As expected Orange County’s criminal defense lawyers are defending the pedo-loving Judge Marc Kelly, who came under fire recently after he reduced a possible 25 years to life sentence to only 10 years, for Santa Ana resident Kevin Jonas Rojano-Nieto, who sodomized a 3-year old little girl, who turned out to be his stepsister.
The OC Weekly published the official response to the public demand, led by three Orange County Supervisors (Todd Spitzer, Shawn Nelson and Lisa Bartlett), that Kelly resign, from the Orange County Defense Bar Association:
IN DEFENSE OF JUDGE MARC KELLY – THOSE WHO ATTACK JUDICIAL INDEPENDENCE ATTACK THE FOUNDATION
OF OUR FREEDOMS.
Judge Marc Kelly is a highly respected judge with a decades long history of the highest integrity and careful judicial thought. You may not agree with this decision, but Judge Kelly has always demonstrated the strongest respect for the rule of law. An independent judiciary, free from political fear or favor, is essential to democracy. Would you like to have your case decided by a judge who is currying favor with one political persuasion or the other? Calls for a judge to resign because of decisions that he or she has made are as repugnant as calls for a judge to accept a bribe. Both are attempts to influence a judge from outside the judicial system: one by fear, one by money. Our democracy requires three strong independent branches of government. Recent statements by politicians are a blatant violation of the constitutional rules of our democracy. Beware of politicians who seek publicity for their own personal agenda – we all have a right to a free and independent judiciary.
Orange County Criminal Defense Bar Association
Founding and Current Board
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Paul S. Meyer, President
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Kate Corrigan, Immediate Past President
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Ed Welbourn, Vice President
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Ed Flores, Treasurer
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Jennifer Keller, Founding Board
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Al Stokke, Founding Board
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John Barnett, Founding Board
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Gary Pohlson, Founding Board
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Mike McDonnell, Founding Board
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Jack Earley, Founding Board
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Ed Munoz, Founding Board
These Judges are elected! They serve at our pleasure. And like any politicians they can be recalled.
Kelly has a record of going light on molesters. He previously allowed a retired CHP officer to get off with parole after he was caught up in a molester sting operation.
The mitigating facts that the defense lawyer community are dredging up, and that Kelly himself referenced in his decision, include the fact that his parents asked Kelly to give their son parole.
However the victim of this crime cannot speak up for herself. And we don’t know how many other girls this guy might molest in the future. Kelly was impressed because the perp did not ejaculate in his 3-year old victim. But he did tear up her anus! That is part of the court record. And he also covered up her mouth, muffling her, when her mother was looking for her. He then compelled the victim to masturbate him.
Clearly Rojano-Nieto is a danger to society and he deserves the maximum sentence. I doubt anyone except for a defense lawyer would say otherwise. That Kelly decided to go easy on him will mean the end of his judicial career. He will be recalled, of that I am certain. And his recall should serve as a potent reminder to other elected Judges that they cannot escape our wrath when they decide to protect criminals instead of their victims.
BTW, why haven’t any prominent O.C. Democrats joined the campaign to recall Kelly? Where is U.S. Rep. Loretta Sanchez? Where are former State Legislators Sharon Quirk-Silva, Jose Solorio and Lou Correa? Why are they all MIA?
