STATE HOUSE REPRESENTATIVE THOMAS WRIGHT HAS MADE SOME WRONG DECISIONS
Rep. Thomas Wright is having trouble recovering from allegations of selling his influence over a scandal regarding his receipt of $35,000 from the big drug companies lobbying group . 4.8 million dollars came to the N. C. Foundation for Advanced Health Programs Inc. as a result of an informal deal the pharmaceutical industry reached with key legislators to avoid state controls on expensive drug prescriptions for Medicaid patients.
In 2002 and 2003,
state Rep. Thomas Wright, a Wilmington Democrat, received $35,000 in consulting
fees from the N. C. Foundation for Advanced Health Programs Inc., a group
controlled by the state Department of Health and Human Services.
Wright, co-chairman of the powerful House Appropriations Committee and
former co-chairman of the appropriations subcommittee that oversees the
department's spending, did not disclose the work on his statement of economic
interest that all legislators must file. He said he didn't know the foundation,
which gets about a $325,000 annual subsidy from the state, was associated
with state government.
As if that sort of behavior isn't enough of a reason to vote against Rep. Wright's bid for re-election, we looked to see what kind of legislation Rep. Wright tried to push through and found two disturbing bills that are costly pro-crime that are extremely favorable to criminals.
Imagine a convicted child sex offender's record being expunged, wiped clean, as soon as he is freed from prison, Thomas Wright's House Bill 1190 would allow that to happen.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF
NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2003
H 1
HOUSE BILL 1190
Short Title: First Offender/Expunge Criminal Record.
(Public)
Sponsors: Representative Wright.
Referred to: Judiciary II, if favorable, Finance.
April 10, 2003
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO PROVIDE THAT A PERSON CONVICTED OF A FELONY OR A
MISDEMEANOR MAY HAVE HIS OR HER RECORD EXPUNGED IN CERTAIN
CIRCUMSTANCES AFTER A PERIOD OF TEN YEARS FROM THE
DATE OF
CONVICTION AND TO ESTABLISH A FEE FOR THE ADMINISTRATIVE
COST
OF THE EXPUNCTION.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1. Article 5 of Chapter 15A of the
General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:
"§ 15A-149. Expunction of records for first
offenders. (a) Whenever any person who has not
previously been convicted of any felony, or misdemeanor other
than a traffic violation, under the laws of the United States,
the laws of this State, or any other state, pleads guilty to or
is guilty of a felony or a misdemeanor, the person may file a
petition in the court where the person was convicted for
expunction of the felony or misdemeanor from the person's
criminal record. The petition cannot be
filed earlier than 10
years after the date of the conviction or any period of
probation, whichever occurs later, and the petition shall
contain, but not be limited to, the following:
(1) An affidavit by the petitioner that
the petitioner has been of good behavior for the
10-year period since the date of conviction (what if he has been
in prison?) of the
felony or misdemeanor in question and has not been
convicted of any felony, or misdemeanor other than
a traffic violation, under the laws of the United
States, or the laws of this State, or any other
state.
(2) Verified affidavits of two persons who
are not related to the petitioner or to each other
by blood or marriage that they know the character
and reputation of the petitioner in the community
in which the petitioner lives and that his or her
character and reputation are good.(how much money will this cost
to investigate?)
(3) A statement that the petition is a
motion in the cause in the case wherein the
petitioner was convicted.
(4) Affidavits of the clerk of superior
court, chief of police, where appropriate, and
sheriff of the county in which the petitioner was
convicted and, if different, the county of which
the petitioner is a resident, showing that the
petitioner has not been convicted of a felony or
misdemeanor other than a traffic violation under
the laws of this State at any time prior to the
conviction for the felony or misdemeanor in
question or during the 10-year period following
that conviction.(that's it? what about charges pending?)
The petition shall be served upon the district attorney of
the court wherein the case was tried resulting in conviction.
The district attorney shall have 10 days thereafter in which to
file any objection thereto and shall be duly notified as to the
date of the hearing of the petition.(how many people in the DA's
office will have to be hired to do this?)
The judge to whom the petition is presented is authorized
to call upon a probation officer for any additional (as if they
would know)
investigation or verification of the petitioner's conduct during
the 10-year period that the judge deems desirable.
(b) If the court, after hearing, finds that the
petitioner had remained of good behavior and been free of
conviction of any felony or misdemeanor, other than a traffic
violation, for 10 years from the date of conviction
of the
felony or misdemeanor in question, it shall order that the
person be restored, in the contemplation of the
law, to the
status the person occupied before the arrest or indictment or
information. No person as to whom
the order has been entered
shall be held thereafter under any provision of any laws to be
guilty of perjury or otherwise giving a false statement by
reason of his or her failure to recite or acknowledge the
arrest, or indictment, information, or trial, or response to any
inquiry made of the person for any purpose.
(c) The court shall also order that the felony or
misdemeanor conviction be expunged from the records of the
court, and direct all law enforcement agencies bearing record of
the same to expunge their records of the conviction. (arrest report
trashed?)The clerk
shall forward a certified copy of the order to the sheriff,
chief of police, or other arresting agency. The sheriff, chief,
or head of such other arresting agency shall then transmit the
copy of the order with a form supplied by the State Bureau of
Investigation to the State Bureau of Investigation, and the
State Bureau of Investigation shall forward the order to the
Federal Bureau of Investigation.
(d) The clerk of superior court in each county in
North Carolina shall, as soon as practicable after each term of
court in the clerk's county, file with the Administrative Office
of the Courts the names of those persons granted a discharge
under the provisions of this section, and the Administrative
Office of the Courts shall maintain a confidential file
containing the names of persons granted conditional discharges.
The information contained in the file shall be disclosed only to
judges of the General Court of Justice of North Carolina for the
purpose of ascertaining whether any person charged with an
offense has been previously granted a discharge.
(e) A person who files a petition for expunction
of a criminal record under this section must pay the clerk of
superior court a fee of sixty-five dollars ($65.00) at the time
the petition is filed. Fees collected under this subsection
shall be deposited in the General Fund. This subsection does not
apply to petitions filed by an indigent."
SECTION 2. This act becomes effective July 1,
2003.
This bill is totally in favor of helping criminals excape their past. In fact when asked about this Thomas Wright said he did this because a constituant requested it. He did this to help out one person. One person he said has moved on with her life and wished to die a clean and innocent person.
It is the willful violation of laws that govern us all that causes a record
of conviction. Should the law be broken and the law breaker be convicted,
then that person is guilty for life- no matter what Thomas Wright believes.
If it is a wrongful conviction, then allow the courts to reverse the conviction.
Another equally disturbing Bill introduced by Rep. Wright has to do with second guessing prosecutors. Wright proposes a bill that will enact a power to be given to a Commission that will govern exactly how an defendant should or should not be prosecuted. It is the opinion of the Blue Line that this is the responsibility of the defense attorney and those that enforce the State's constitution to prevent injustice from occurring. We at Blue Line know of at least two cases of prosecutorial misconduct, one being the Alan Gell case where the Attorney General's office hid evidence from the defense, the other a case we are not at liberty to discuss at this time. In the Gell case a lapse of justice took place. No explanation can adequately defend such disregard for justice, likewise no commission would have had the power to discover any of the evidence that the Attorney General's Office withheld. Only because Gell was convicted and sentenced to death was his entire file turned over to the defense team. This bill is only to intimidate the good prosecutors who day in and day out struggle to find the right evidence and credible testimony necessary to convict the petty thieves and violent offenders they mostly deal with. It is up to the defense attorney to spend time with the defendant, to give a gallant effort to defend and represent them properly. You talk with most of the convicted criminals and they will tell you that their defense attorney let them down. Want a Commission? Get one to hold defense attorneys feet to the fire. They are much more likely to misrepresent justice to a defendant than a prosecutor.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2003
H 1
HOUSE BILL 1766
Short Title: Statewide Crim. Justice Truth Commission.
(Public)
Sponsors: Representatives Wright; and Luebke.
Referred to: Judiciary I.
May 31, 2004
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO ESTABLISH A STATEWIDE CRIMINAL JUSTICE TRUTH
COMMISSION, TO ESTABLISH LOCAL COMMISSIONS FOR CERTAIN
JUDICIAL DISTRICTS, AND TO APPROPRIATE FUNDS TO IMPLEMENT
THIS ACT.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1. Chapter 7A of the General Statutes is
amended by adding a new article to read:
"Article 9A.
"North Carolina Criminal Justice Truth Commission.
"§ 7A-69.5. North Carolina Criminal Justice Truth
Commission. (a) There is established the North Carolina
Criminal Justice Truth Commission. The Commission shall consist
of eight members as follows: one superior court judge and one
district court judge, each appointed by the Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court; one district attorney and one public defender or
defense attorney, each appointed by the Governor; four members
of the State Bar who have actively practiced in the courts of
the State for at least 10 years, two appointed by the Speaker of
the House of Representatives and two appointed by the President
Pro Tempore of the Senate. The superior court judge shall act as
Chair of the Commission and shall set the time and place of the
meetings.
(b) Terms of Commission members shall be for six
years, except that, to achieve overlapping of terms, one of the
judges, the public defender, one of the practicing members of
the State Bar appointed by the Speaker of the House of
Representatives, and one of the members of the State Bar
appointed by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate shall be
appointed initially for a term of only three years. No member
who has served a full six-year term is eligible for
reappointment. If a member ceases to have the qualifications
required for appointment, then he or she ceases to be a member.
Vacancies are filled in the same manner as the original
appointment for the remainder of the term. Members are entitled
to per diem and all members are entitled to reimbursement for
travel and subsistence expenses at the rate applicable to
members of State boards and commissions generally, for each day
engaged in official business.
"§ 7A-69.6. Powers and duties. (a) The duty of the Commission
shall be to
receive claims of prosecutorial misconduct, to investigate every
credible claim of prosecutorial misconduct, and to take
appropriate legal actions to remedy those claims that are
meritorious.
(b) The Commission shall have the following
powers:
(1) To receive complaints alleging
prosecutorial misconduct.
(2) To investigate any alleged
prosecutorial misconduct coming to its attention
and to determine whether probable cause exists that
prosecutorial misconduct has occurred.
(3) To subpoena witnesses and compel their
attendance and to compel the production of books,
papers, and other documents deemed necessary or
material to the investigation.
(4) If the Commission determines that a
reasonable belief exists that prosecutorial
misconduct did occur, to appoint an attorney for
the purpose of filing a motion for appropriate
relief in the defendant's behalf.
"§ 7A-69.7. Procedures. Any citizen of the State may file a
written complaint
with the Commission concerning an incident of alleged
prosecutorial misconduct and thereupon the Commission shall make
such investigation, as it deems necessary. The Commission
may
also make an investigation on its own motion. The Commission
may
issue process to compel the attendance of witnesses and the
production of evidence, to administer oaths, to punish for
contempt, and to prescribe its own rules of procedure.
Testimony and other evidence presented to the Commission are
privileged in any action for defamation. A majority of the
members of the Commission must concur in any finding of
prosecutorial misconduct and the direction to file a motion for
appropriate relief on behalf of the defendant.
"§ 7A-69.8. Commission counsel and executive
secretary. The Commission may appoint a counsel to serve at the
pleasure of the Commission. The counsel must be a member of the
North Carolina State Bar, but shall not be permitted to engage
in the private practice of law. The Commission may also hire an
executive secretary. The executive secretary shall serve at the
pleasure of the Commission.
"§ 7A-69.9. Organization of judicial district criminal
justice truth commissions. (a) Individual
judicial districts may also
establish local criminal justice truth commissions as
provided
by this section. Any judicial district which has more than 100
licensed attorneys as determined by the North Carolina State
Bar's records may establish a judicial district criminal justice
truth commission as provided by this section. A judicial
district with fewer than 100 licensed attorneys may establish a
district criminal justice truth commission with consent of the
North Carolina Criminal Justice Truth Commission. One or more
judicial districts, including those with fewer than 100 licensed
attorneys, may also establish a multidistrict criminal justice
truth commission as provided by this section. The multidistrict
commissions shall be subject to all of the provisions set out in
this section and all references to district commissions in this
section shall also apply to multidistrict commissions.
(b) Creation of District Criminal Justice Truth
Commissions. - A judicial district may establish a district
commission at a duly called meeting of the judicial district
bar, at which a quorum is present, upon the affirmative vote of
a majority of the active members present. Within 30 days of the
election, the president of the judicial district bar shall
certify in writing the establishment of the district commission
to the executive secretary of the North Carolina Criminal
Justice Truth Commission. A multidistrict commission may be
established by affirmative vote of a majority of the active
members of each participating judicial district present at a
duly called meeting of each participating judicial district bar,
at which a quorum is present. Within 30 days of the election,
the chairperson of the multidistrict commission shall certify in
writing the establishment of the district commission to the
executive secretary of the North Carolina Criminal Justice Truth
Commission. The active members of each participating judicial
district may adopt a set of bylaws not inconsistent with these
rules by majority vote of the active members of each
participating judicial district present at a duly called meeting
of each participating judicial district bar at which a quorum is
present. The chairperson of the multidistrict commission shall
promptly provide a copy of the bylaws to the executive secretary
of the North Carolina Criminal Justice Truth Commission.
(c) Appointment of District Commission Members. -
Each district commission shall be composed of members who are
active members in good standing both of the judicial district
bar to which they belong and of the North Carolina State Bar and
shall have a membership of at least 10 members. The membership
of each district commission shall also have a representative
from each of the following: the district attorney's office, the
defense bar, a public defender or an attorney from the indigent
appointment list for felony cases. Initially, the North Carolina
Criminal Justice Truth Commission shall appoint seven members to
the local commission based on recommendations received from the
president of the local bar. In addition to the attorney members,
each district commission may also include one to three public
members who have never been licensed to practice law in any
jurisdiction to be appointed by the president of the local bar.
Public members shall not perform investigative functions
regarding allegations of prosecutorial misconduct but in all
other respects shall have the same authority as the attorney
members of the district commission. The chairperson of the
district commission shall be selected by the president of the
judicial district and shall serve at his or her pleasure.
Alternatively, the chair may be selected and removed as provided
in the district bar bylaws. The attorney and public members of
the district commission shall be selected by and serve at the
pleasure of the president of the judicial district bar and the
chair of the district commission. Alternatively, the district
commission members may be selected and removed as provided in
the district bar bylaws.
The members of the district commission, including the
chair, shall be appointed for staggered three-year terms, except
that the president and chair shall appoint some of the initial
committee members to terms of less than three years, to
effectuate the staggered terms. No member shall serve more than
one term, without first having rotated off the committee for a
period of at least one year between three-year terms. Any member
who resigns or otherwise becomes ineligible to continue serving
as a member shall be replaced by appointment by the president of
the judicial district bar and the chair of the commission or as
provided in the district bar bylaws as soon as practicable.
"§ 7A-69.10. Duty and powers of the judicial district
commissions. (a) A judicial district criminal justice
truth commission may investigate allegations of prosecutorial
misconduct filed against prosecutors who live or practice within
the judicial district. The commission may also investigate any
allegations referred to it for investigation by the North
Carolina Criminal Justice Truth Commission. A complaint may be
filed with the judicial commission by any person against a
prosecutor in the judicial district who is alleged to have
committed an act of prosecutorial misconduct.
(b) The commission may interview the complainant,
the prosecutor against whom the complaint is filed, and any
other person who may have relevant information regarding the
allegation of misconduct.
(c) Upon completion of the investigation, the
Commission shall file a written report with the North Carolina
Criminal Justice Commission. The report shall include the
Commission's findings of fact and recommendation as to whether
the North Carolina Criminal Justice Commission shall find
probable cause of prosecutorial misconduct and whether a motion
for appropriate relief should be filed on behalf of the
defendant."
SECTION 2. There is appropriated from the
General Fund to the North Carolina Criminal Justice Truth
Commission the sum of two hundred fifty thousand dollars
($250,000) for the 2004-2005 fiscal year to implement this act.
Wright, co-chairman of the powerful House Appropriations Committee ! So he has already funded this to the tune of $250,000.
SPEAK OUT IN THE FORUM
