Is SDCOE Superintendent Randy Ward in contempt of court? Am I? We both have been hit with Orders to Show Cause, basically a criminal proceeding

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SDCOE lawyers are dealing with contempt of court allegations a lot these days.

SDCOE Superintendent Randy Ward is accused of contempt of court in the Hartnett case.

One of Ward's favorite law firms, Stutz Artiano Shinoff & Holtz, is busy at the same time making accusations against me of contempt of court.

And here's the kicker: SDCOE is actually deeply (and illegally) involved in Daniel Shinoff's defamation lawsuit against me. Public entities aren't allowed to sue for defamation!

Something tells me that Ward is more likely to get away failure to obey court orders than I am. When you're part of the power elite, the justice system works differently. For example, Stutz lawyer Daniel Shinoff was allowed to completely ignore a subpoena for a deposition in his defamation case against me. And he didn't have to produce documents. All he had to do was to write up a short declaration claiming my statements about him were false, and Judge Judith Hayes handed him a summary judgment victory.

Now I have an Order to Show Cause hearing on March 5, 2010.



Judge dismisses contempt order
By Jeff McDonald,
SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
December 18, 2009 at 3:41 p.m.

The judge presiding over a wrongful-termination case against the county Office of Education dismissed a contempt-of-court order against Superintendent Randolph Ward this morning, saying lawyers who sought the order did not follow proper procedures.

Judge Steven R. Denton also said attorneys for former claims coordinator Rodger Hartnett were “hopelessly vague” in articulating how the superintendent failed to comply with the court’s earlier rulings.

Orders to show cause are “essentially criminal proceedings that require strict compliance with procedures,” Denton said.

Ward had been served with an order to show cause why he should not be held in contempt for failing to comply with Denton’s earlier rulings that Hartnett be reinstated to his job and awarded back wages.

Hartnett, who was fired in 2007, claimed in his suit he was terminated after raising questions about office billing practices. He said yesterday his attorneys plan to refile the contempt order.