Editor:
In Saturdays Journal opinion section, a lady stated her belief that women should support an experienceddistrict attorney, meaning Russ Wasley, of course. Should all women support Mr. Wasley?
Im sure the woman who recently avoided several felonies for unlawfully secreting children in a basement for months due to our experienced DAs ever-continuing pattern of discovery violations would readily lend her support to the incumbent. This, just a short time after another headline in the Journal reported a well-respected member of our local judiciary ordered Wasley and staff to attend classes to learn what all of his years of claimed experience has not. This case involved the death of a defenseless infant. Obviously, there are some who only read the parts of the paper they agree with.
It is not as if Wasleys discovery violations are new stuff; they have been a part of all of his years of claimed experience. Simply contacting citizens and court officials where Wasley has gained his experience reveals discovery violations have been part and parcel of his repertoire since the very beginning of his prosecutorial career, which began in Lubbock, Texas, in 1987. Montezuma County court records reveal one of Wasleys former staff members saying in open court, there are several major discovery violations in cases she had seen. Wasley himself admitted to a judge that he had done murder trials in which there had been late disclosed information well after preliminary,to which the judge responded, The question is not whether you have done it before or not. The question is whether it is fair or required under the rules. There is a large sampling of discovery violations contained in court records that are readily available to everyone, including the women of Montezuma County.
Before deciding on a district attorney for the next four years, these resources should be explored. Experience is a relative thing: Is it the experience of doing what is right and legal under the law or is it the experience of violating the rules over and over?
SusannaTurose-Gaddy
Mancos
Via CortezJournal.com