Group Disproportionately Targeted by Police, District Attorney's Office; Petitions City Controller

SAN FRANCISCO - Members of the controversial San Francisco chapter of the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP) have petitioned Edward Harrington, the Controller for the City and County of San Francisco, to compile a tabulation of all costs relating to the prosecution of four criminal trials, as well as the cost of city involvement in multiple civil matters against the activist group.

For the past two years, various members of the controversial group have continually been investigated and prosecuted for behavior which is the norm for similar protest groups in politically rakus San Francisco. A recent expose by the SF Chronicle detailed the police department's lack of funds to investigate violent crimes and activists assert crimes such as rape and domestic violence remain unprosecuted despite ongoing prosecution of non-violent ACTUP activists.

Since an April 2000 protest, ACT UP members have been subject to an ongoing, and they allege costly, campaign by the District Attorney's office to gain an illusive conviction of violence against the controversial group. ACT UP has garnered international notoriety for questioning the toxicity of AIDS drug regimes and whether HIV could be the sole and sufficient cause of immune suppression. Because of this political stance, the group claims it is being targeted by politically powerful AIDS groups via the District Attorney's office.

"Every protest we have held since April of 2000 has resulted in the arrests and prosecutions of ACT UP members. Every case is preceded by a flurry of news articles, and full page ads, claiming we are violent; however in every case the jury has found ACT UP members not guilty of any violent charges," explained ACT UP member Betty Best. "How many times is the DA going to throw the book at ACT UP members, wasting valuable resources on an apparent vendetta, before people say, 'enough is enough.'?"

The group became concerned when a recent expose in the San Francisco Chronicle reported that a large number of violent crimes remain uninvestigated because of a lack of funds. Most concerning, according to the Chronicle report, was that non-fatal shootings, stabbings, and beatings remain uninvestigated while at the same time police investigators spent time on non-violent protesters. Members are also quick to point out that the city's District Attorney's Office has the worst conviction rate for violent crimes in the state (not including all the violent crimes that are uninvestigated). In addition to its request to the City controller, manager of the city's budget, the group also has begun investigating the terms of the domestic violence grants which funded the position of at least one of the prosecutors.

"With the city expecting another budget cut back it is absolutely outrageous that the city would spend its limited resources prosecuting unpopular protesters while real violence is uninvestigated and unprosecuted," said AIDS Dissident Benjamin Persky. "The four court rooms used to prosecute activists for such innocuous crimes as disturbing the peace and disorderly conduct, should be used for rape, domestic violence or other traumatic or violent crime. Not only should the victims of real violence like poor people and women be angry, all the citizens of San Francisco should demand a refocus of priorities, and limited resources."

Activists acknowledge that San Francisco District Attorney Terence Hallinan has tried to justify the expense of repeated trials by labeling the activists 'terrorists' in the press, and accusing them of calling in a bomb threat, while not charging such a crime in court.

For the full series of Chronicle articles go to: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2002/05/19/MN20983.DTL

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June 3, 2002

Edward M. Harrington
Controller
City and County of San Francisco
City Hall, Room 316
1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place
San Francisco, CA 94102

Re: Request for Public Records Concerning Prosecution of Court Cases

Dear Mr. Harrington,

Pursuant to California Government Code §6253 and § 6255 and City legislative guidelines concerning disclosure of City and County of San Francisco (CCSF) expenditures, we respectfully request full disclosure of the total costs of the following. As you may know, this statute provides a ten-day period in which your office must respond.

1. The total cost for trial of case numbers 1938290 (People v. David Robert Pasquarelli) and 1938291 (People v. Jason Todd Swindell) including:
   
   a) The salaries of all paid staff, including the clerk, the court reporter, the bailiffs, the jurors, Judge Thomas J. Mellon, and the prosecutors Anna Gonzalez and Phil Kearney.
   
   b) Additionally, we also request the total amount of hours involved by the prosecutors and their staffs in preparation of the case and in attendance at any and all pretrial hearings, and at any and all court appearances.
   
   c) We also request all costs incurred by the SFPD in relation to investigating this case, including the salaries of Inspectors Lea Militello, Daniel Dedet and Jeff Lindberg, and the amount of time each devoted to their investigations.
   
   d) Any and all courtroom time charges billed back to the City.
   
   
2. The total cost for trial of case numbers 1929485 (People v. Jason Todd Swindell), 1931504 (People v. Michael Bellefountaine) and 1931505 (People v. David Pasquarelli) including:
   
   a) The salaries of all paid staff, including the clerk, the court reporter, the bailiffs, the jurors, Judge Thomas J. Mellon, and the prosecutors Phil Kearney and Anna Gonzalez.
   
   b) Additionally, we also request the total amount of hours involved by the prosecutors and their staffs in preparation of the case and in attendance at any and all pretrial hearings, and at any and all court appearances.
   
   c) We also request all costs incurred by the SFPD in relation to investigating this case including the salaries of Inspectors Lea Militello, Daniel Dedet and Jeff Lindberg, and the amount of time each devoted to their investigations.
   
   d) Any and all courtroom time charges billed back to the City.
   
   
3. The cost to date for prosecuting case numbers 1966968 (People v. David Pasquarelli), 1966969 (People v. Michael Bellefountaine), 1966970 (People v. Jason Todd Swindell) and 1966971 (People v. Michael Petrelis) including:
   
   a) The salaries of all paid staff, including the clerk, the court reporter, the bailiffs, the jurors, Judge Douglas Mahoney, and the prosecutors, Anna Gonzalez, Burk Strumski, Eric Hove, and Ivan Nightingale.
   
   b) Additionally, we also request the total amount of hours involved by the prosecutors and their staffs in preparation of the case and in attendance at any and all pretrial hearings, and at any and all court appearances.
   
   c) We also request all costs incurred by the SFPD in relation to investigating this case including the salaries of Inspectors Lea Militello, Daniel Dedet and Jeff Lindberg, and the amount of time each devoted to their investigations.
   
   d) Any and all courtroom time charges billed back to the City.
   
   
4. The cost to date for prosecuting case 184800 [2021148] (People v. David Pasquarelli) and 184789 [2018973] (People v. Michael Petrelis and David Pasquarelli) including:
   
   a) The salaries of all paid staff including the clerk, the court reporter, the bailiffs, Judges Perker Meeks, Kent Grunewald and Raymond Williamson, and the prosecutors Machaela Hoctor, Sharon Woo, Murlene Randle and Michon Martin. Additionally, we also request the total amount of hours involved by the prosecutors and their staffs in preparation of the case and in attendance at any and all pretrial hearings, and at any and all court appearances.
   
   b) We also request all costs incurred by the SFPD in relation to investigating this case including the salaries of Inspectors Lea Militello, Daniel Dedet, Leeanne Huang, Jeff Lindberg and R. Curry and the amount of time each devoted to their investigations.
   
   c) The costs of the incarceration of two people (David Pasquarelli and Michael Petrelis) for 72 days at San Francisco County Jail #8.
   
   d) The costs of any and all staff of the District Attorney in sending representatives to preliminary hearings and any and all other Court proceedings.
   
   e) Any and all costs of the City Attorney's Office in sending representatives to preliminary hearings or at other Court proceedings.
   
   f) Any and all costs of the City Attorney's office for pursuing this matter in civil court under case numbers 560098, 560099, 560100, 560101, 560102, 560103, 560112, 560113 and 560115.
   
   g) Any and all costs for Process Service by deputies while these two defendants were incarcerated.
   
   h) Any and all courtroom time charges billed back to the City.
   
   
5. In the November 2001 issue of GQ magazine the Mayor's AIDS Policy Advisor, Mike Shriver, stated on page 326 that he had spent 40% of his time working on these cases. Please specify his salary rate, and the number of hours invoiced the City for his services. If his subordinate staff at the Mayor's office worked on these cases as well, please then indicate the number of hours involved for each subordinate staff person and their hourly salaries. For both Mr. Shriver and his subordinate staff, please include the time frame involved, by specifically stating the months and years involved.
   
   
6. Please provide the hourly rate and number of hours encured by each and every member of the San Francisco Department of Public Health in each of the four cases outlined above, including, but not limited to, Mitch Katz, Eileen Shields, Jimmy Loyce, Steven Tierney, Mike Shriver, and Jeffrey Klausner, and their respective staffs.
   
   
7. Any and all costs involved in the above mentioned cases for outside consultants and/or private-practice legal fees which have been billed to the City.
   
   
8. Items 1 through 6 above involve costs-to-date to the City in prosecuting these cases. In addition, please provide any known and planned budgeted expenses for the upcoming Fiscal Year (FY '02 '03) which has been budgeted for legal expenses by either the Department of Public Health, the Mayor's Office, the City Attorney's Office, as well as known charges already budgeted to be billed back to the City from the District Attorney's Office, the Superior Court, or other jurisdictions which have already budgeted to invoice the City regarding the above referenced cases.