News Scrapbook 1985

Loa Angeles , CA (Loa Angeles Co.) Loa Angeles Dally Journal (Cir. SxW. 21 ,287)

La Jolla, CA {San Diego co.) La Jolla Light {Cir. W. 9,293)

NOV 2 0 1985

NOV 21 1985

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Many La Jollans were among the 500 guests at the Universit) of San Di~o Dean's Ball held .. ov. 15 at the Hotel Inter- Continental. Joining the fun were Doug Manchester, USD Tru tee and his wife, Betsy (abon). Proceeds from the fund- r iser w'ent to the five academic schools at the university. Pic- ured below are two cheerful recipients:Oeft) Sheldon Krantz, Law cbool Dean and James M. Bums, Business Dean (right

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U.S. Navy, and their work often forced them to relocate. "I llved all over the U.S. as a kid. I went to eight grade schools, three high schools, two junior colleges, three colleges, and one law school," he says. In 1966, he was was a student at San Diego State College, and plaMed to become a for- eign service officer. He earned his bache- lor's degree in Asian studies and history in 1968, and was offered a scholarship to attend a foreign service school in Hawaii. But when the scholarship was canceled at the last min- ute, and he lacked enough money to attend another graduate school program, he recalls he taught parochial school in San Diego for a year, and "as a lark, took the law school en- trance exam." He scored well enough to be accepted to the University of San Diego on a scholarship, and he received bis law degree in 1973. He was a clerk in the San Diego County district attorney's office while he attended law school, and was hired as a deputy after he graduated. Duchnick spent eight years as a deputy district attorney, and for several years beaded a task force that prosecuted the Hell's Angels and other motorcycle gangs. He also was assigned to the organized crime and special prosecution unit; in this position, he was designated an assistant U.S. attor- ney, as well as a deputy district attorney, which enabled him to prosecute cases in fed- eral as well as state court. He left the district attorney"s office in 1981 and set up a sole practice ln downtown San Diego. He handled criminal defense cases, and hoped to eventually specialize in civil and administrative law. But Instead of main- taining his practice, he decided to apply for a municipal court commissioner's job, and was appointed to the position on June 'Zl, 198:$. Likes the Courtroom He explains he wanted to become a com- missioner because "as a trial lawyer for eight years or so, you either get burned out or you get tremendously enamored of the courtroom. I wanted to be a judicial officer. I like being In the courtroom. I like to handle cases. I thought it would be a real challenge, and I'm right." "I like the Input that you have in people's lives," he adds about his work. "You have the ability every week to touch a lot of lives.... Society pays you in three ways; sociologists will tell you they pay you with power, prestige, and money. "We (commissioners) certainly have a little bit of power.... There's a little bit of prestige, if you earn it. And the money's de- - REBECCA KUZINS cent. I'm satisfied."

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role. He makes them (the litigants) feel as if they have their right to their day in court.•• A criminal defense lawyer recalls be en- joyed appearing before Duchnick two years ago, when Duchnick was serving as a pro tern Judge and presiding at misdemeanor trials. ''He knows the law, has a good feel for peo- ple," says the attorney. " I always had a feel- ing that be was a student of the law. He enjoyed a good legal argument. For him, be- ing a commissioner was not so much a job as an extension of being a lawyer." The San Diego Municipal Court has since altered its policies, and commissioners no longer a ssigned to misdemeanor trials. The defe ttomey questions the wisdom of the new ·cy because "it's a shame to have Comm· loner Duchnlck doing what he's doing. He ould be a good judge." eeking Judgeship Duchnick also believes he would be a good judge, and explains he has applied to Gov. George Deukmejian for a position. Last year, he was one of six candidates to enter the June primary for an open seat on the San Diego Municipal Court. In addition to Duch- nick, two of the other three municipal court commissioners entered the race, including William Mudd, who won the seat in the No- vember runoff. "Bill and I are good friends," says Duch- nlck. "We sat down ahead of time and said whatever happens in the race, it would not endanger our working relationship or friendship. He and I were the only Republi- cans in the race. We wound up speaking to the same Republican groups and not being able to take on an adversary position, be- cause we liked each other, and it wasn't very judicial to argue against each other, any- way So it was who could be nicer than the o erguy." Duchnick expresses more frustration about some of the other aspects of the cam- paign. He recalls the time all six candidates appeared for a public debate and were greeted by an audience of only two specta- tors. Fund-raising was difficult, and his radio ads, emphasizing his experience as a deputy district attorney and promoting a tough law-and-order stance, failed to arouse apathetic voters. But there also were some unexpected bo- nuses. Although the San Diego Union en- dorsed Mudd in the June primary, Duchnick says the newspaper "highly recommended me to the governor for an appointment." Duchnick obtained about 9 percent of the vote in the primary, placing filth out of the six candidates. Duchnlck, 43, was born In New London, Conn. His father and stepfather were in the

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th nse or th r familiarity "w 1th th court- mall cl !ms ca s. "We hear the complaint, hear the f ct , discern th I u , and then II the produ t to th m in terms of them under- t ding how th y tem works, on an aver- age of 15 to 22 minut ca .... "The important thing I I've found that lit• I nt c n live with wheth r they win or I What really up t th m Is If they think the court didn't treat th m properly or that they wer n't list ned to. So when I say you have to II the product to them, I mean you have to hav them teav with the Impression that they had a d y in court, that they were listened to and treated pproprlately, That's somellm hard to do when you're hearing 14 to 16 trial a day." Many municipal court judg and com- missioners complain that h ndling mall claims and traffic ca v ntually becom repetitious and uncha.llenglng Duchnlck ac• knowledg s his work "can become rote If you're not careful. And that's d ngerous be- cause there I a samene about It, even n mall claim wh re you have a wide variety of ca . After a while, they tend to flt In the me cat gory. . . . In traffic court, there probably ar about 20 responses to anything anyon can say . So you hav to work v ry h rd I k pin a fresh perspective " He dd h p his pe pecUve by m in• talnlng a nse of humor about his work. The wall or hi cham t the Kearney Mesa branch courlhou ar covered with cari- catu of lawyers and judges drawn by Charles Bragg nd Honore Daumier· he ys jokingly that he mak a conscious ef- fort not to beh ve like the judge who are lampooned In th Bragg Illustrations. And when h Is on the bench, h says he carefully I te to th IJtlgant , and often smiles in- ardly wh n hears m thing that Is funny or out of the ordinary. room," h ys about th

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