift card sufficient to cover the renewal of the domain name and privacy has been forwarded to their gmail email address sufficient to cover the domain name costs and privacy renewal for another year.
Signed, Anonymous
Wendy Darling
December 21, 2011
Dear Anonymous,
There really is a Santa Claus after all, and today he goes by the name Anonymous. The other concerned citizens of the State of California are grateful for you doing this thoughtful and generous act.
And long live the ACJ.
Judicial Council Watcher
December 21, 2011
The alliance of california judges has been restored.
Thanks, anonymous.
unionman575
December 28, 2011
I have dealt face to face with both MIchelle Castro and MIchael Bolden (when he worked for AFSCME) in Sacramento.