Page 16 - Flathead Beacon // 9.24.14

16 | SEPTEMBER 24, 2014 NEWS FLATHEADBEACON.COM Complaint Referred to Office of Disciplinary Counsel
Attorney General says no criminal acts by Flathead County prosecutors, but allegations of ethical violations ‘troubling’
By TRISTAN SCOTT of the Beacon
A complaint to the state Attorney General’s office by three local criminal defense lawyers alleging ethi- cal violations by Flathead County prosecutors has been referred to the state Office of Disciplinary Counsel.
Kalispell defense attorney Timothy Baldwin, along with lawyers Jack and Phyllis Quatman, filed the re- quest for an investigation Aug. 25. In it, they allege “un- ethical/criminal activities in the Flathead County At- torney’s Office” by Flathead County Attorney Ed Cor- rigan, Deputy Flathead County Attorney Kenneth Park and an agent with the Northwest Drug Task Force, McKeag Johns of the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office.
In response, Assistant Attorney General Brant Light, bureau chief of the Prosecution Services Bureau, wrote the attorneys and explained that he did not be- lieve any criminal activities had occurred, but that the alleged ethical violations are “troubling.”
“I do not believe that any of the allegations you have outlined in your letter warrant a criminal investigation of Ed Corrigan or Kenneth Park. With that said, the numerous ethical violations you have alleged are trou- bling,” Light wrote. “However, the Attorney General’s Office does not investigate ethical violations but refers such matters to the Commission on Practice. The Com- mission on Practice is in a better position to investigate the allegations listed in your letter.”
He continued: “Due to the fact that you have made me aware of the alleged ethical violations against two prosecutors in the State of Montana, I feel obligated to forward a copy of the documents you enclosed with your letter to the Commission on Practice as an FYI. Because I don’t have any firsthand knowledge of the al- legations, I will not be requesting an investigation by the Commission on Practice but simply putting them on notice of the alleged ethical violations.”
A complaint to the Commission on Practice must first be filed with the Montana Office of Disciplinary Counsel, which is responsible for the intake investiga- tion and prosecution of ethical complaints. If the office decides discipline is warranted, it seeks approval from the Commission on Practice, a panel of nine attorneys and five non-attorneys. If the panel determines there is enough compelling evidence, the Office of Disciplin- ary Counsel files a formal complaint with the Mon- tana Supreme Court.
John Barnes, a spokesperson for the state Attorney General’s Office, stressed that the office merely for- warded the information to the commission, and is not conducting an investigation of its own.
Because initial complaints to the Office of Dis- ciplinary Counsel are confidential, Baldwin would not comment on whether he would pursue the complaint further.
The Flathead County Human Resource Depart- ment is also currently investigating the Flathead County Attorney’s Office, according to Baldwin’s complaint, but the department would not confirm the investigation.
Corrigan said he had not seen the complaint and that his knowledge of it is based on media reports. He said if and when an agency serves his office with the complaint he will file a detailed response.
“This is an ongoing investigation so I cannot com- ment specifically on the allegations against us. I do think it is nonsense, but I cannot comment on specif- ics,” Corrigan said. “There are of course two sides to
Flathead County Attorney Ed Corrigan. BEACON FILE PHOTO
every story. We are not hiding anything, but we need to follow the proper steps.”
The complaint relates to several cases in which the lawyers allege prosecutorial misconduct and witness tampering by law enforcement.
The most recent instance they cite relates to a criminal drug possession case in which the lawyers say Johns, the task force agent, and Park, the county pros- ecutor, intimidated a defendant named Cory Frank- lin as well as a defense witness, Franklin’s wife Kris- tina Franklin, who had previously cooperated with the drug task force as a confidential informant.
The complaint alleges that the intimidation was part of a concerted effort to have Baldwin fired from the case.
To corroborate the allegations, Kristina Frank- lin, through Baldwin, released an audio recording and transcript of a telephone conversation between herself and Johns in which the law enforcement officer im- pugns Baldwin’s reputation and implies that the de- fense lawyer’s involvement with the case would lead to harsher treatment of Cory Franklin because of disdain for Baldwin within the county attorney’s office.
Kristina Franklin, who acknowledged she recorded the conversation illegally, also submitted a signed affi- davit that includes a transcript of the 26-minute tele- phone conversation with Johns.
In the affidavit, she states that Johns told her “that Park was not helping me now because of Tim Baldwin.” Johns is quoted as saying, “So right here and now, I’ll say it one more time. That you need to look into the attorney that you have and make sure you’re get- ting along with him correctly. Because it comes down to, do you want the entire County Attorney’s Of-
fice against you?”
Franklin was charged in two separate drug cases,
but the charges have since been dismissed at Park’s be- hest in what Baldwin characterized as an attempt to cover up wrongdoing by Park and Johns.
“They dismissed the cases to cover up these egre- gious acts. They knew that the cases were riddled with improprieties, and that we had evidence of it,” Baldwin said.
On July 18, Baldwin filed a motion in Flathead
County District Court requesting sanctions against Park for allegedly instructing Cory Franklin’s proba- tion officer, Paul Parrish, to file an unwarranted report of a violation of Franklin’s probation, allegedly as an act of retaliation.
At a Sept. 5 hearing on the motion for sanctions the court heard testimony from Park, Cory Franklin, Cor- rigan and Parrish.
According to Baldwin’s request for sanctions, Par- rish said he would not have filed a report of a probation violation had Park not requested that he do so.
Baldwin accused Park of filing a petition to revoke Cory Franklin’s probation out of “disdain” and “to harm Cory for keeping Baldwin as his attorney.”
Corrigan testified that he ultimately dismissed the case based on the appearance of impropriety, but would not say what specifically appeared improper about the prosecution.
“I testified to that there was an appearance of impropriety that led me to dismiss the charges,” he said of the case.
On Sept. 16, Baldwin submitted the audio record- ing and transcript to the court and requested an ad- ditional hearing to call Johns to the stand in the sanctions hearing.
“When you have a case where officers who have a sworn duty and obligation to protect the justice system are abusing their power to intimidate or coerce defen- dants and witnesses, then there will be no justice. The justice system is compromised,” he said.
Though he would not speak to the specifics of the complaints, Corrigan said it isn’t the first time his of- fice has come under fire.
“Having done this for as long as I have, it is not unique or unusual for a disgruntled lawyer or a dis- gruntled defendant to file a complaint,” he said.
Baldwin and the Quatmans posted court docu- ments and a narrative of what led to the complaint on their website at flatheadlegal.com.
Because complaints to the Office of Disciplinary Counsel are confidential, Baldwin would not comment on whether he was filing a formal complaint.
[email protected]