Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen. (Photo: da.santaclaracounty.gov/faq/about-district-attorney_
Rosen’s Lawless War Against The Death Penalty, Part II
Rosen’s proposed orders contain not one word of justification for reducing anyone’s death sentence
By Ron Matthias, July 25, 2024 10:47 am
Three months ago, Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen unveiled his controversial scheme to have the death sentences of 14 South Bay murderers reduced to prison terms. Although his plan faltered out of the gate because he failed to coordinate scheduling with the courts, the misstep bought him valuable time that he could have used to correct course. He blew the chance.
If Rosen had only taken that opportunity to re-read the statute he thinks allows him to elevate his personal opinions over the rule of law and looked for the first time at an important intervening court decision, he would have quietly backed down. Rosen has instead doubled down with Giveaway 2.0, a repackaged version prepped for rollout at 14 hearings scheduled between August and October that is just as lawless and even more dishonest than the original.
Unlike his first effort, Rosen’s new pitch comes adorned with “proposed orders” announcing the 14 sentence reductions he seeks. (Proposed orders are documents prepared by lawyers that recite both the bottom-line outcome they hope the court will endorse; as such they reflect the submitting lawyers’ own understanding of their strongest grounds for prevailing.)
It, therefore, might seem odd that Rosen’s proposed orders contain not one word of justification for reducing anyone’s death sentence; they simply announce the reductions as accomplished facts, done deals. That won’t work because the law requires courts to “state on the record the reasons” for reducing anyone’s sentence. No self-respecting judge, therefore, would even consider signing the legally defective orders Rosen has drafted. And that’s Rosen’s dilemma: He couldn’t include his actual reason for reducing all 14 death sentences because it is no more legally sustainable than no reason at all.
Rosen claims that he only recently “just began to feel like we don’t have the moral authority as a society to execute someone.” Only “God should decide when” those 14 murders should die, he insists. He thinks the public doesn’t “deserve” the prerogative it rightly enjoys to disagree with him. The law, however, is clear: Rosen’s personal policy preferences are legally irrelevant.
Here are some things the law says could be relevant: the murderer’s behavior while in prison, the danger he continues to pose to others, the fairness and integrity of his particular trial or sentence, and whether he suffered childhood trauma or similar abuse before committing murder. Every factor listed is of the sort that the California Supreme Court, in a closely related context, has called “intrinsic” to the sentencing process. Such factors are “case-specific and defendant-specific.” They differ from forbidden “extrinsic” factors, such as “idiosyncratic views of justice” informed by the prosecutor’s or the court’s “bare antipathy” for the particular law involved.
To be sure, the statute also says permissible factors “include, but are not limited to” those specifically mentioned. But that won’t allow Rosen to nullify all death sentences based on his disapproval of capital punishment. Unmentioned things “included” by such language are only things “that are similar to those which are enumerated specifically.” Rosen’s personal opinions are nothing remotely like the case- and offender-specific factors mentioned in the statute.
Thus, it is also of no moment that Rosen now claims he has no “faith in the integrity” of any death sentences because he is uncertain whether any was “attained without racial bias.” While alleging that “implicit bias and structural racism” played “some role,” he can’t say what role that was and he admits he has no basis for accusing anyone involved with being a racist. His only point is purely hypothetical—“if the structure was infected with racial bias, then we cannot have faith in the integrity of the ultimate sentence.” Rosen’s unproved hypothesis might well be worth exploring, but until then it cannot logically or legally provide a basis for nullifying all the sentences imposed on every capital murderer in the county — more than half of whom are white.
Rosen concedes there’s no reason to believe any of the 14 murderers are innocent, but he wants their sentences reduced anyway because he cannot “deny the possibility of error.” These speculative musings too are just another way of saying he believes capital punishment is bad policy, a viewpoint California voters have repeatedly rejected.
Rosen also insists “it offends equality under the law to have people serving a capital sentence when they would not receive such a sentence for the same conduct today.” But this insult to “equality” is entirely of his own making, the result of his decision, beginning in 2020, never to seek the death penalty for any murderer no matter the circumstances. His argument might not quite match the level of chutzpah displayed by the man who murdered his parents and then begged for mercy on the ground that he’s an orphan, but it’s close.
Nor does it help Rosen to continue arguing that reducing sentences will “expedite” all litigation generated by the murderers and “pave the way” to finality. Easing court congestion, like gratifying Rosen’s hostility toward capital punishment, is “extrinsic” to the considerations on which individualized sentencing decisions must properly turn.
At any rate, Rosen’s rosy predictions are unfounded, and incorporating them into his proposed orders would have only highlighted his duplicity. After all, if Rosen really wanted those 14 cases to wind down, he’d demand that the 14 murderers waive further litigation in exchange for reduced punishment. He hasn’t. Far worse, he has inserted into some proposed orders language that guarantees the murderers will continue to “pursue claims related to the convictions in current and future state and federal litigation” even if their sentences were reduced.
Rosen’s campaign against the death penalty is an exercise in showmanship that plays well with anti-death penalty activists. But Rosen should expect―and the public certainly deserves―a far more skeptical reception from the courts. After all, ours is “a government of laws, and not of men.”
This article was originally published in the Silicon Valley Voice and is re-published with permission.
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May 29, 2018 -
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Another demonic Democrat. Maybe if one of his kids were murdered, he would sing a different tune.
District Attorney Jeff Rosen doesn’t actually care about people getting the death penalty. I can personally attest to that.
Mr. Rosen is currently prosecuting me. I didn’t even commit a crime. The intention of the prosecution was to quickly bring that matter to competency proceedings. An attorney and (now) retired judge are trying to impede my ability to protect my kids from being sex trafficked. All the while, I am being POISONED because I refuse to concede to certain demands. Now all of my organs are damaged, testicles atrophied and the shape of my face has changed. You can see a picture of the damage to the structure of my face here:
https://www.scribd.com/document/584600169/Valerie-Houghton
Mr. Rosen is aware of the sex trafficking and physical assaults, but he is refusing to offer any protection, charge the culprits or remove the incentive (dismiss the charges).
If Rosen cared so much about the ethics of killing someone (or even justice), why does he allow the assaults against me to continue. I believe that this is just a political stunt.
I have posted more info here.
https://www.thepetitionsite.com/272/404/301/district-attorney-jeffrey-rosen-please-stop-sex-trafficking-my-kids/
“Lawless” is the exact term to use for how D.A. Jeff Rosen is behaving. By unilaterally defying the current death penalty laws, he is making the law completely arbitrary. I don’t believe that the state legislature or the voter ever intended for Mr. Rosen to be able to have that level of authority.
I can cite a similar case in which Mr. Rosen uses his powers in inappropriate ways.
Valerie Houghton misappropriated about $10,000,000 from Clyde Berg. two weeks after Mr. Berg demanded an accounting of the missing funds, D.A. Rosen filed criminal charges against him. The D.A. accused Berg of raping a pregnant woman with a golf putter. He was then jailed for 8 days and forced to wear an ankle monitor.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEg1fTduQp0&t=406s
Then after spending $3,000,000 in legal fees during a 3 year year prosecution, Mr. Berg was found factually innocent.
DocumentCloud
https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6981163-HoughtonIndictment-Docket
When the man tried to recoup his money, Mr. Rosen filed charges against him. It was alleged that he raped a woman with a golf club. He was jailed for 8 days and had to wear an ankle monitor for three years.
After spending more than 3 million dollars defending himself, the man was found factually innocent.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2015/01/16/silicon-valley-millionaire-clyde-berg-found-factually-innocent-of-sex-abuse-of-wife/
Ms. Houghton was eventually charges with the crime of embezzlement But after 4 years of her prosecution, Mr. Rosen filed a motion to dismiss. It was stated in the motion that he had enough evidence to secure a conviction at trial. It should also be noted that the dismissal filing came at a time when Mr. Rosen was receiving reports that Ms. Houghton was engaged in the sex trafficking of minors and physically assaulting parents. He just didn’t care what message a dismissal would send to her.
Mr. Rosen has weaponized the D.A.’s Office to serve his needs and the needs of people who are associated with him. In the process, he has neglected the needs of public.
In the end, Ms. Houghton was sued by Mr. Berg. She ended up returning his money.
https://lawzilla.com/blog/clyde-berg-et-al-v-metaview-wholesale-investments-lp/#respond
Mr. Rosen also retaliated against another man who had discovered that his daughter was raped. When the man tried to report it, HE WAS ALSO ASSAULTED AND PROSECUTED.
Read more here: http://www.freearianna.org
I don’t know how this is all being allowed to happen. Mr. Rosen is jeopardizing public safety in the most cruel and heinous manners.
When D.A. Rosen claims that racism is the cause for his opposition to implementing the death penalty, I just don’t believe him. You cannot take his words at face value.
I can provide you with another example in relation to a retired police officer catching a child molester:
“I would like to thank the retired police officer for his diligence and dedication,” DA Jeff Rosen said. “As with many officers, his mission of protecting our community’s children never stopped. I hope all of us take that same responsibility.”
https://morganhilltimes.com/south-bay-man-accused-of-molesting-children-in-morgan-hill/
Rosen says he hopes “all of us take that same responsibility.” He is also included in “us”, yet he does nothing to protect my kids against sexual abuse. The statement is a façade meant to convince voters that he cares about what happens to children.
And if he does not care about children being raped, how can he care about murders on death row?
D.A. Rosen has a habit of abusing his authority to gain favoritism. He does this at the expense of the community.
In 2013, Mr. Rosen directed his office to alter time sheets so that the top brass in the D.A.’s Office could get free time off.
https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/county-tells-da-no-more-free-time-off/2020955/
I wish that DA Rosen would focus more of energy on protecting the public. He seems to be too caught up in retaliations.
In 2018, Mr. Rosen had Sydney Megan Whalen released from custody after she committed a series of violent offences. Once out of custody, she stabbed Paul Gackle over 14 times. He survived, but Ms. Whalen went on to murder another individual.
https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Murder-stabbing-Mercury-reporter-Gackle-Whalen-13239181.php
Mr. Gackle complained about the D.A.’s Office after he found out about release from custody. He was then retaliated against with the D.A.’s Office refusing to grant him the victim’s services that he was entitled to receive.
https://sanjosespotlight.com/former-san-jose-reporter-calls-out-da-for-alleged-victims-rights-violation/
The D.A.’s Office also overcharged Mr. Gackle for a table scratch that was accidently made during a moment of frustration.
https://davisvanguard.org/2023/01/tainted-trials-tarnished-headlines-and-stolen-justice/
I have been begging Jeff Rosen for the last 4 years to protect me from being poisoned. Habits are easily formed. One must always be weary of creating undesirable associations.
During the time that I asked for his help, Mr. Rosen, himself, tried to poison an innocent man.
I don’t believe that this was a coincidence.
https://theappeal.org/jeff-rosen-santa-clara-da-attorney-general-death-penalty/
Jeff Rosen only cares about protecting criminals with connections to him. In 2019, San Jose Council candidate Jennifer Higgins Bradanini was involved in a DUI.
https://sanjosespotlight.com/san-jose-city-council-candidate-involved-in-a-fatal-collision/
https://sanjosespotlight.com/san-jose-council-candidate-was-on-prescription-drugs-before-deadly-crash/
Ms. Bradanini was only charged after the elections. She ended up pleading guilty, but only served 3 months of house arrest.
https://sanjosespotlight.com/a-very-dark-place-silicon-valley-leader-opens-up-about-fatal-crash/#:~:text=Starkey%20suffered%20severe%20injuries%20to,such%20as%20Xanax%20and%20Klonopin.
https://davisvanguard.org/2022/10/the-blossom-hill-killers-private-judge/
Other people have complained about the same type of leniency. Paulette Altmaier was physically assaulted by her ex-husband for many years. After D.A. Rosen finally charged the perpetrator, the charges were downgraded to misdemeanors. This was because her ex-husband was a rich tech executive who had hired an attorney connected to Rosen.
https://sign.moveon.org/petitions/da-jeff-rosen-stop-protectin
Jeff Rosen seems to believe that a condemned murderer has more of a right to live than a father who doesn’t want his kids to be sexually abused. It just doesn’t make any sense.
He has done a great job of masking his behavior. You would never know it from looking at his websites.
https://da.santaclaracounty.gov/faq/about-district-attorney
https://www.jeffrosen.org/
Here is the fallout from Jeff Rosen’s move to resentence death penalty recipients. Many of the victims are now speaking out.
“It seems like the district attorney’s office needs to be on the right side of this and not the left side. Because he’s doing the defense attorney’s job,” said the victim’s brother Tony LoBue.
https://www.ktvu.com/news/santa-clara-county-death-penalty-case-put-test
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/08/10/families-incensed-as-rollout-of-death-penalty-resentencings-begins-in-santa-clara-county/
Even the State Bar of California says that it is Jeff Rosen’s responsibility to take action in this matter. Just read what they wrote.
https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/the-state-bar-of-california-los-angeles?select=J4YF4cPfcFgPXMgy9ZFNjg.
https://archive.ph/UES1m
Now Ms. Houghton is now free to harm whomever she wants.
https://apps.calbar.ca.gov/attorney/Licensee/Detail/144148
I gave the State Bar Valerie Houghton’s social media posts that I was directed to view. Many were admissions of guilt.
For instance, “Pedophilia is not a crime” and also many posts showing positive views on child rape, as well as many death threats.
Jeff Rosen has all of these posts.
Read my complaint for yourself:
https://pdfhost.io/v/jM.L2FJRQ_Petition_for_Review_State_Bar_decision
There is now a third part to this series by Ron Matthias. It was published today in the Mercury News.
He says, “….only time will tell whether the judges will still do what Rosen wants for pretextual reasons that are as divorced from logic as [Jeff] Rosen’s are from the law.”
I believe that Mr. Matthias hits the nail on the head with this one. Rosen is indeed divorced from logic and the law. He has become a dictatorial.
That is in part because judges are complicit with every one of Rosen’s whims. Matthias correctly opines regarding the judges actions in overturning death penalties, “when judges allow that to happen, they act not as judges but as rubber stamps.”
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/08/20/opinion-santa-clara-county-da-rosens-flawed-arguments-to-overturn-murderers-death-sentences/
Rosen has proven that he views the law as completely arbitrary. Ron Matthias’ analysis is spot on. A District Attorney has no authority to skirt state laws.
Mr. Rosen has consistently demonstrated this when crimes have occurred. People who are connected to Rosen are able to commit the most egregious crimes. They don’t get prosecuted.
When I complained about Rosen’s conduct on a retired judge’s Robing Room webpage, this is one of the replies that I received:
“The district attorney would sooner investigate you than do anything to protect a child against a judge’s wishes. They cower in fear to these judges who control their livelihood. The common person means nothing to them.”
http://www.therobingroom.com/california/Judge.aspx?id=15387
I was sure that Rosen would do something to protect my kids after I told him about the sexual abuse. Never in a million years did I think that charges would be filed against me.
This is the type of justice that many others have complained about.
Then when people with no connections have committed crimes, Mr. Rosen must overcompensate by throwing the book at them. He needs some way to show that he cares about law and order.
Jeff Rosen knows well how to fool people into voting for him.
Just today he was quoted as saying, “It’s never too late to identify a killer,” Santa Clara District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a statement. “People may forget. But victims’ families and my office do not.”
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/08/21/san-jose-da-ties-1991-murder-to-suspect-killed-by-fbi-in-2007/
I have been begging him as recent as today to help stop a person from perpetrating assaults that result in great bodily injury. He acts as if making these kinds of statements fulfils his obligation to protect the community.
This is what Jeff Rosen files charges against crime victims so he can use the proceedings to absolve his associates of their crimes.
I didn’t even commit a crime. The whole goal was to bring the matter to competency proceedings. The involved attorney promised to tamper with any psychological evaluation. Said attorney was demanding that I retain an attorney so that there could be an instruction to raise a doubt for competency to stand trial.
When I refused to get an attorney, I was repeatedly assaulted. D.A. Rosen kept the proceedings going and refused to do anything to protect me. Knowing full well that my kids were in danger, he had someone from the D.A.’s Office raise the doubt.
I then refused to undergo an evaluation. Although I never met or spoke to a psychologist, a report was submitted anyhow. It was stated in the report that the D.A.’s Office supplied all the info.
The report completely absolved the attorney of any crime.
Read an excerpt for yourself.
https://archive.ph/IWTqh
Whether you claim to be progressive or not, I strongly believe that compassion is a necessary attribute that any District Attorney needs to have.
When I turned to Jeff Rosen for help, he just ignored me and continued with his prosecution against me. He did not care that the assaults caused damage to all of my organs, my testicles to atrophy, and the shape of my face to change.
Just look at the picture of the damage to my facial structure that was sent to Mr. Rosen:
https://archive.ph/RtpYi
Shouldn’t that have elicited some compassion?
I am not the only to have turned to Mr. Rosen, only to be rebuffed.
Violet Brooks begged Mr. Rosen to protect her three young girls from being sexually molested. The same attorney who is sex trafficking my kids was also involved in her case. In desperation, the mother begged the District Attorney to step in.
D.A. Rosen just ignored her and the girls continued to be abused.
It wasn’t until after they all turned 18 that the abuse was legally addressed in civil court.
Please see this:
https://archive.ph/Trh7O
Here is Jeff Rosen’s latest quote:
“It’s not like the law turns on or turns off the amount of crime that happens.”
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/08/25/santa-clara-county-da-voices-support-for-prop-47-in-face-of-prop-36-rollback-measure/
He is absolutely correct. The law in itself does not alter the rate of crime. It is the enforcement of laws that does.
If you allow child molesters and murderers to act without recourse, then there will never be a change in the number of those crimes.
District Attorney Rosen is more focused on saving murderers than he is on stopping them. That’s why he is failing at reducing crime.
The only person in the District Attorney’s Office who seemed willing to help me and my kids was Daniel Chung. He knew that I was being assaulted and that my kids were being abused.
Shortly thereafter requesting for his assistance, Mr. Chung was fired from the D.A.’s Office.
https://sanjosespotlight.com/santa-clara-county-da-accused-of-retaliating-against-deputy/
When I complained about the conduct of the D.A.’s Office on an involved judge’s Robing Room website, here is one of the replies that I received:
“The district attorney would sooner investigate you than do anything to protect a child against a judge’s wishes.
They cower in fear to these judges who control their livelihood. The common person means nothing to them.”
http://www.therobingroom.com/california/Judge.aspx?id=15387
You can’t even convince District Attorney Rosen to stop the sex trafficking of my children by citing the law.
If you look up the California Penal Code (236.1) for sex trafficking, it includes acts of violence and abuse of the legal process:
” (c) A person who causes, induces, or persuades, or attempts to cause, induce, or persuade, a person who is a minor at the time of commission of the offense to engage in a commercial sex act, with the intent to effect or maintain a violation of Section 266, 266h, 266i, 266j, 267, 311.1, 311.2, 311.3, 311.4, 311.5, 311.6, or 518 is guilty of human trafficking.
(1) “Coercion” includes a scheme, plan, or pattern intended to cause a person to believe that failure to perform an act would result in serious harm to or physical restraint against any person; the abuse or threatened abuse of the legal process; debt bondage; or providing and facilitating the possession of a controlled substance to a person with the intent to impair the person’s judgment. ”
https://codes.findlaw.com/ca/penal-code/pen-sect-236-1/
It should have been enough to just cite the law. Rosen is turning Santa Clara County into the Wild West. The rule of law no longer applies. He just does whatever he wants.
Rosen knew that Ms. Houghton was assaulting me. While I begged and begged D.A. Rosen to protect me and my kids, he had his deputy raise a doubt.
During the same week, he filed a motion to dismiss Valerie Houghton’s unrelated felony charges . It was stated in the motion that he had enough evidence to convict at trial.
Here is the complaint:
https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/20795180-2019-10-25-complaint
What kind of a message do you think that all of that sent?
Here is a recent statement that Rosen made last July is relation to a public corruption case.
“Government services, including the issuance of gun permits, are not for sale in Santa Clara County,” Rosen said in a statement. “I’m grateful to the jurors who once again have shown that we are a community that deeply values integrity, fairness, and accountability.”
https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/santa-clara-co-former-sheriffs-captain-jjames-ensen-guilty-bribery-ccw-concealed-weapon-permits/
I don’t understand how D.A. Rosen can even make such a statement. He prosecutes people because it benefits his associates. There is no integrity, fairness, or accountability in such prosecutions, particularly when the filing is against a crime victim.
The district attorney is supposed serve as an example to everyone else. He is supposed to exude goodness.
I don’t want my kids to be raped. Jeff Rosen doesn’t take “no” for an answer. He is promoting child rape culture within the county through his poor example.
I hope that he gets voted out at the next election.
There is a new article in the Mercury News relating to Jeff Rosen’s lawless action to get killers off of death row. Libby Williams Allen wrote an op-ed, asking for Rosen to not give leniency to the person who murdered her husband and six other people.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/10/02/opinion-reversing-mass-murderer-death-sentence-my-husband/
She made a good point. Rosen is claiming to undo the sentencing because of “racial injustice.” Ms. Williams Allen stated that most of the victims and perpetrators from Santa Clara County that are on death row are all white.
Ms. Williams Allen also says that she has been begging Mr. Rosen all summer to halt his resentencing attempts. It all fell on deaf ears. This doesn’t surprise me. This District Attorney cares nothing about crime victims. He won’t even stop the people raping my kids or the assaults perpetrated against me.
I strongly believe that Jeff Rosen is more suited to be a criminal defense attorney than a law enforcer.
There is more fallout from Jeff Rosen helping convicted murderers get off death row. It was reported today that the victims from these cases are organizing a recall of D.A. Rosen. Even his predecessor (Dolores Carr) is condemning Rosen’s actions and supporting the recall.
“DA Rosen comes in 2024 and decides he doesn’t like the death penalty anymore and he’s going to go back and redo these cases because of his personal opinion regardless of the victim’s families,” she said.
https://www.kron4.com/news/bay-area/murder-victims-families-push-to-recall-santa-clara-county-da-rosen/
I believe that he is out of touch. Rosen doesn’t listen to the families that are being impacted by his actions.
Watch the victims complain:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAc_EXSZQN0
Watch some of the victims were failed by Rosen:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAc_EXSZQN0
There is a new ruling in the Daniel Chung case. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeal has ruled that the case can proceed to trial.
https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/ca9/23-16103/23-16103-2024-11-05.html
You can see the arguments here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdxyfBPdE3k
Jeff Rosen has been employing a private attorney to represent himself and the county. This is a complete waste of money during a time when there is a budget shortfall that directly affects how the D.A.’s Office will function.
https://sanjosespotlight.com/state-california-budget-cuts-will-hurt-santa-clara-county-domestic-violence-services/
https://sanjosespotlight.com/domestic-abuse-violence-cases-overwhelm-silicon-valley-bay-area-santa-clara-county-district-attorney-da-prosecutors/
Rosen just doesn’t care. He has already paid Mr. Chung hundreds of thousands of dollars to stay at home.
D.A. Rosen’s problem is that he just doesn’t care about crime victims. He said it himself after an accusation from Daniel Chung during a 2022 election debate.
Hear it for yourself:
https://youtu.be/fG2qmpB1PnU?t=3839
I have been begging him to send investigators to my kid’s home. Rosen just ignores me.
D.A. Rosen is more focused on political prosecutions that favor his friends. He accused Anthony Becker of leaking a Civil Grand Jury report. Many of Becker’s colleagues had also done so, but Becker ran against Rosen’s supporter for mayor of Santa Clara. He had his house ransacked twice and was put into handcuffs by the D.A.’s investigators, then charged. No other leakers were investigated.
https://sanjosespotlight.com/the-political-assassination-of-santa-clara-city-councilman-anthony-becker/
https://sanjosespotlight.com/santa-clara-official-anthony-becker-perjury-trial-sheds-light-on-alleged-lies/