http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/011908dntexmedina.50932c0.html
January 18, 2008
Judge dismisses charges against Texas Supreme Court justice
Associated Press
HOUSTON –
In a case some say reveals political backscratching at the courthouse,
a Texas Supreme Court justice saw his arson-related indictment thrown
out Friday at the request of a scandal-plagued, but fellow Republican,
prosecutor.
The move outraged the grand jury foreman, who threatened to reconvene
the panel and issue the charges again.
State District Judge Brian Rains dismissed the indictment handed up
Thursday against Justice David Medina and his wife related to a fire
last summer that burned down their suburban Houston house and damaged
a neighbor's.
The Medinas were in serious financial trouble.
The decision came a day after Harris County District Attorney Chuck
Rosenthal said evidence against the couple wasn't sufficient to
support the charges.
Medina, also a Republican appointed by Gov. Rick Perry to the state's
highest civil court in 2004 and elected to a full term two years
later, was charged with evidence tampering.
Medina's wife, Francisca, was charged with arson in the June 28 blaze
that left nearly $1 million in damages.
"The assistant D.A. was either told or had second thoughts and decided
it should go away," an angry grand jury foreman, Robert Ryan, said
Friday.
"One could speculate it was political pressure. I could see no other
reason.
"It depends on who your friends are."
Not so, said Vic Wisner, the assistant prosecutor handling the case.
Wisner denied accusations of cronyism and special treatment.
He said his embattled boss was getting a raw deal and insisted the
Supreme Court justice and his wife weren't off the legal hook.
"I can assure you there was no influence in any way, shape or form,"
Wisner said.
"And also, with the criticism of Mr. Rosenthal, he was just acting on
information received from me. If anyone deserves any criticism, in
this case it should be me and not him."
One defense attorney not connected to the case found Friday's events
ironic.
"I wish I had a dollar for every single time the DAs have said, 'Well,
we'll just let the grand jury hear the facts of the case and let them
decide and whatever they decide that's what we'll do,"' said Katherine
Scardino, a Houston defense attorney.
"Now it's obviously something they don't want, so they're all upset
about it."
John Parras, on Francisca Medina's legal team, said the dismissal was
not unusual and that Rosenthal was "just exercising his discretion."
"It was a runaway grand jury indicting on no evidence," he said.
"With everything going on in the county with regards to the district
attorney, people are reading more into this than the story warrants."
Just last week, Rosenthal was forced off the GOP ballot for
re-election after dozens of his e-mails were disclosed as part of an
unrelated case.
The e-mail file included pornography, racist humor, love notes to his
secretary, and campaign-related files on a county-owned computer, a
possible violation of election laws.
Rosenthal was left embarrassed, under state investigation and
ostracized by the county GOP hierarchy intent on damage control.
Wisner said the investigation of the Medina case would continue.
"To give you an analogy, we're only about six months into a 10-year
statute of limitations on the arson, which is like about three minutes
into a football game," he said.
"It was an important decision but an easy decision," Wisner said of
dropping the charges.
"I slept well last night. I don't have any regrets about what I did.
We can't stick our fingers up in the wind and see how something will
best play in the media. We're obligated to seek justice."
The justice and his wife have denied any wrongdoing.
Neither was at the brief hearing Friday.
Later in the day, accompanied by his lawyer, Medina read from a
prepared statement repeating his innocence.
"I can't speak for the actions of the grand jury but I'm very
disappointed by their decision," he said.
"I do not know Mr. Rosenthal personally and I have no other connection
with him on any professional level."
Medina was the first Hispanic Republican to be elected judge in Harris
County, serving on the civil court bench.
The Supreme Court is Texas's highest civil court.
The last stop for criminal cases is the Texas Court of Criminal
Appeals.
His lawyer, Terry Yates, said the only possible improprieties are from
Ryan and another grand juror who also publicly blasted the D.A.'s
office.
"They're acting way out of bounds," said Yates, who was seeking
contempt of court charges against the pair for violating grand jury
secrecy laws.
"There's no politics. That's what the grand jury is trying to imply."
Ryan, 63, a Republican who has served on at least five other grand
juries, said he's known for the past month the indictments would be
scrapped but "we did what we felt we owed the voters and taxpayers in
the state of Texas."
He said he intended to contact other members of the grand jury and
consider reconvening the panel next week.
The dismissal spares Medina scrutiny by the state Commission on
Judicial Conduct. which can suspend a judge who is under indictment.
The fire at the Medinas' home in Spring, where they've lived north of
Houston for about 15 years, heavily damaged their brick home, valued
at more than $300,000, and a neighbor's house.
The Harris County Fire Marshal's office has said the fire was not
electrical or accidental.
A dog detected an accelerant at the scene.
Investigators became suspicious after discovering a mortgage company
sued in June 2006 to foreclose on the home.
The suit, filed after the family missed payments for five months, was
settled in December.
Yates has acknowledged the family had financial problems.
They owed nearly $1,900 in fees to a homeowners association and also
let the insurance policy on the house lapse, meaning losses from the
fire weren't covered.
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Another day another Republican scandal
Harry
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