What John Haggerty Will Do As California Attorney General In 2014

1. Restore A Regular Implementation Of The Death Penalty: Since 1978 Californians have repeatedly voted for the death penalty and California juries have unanimously voted to send hundreds of murderers to death row. As discussed elsewhere in this website, the death penalty is a just and effective deterrent to murderers who have no conscience. Yet not a single murderer has been executed in California since 2006 and only 13 have been executed since 1978. There are currently 741 murderers on death row at San Quentin. As a result of this ongoing failure to implement the death penalty, that penalty is being sapped of much its deterrent effect and, tragically, many more Californians are being killed each year.

To remedy this unacceptable situation, John Haggerty will: (a) promptly replace the current three-drug procedure (which Attorney General Kamala Harris and Governor Brown have allowed to stall the death penalty) with a one-drug procedure that has already been allowed by the U.S. Supreme Court; (b) support legislation to allow all judicially approved forms of execution (e.g., firing squad, hanging, etc.); (c) provide district attorneys with the most useful, modern, and proven tools, training, and guidance to obtain as many reversal-proof death penalty convictions, after full and fair trials, as possible; (d) direct the attorneys in the California Department of Justice to energetically defeat all of the unnecessary delays which have currently allowed death row appeals to go on for decades; and (e) implement (if it passes) the helpful death penalty measure that former Governors Deukmejian, Wilson, and Davis have placed on the November 2014 ballot.Return above

2. Combat The Current Unacceptably High Levels of Violence and Theft in California: As we all know, crimes of violence and theft are rapidly rising throughout California. More people are being killed, cheated, robbed, mugged, embezzled, burgled, assaulted, beaten, vandalized, and abused in every part of our state. A proper respect for persons, property, law, and decency is declining at an alarming rate. This must stop now. While lawlessness is to some extent also attributable to substandard educations, economic situations, family backgrounds, etc., our Attorney General should never use these other factors as an excuse for not energetically enforcing the laws of our state to protect our people against crime. Indeed, it is every California Attorney General’s primary duty to do this.

As California’s next Attorney General, John Haggerty will combat violence and theft in this state by: (a) restoring the death penalty (which, in addition to deterring homicide, will free up cells at San Quentin); (b) defeating the federal lawsuits that various liberal groups have filed seeking to provide villains with more cell space and medical care; (c) working closely with the Legislature and state prison authorities to develop as quickly as possible cheaper means of incarcerating less dangerous convicts (e.g., old military bases, remote camps, etc.); (d) fully cooperating with federal authorities to remove as many illegal immigrants as possible from California; and (e) spearheading effective statewide campaigns against shoplifting and aggressive vagrancy in accord with Mayor Giuliani’s successful method of nipping criminality in the bud.

We cannot let our state’s cities (e.g., Oakland where Kamala Harris grew up and San Francisco where she was the DA), towns, and rural areas continue to be ravaged by crimes of violence and theft. It must stop now.Return above

3. Defend Our Constitution: As discussed more fully elsewhere in this website, throughout her first term as California’s Attorney General, Kamala Harris deliberately refused to defend California’s Constitution (specifically, Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment) when it was under attack in the U.S. Supreme Court. As a result, our Constitution was not even given its “day in court” because the U.S. Supreme Court did not decide Proposition 8 on its merits, ruling that only California’s Attorney General and its Governor had the “legal standing” to defend our Constitution. The Court left an adverse, divided, 9th Circuit Court of Appeal ruling against California’s Constitution stand--a truly unprecedented result.

Upon assuming office, Kamala Harris took an oath to “support and defend” our Constitution. (Cal. Const., art. XX, § 3.) California’s Government Code § 12512 also required Kamala Harris to “defend all causes to which the State, or any State officer is a party”. Yet, she deliberately refused to defend our Constitution. What’s next? What other parts of our Constitution will Kamala Harris refuse to defend (and thereby torpedo under the federal rules of legal standing)? Proposition 13? Proposition 209? Proposition 65? This dereliction of duty must not stand.

As California’s next Attorney General, John Haggerty, unlike Kamala Harris, will defend California’s Constitution whenever it is under attack in a federal lawsuit.Return above

4. Oppose All Illegal Immigration: A nation is defined both by it values and its borders. The United States of America and California have always held, as one of their most cherished values, a deep and abiding respect for the rule of law. By the very act of invading our state in violation of federal immigration laws, each and every illegal immigrant--be they from Asia, Europe, or Latin America--is not only destroying our border but also our most cherished values. It must stop.

Illegal immigrants who commit crimes in our state (and thousands of them do) harm thousands of Californians who would not otherwise have been harmed but for illegal immigration. For example, Edwin Ramos, who killed three people in San Francisco (and against whom Kamala Harris as DA refused to seek the death penalty), was an illegal alien. Additionally, illegal immigrants are receiving public benefits to which they are not entitled. Finally, illegal immigrants, who work in our state (once again breaking our laws), are leaving hundreds of thousands of low-income Californians unemployed or underemployed. It is time for these illegal aliens to return to their families in their own native lands.

As California’s next Attorney General John Haggerty will energetically combat all illegal immigration by: (a) assisting the federal government to the maximum extent possible in their enforcement of federal immigration laws; (b) opposing to the maximum extent possible the “sanctuary city” ordinances that some California local governments have passed in recent years (e.g., Edwin Ramos, supra, committed his murders in San Francisco, a “sanctuary city”); (c) preventing the early release from jail of illegal alien criminals before the federal authorities have had an opportunity to deport them; and (d) taking all available legal actions against those who either help, harbor, or employ illegal aliens in this state.Return above

5. Spearhead Effective, Statewide Campaigns Against Shoplifting And Aggressive Vagrancy: It is not enough to fight crime at the high end of the crime spectrum (vicious murder, rape, and mayhem) with stiff and just sentences (as necessary as those deterrent punishments are), it is also vitally important to actively fight crime at the low end of the crime spectrum (vandalism, shoplifting, and aggressive vagrancy). As Mayor Giuliani so successfully showed in New York City during the 1990’s, you must also strive to nip criminality in the bud. Today’s squeegee man is tomorrow’s burglar and the day after’s killer. When Mayor Giuliani first became mayor in 1993 there were 1,946 homicides in New York City. By the time his term ended, that number had dropped to 649. In addition, cracking down on petty crimes will also improve our state’s quality of life as it did in New York City in the 1990’s. We cannot have vagrants urinating on the books in our public libraries as recently happened in San Francisco.

As California’s next Attorney General, John Haggerty will spearhead effective, statewide campaigns against shoplifting and aggressive vagrants. These campaigns will: (a) develop cost effective detention centers and other innovative penalties for shoplifters, always emphasizing that theft is a crime not a disease; (b) develop efficient grand jury and jury procedures for indicting and trying aggressive vagrant criminals; (c) expand and improve the use of videotape evidence in the development of cases against vagrant criminals; (d) establish modern statewide databases of all persons arrested for, and/or convicted of, shoplifting and disturbing the peace; and (e) develop progressively stiffer, more effective penalties for those who repeatedly shoplift or disturb the peace of our citizenry.Return above

6. Ensure That The High Speed Rail Project Complies With Proposition 1A: As California’s next Attorney General, John Haggerty will promptly determine whether or not the Governor’s funding plan for the High Speed Rail project between San Francisco and Los Angeles complies with the financial safeguards contained in Proposition 1A. When the people of California passed Proposition 1A as a bond measure to fund that project in 2008 they certainly were not authorizing another San Francisco Bay Bridge boondoggle.Return above

7. Draft Accurate Ballot Summaries: As California’s next Attorney General, John Haggerty will draft accurate and neutral ballot summaries of the measures the people of California will be voting on. In recent years, Democratic Attorney Generals, such as Kamala Harris and Jerry Brown, have been drafting ballot measure summaries that are misleading in ways that unfairly discourage Californians from voting in favor of measures that the California Democratic Party opposes, such as Proposition 8 (which Jerry Brown misleadingly described as eliminating a constitutional right) and pension solvency measures (which Kamala Harris misleadingly wrote, “eliminates constitutional protections for vested pension” benefits). Indeed, earlier this year, Kamala Harris essentially torpedoed San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed’s pension solvency measure from even getting on the ballot. Californians are tired of liberal politicians and their media friends rigging the political discourse of our people with devious word games. It has to stop. Return above

8. Work Closely With Each Government Agency And The Public As A Whole To Improve The Administration Of Justice: Needless to say, one person, even the Attorney General of the largest state in the Union, cannot accomplish all of the above things by him or herself. No man is an island. Therefore, as California’s next Attorney General, John Haggerty will work closely and professionally with California’s Legislature, Governor, Secretary of State, Insurance Commissioner, 58 sheriffs and district attorneys, courts, state law enforcement and prison agencies, city attorneys and police departments, and the federal law enforcement agencies to promptly achieve each of the above objectives of protecting the people of our state and defending their Constitution.

But, even more importantly, as he works with these government agencies and the personnel of the California Department of Justice whom he will lead, John will always work closely with the public, as a whole, as individuals, and through the public’s institutions and organizations (e.g., schools, businesses, victims’ groups, labor groups, and philanthropic groups). He will always welcome and respect their input in the formulation and implementation of policy as well as keep them informed of his office’s actions and results. He looks forward to it.Return above

9. Support The Right Of The People Of California To Form Two New Californias: California currently has a population of over 38 million people, more than the populations of the 21 least populated states of the Union combined! Yet, those states are represented by a total of 42 senators in the United States Senate (where important treaties are ratified, laws enacted, and judges confirmed) whereas California is only represented by two. In addition, the ratio between the voters and their representatives in California has grown extremely large. For example, each California state senator now represents over 900,000 Californians whereas in 1940 he or she only represented 150,000 Californians.

For these and other reasons, there have been an increasing number of calls to form new California states out of the current California. Most recently, the well-known entrepreneur, Tim Draper, proposed forming six new Californias. Certainly, the time may soon come when the people of California will want to form two new California states: Northern California and Southern California (perhaps, sharing as their new border the straight line of latitude that currently runs between Monterey and San Luis Obispo counties). By now most Californians have long regarded Northern California and Southern California as being two distinct geographic and social regions. They may soon want to make them two distinct states as well.

Were the people of California to choose such a course, as their next Attorney General, John Haggerty would help them to accomplish that goal. He would do so by providing formal legal opinions, when requested by their representatives in the Legislature, as to: (a) how our state’s Constitution could be revised to most readily accomplish the formation of new California states; (b) how these new states should apply to the U.S. Congress for admission into the Union; (c) how to enter into interstate compacts that would best address the water rights and resources of the new states; and (d) how to most equitably assign the legal rights, debts, and obligations of the current California to the new Californias.

While forming two new Californias presents sizable challenges, if the people of California conclude that the merits of doing so outweigh the challenges, John Haggerty will assist them to the best of his abilities in accomplishing their goal.Return above

Summary: Since the current Attorney General Kamala Harris has failed (and in many instances refused) to perform the duties of her office, John Haggerty asks you to elect him as your next Attorney General so that he can: (1) restore a regular implementation of the death penalty; (2) combat the unacceptably high levels of violence and theft in this state; (3) defend our state’s Constitution; (4) oppose all illegal immigration; (5) spearhead effective, statewide campaigns against shoplifting and aggressive vagrancy; (6) ensure that the High Speed Rail project only proceeds if its funding is in accord with Proposition 1A; (7) draft accurate ballot summaries; (8) work closely with all governmental agencies and the public as a whole; and (9) support the right of the people of California to form two new Californias if they so choose.Return above

In pursuing each of the above objectives John will always focus on results not excuses. To help him accomplish these objectives, please vote to elect John Haggerty as your next Attorney General in the June 3, 2014, primary election.