Apparently Oakland has a different standard when judges are arrested for
soliciting prostitution. The judge's gray Cadillac, usually a hot item for
seizure under Oakland's ordinance, wasn't touched.
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Saturday, March 20, 2004 (SF Chronicle)
ALAMEDA COUNTY/Judge pleads no contest to misdemeanor/He may face probe, reassignment
Henry K. Lee, Chronicle Staff Writer


   A well-respected Alameda County judge arrested for allegedly trying to buy
sex from an undercover Oakland police officer posing as a prostitute
pleaded no contest Friday to a lesser charge of disturbing the peace.
   Superior Court Judge Jack Gifford, 76, a judge since 1981, will probably
face a separate investigation by the Commission on Judicial Performance,
the state judicial watchdog agency.
   A judge convicted of a misdemeanor could receive an advisory letter or a
private or public admonishment or be removed from the bench, depending on
the severity of the case, said Victoria Henley, commission spokeswoman.
   Gifford, an Oakland resident whose wife died in 1999, was not required to
appear Friday in an Alameda courtroom, where the case was transferred to
avoid any appearance of a conflict of interest. Gifford handled criminal
cases at the Wiley Manuel Courthouse in Oakland.
   Gifford agreed Friday to plead no contest to a misdemeanor charge of
disturbing the peace -- specifically, making too much noise -- and pay a
$250 fine, said his attorney, Michael Cardoza of San Francisco.
   "This is not the real punishment," Cardoza said outside court. "The
deleterious effect it has on him, he will suffer outside the courtroom."
   Prosecutors had originally charged Gifford with a misdemeanor count of
soliciting an act of prostitution. A no-contest plea is the same as a
guilty plea, except the conviction cannot be used against the defendant in
a civil lawsuit.
   In Alameda County, first-time prostitution offenders typically are offered
the chance to plead guilty to a lesser charge of disturbing the peace and
pay a fine of $120. But unlike most people, Gifford was not placed on
probation Friday or ordered to undergo HIV testing, enroll in an AIDS
education class or stay out of areas of prostitution.
   In court Friday, Cardoza told Judge Peter Smith that there would have been
"blood in the courtroom" if the case had continued to trial. As for the
compromise reached by attorneys, "neither side is happy with that, but we
can live with the result."
   When Smith asked whether Cardoza had confirmed the details of the plea
with his client, Cardoza said, "I felt quote-unquote funny talking to him
about his rights, since he's an experienced juror."
   On March 3, Gifford, behind the wheel of his gray Cadillac, drove up to a
female Oakland police decoy at San Pablo Avenue and Brockhurst Street,
court documents show.
   "You want a date?" she asked, the police report said. "Yeah," Gifford
said. "You got a place to go?" she asked. "Yeah. My place," he said. "OK.
Where's that?" "Over by Lake Merritt," he said.
   She asked if he wanted a specific sex act, and he used street slang
referring to two types of sex, the police report said.
   After the decoy said it would cost $40 and pointed for him to meet her at
the corner of San Pablo and 33rd Street, she signaled to waiting police to
arrest him. The arrest was caught on video and audio, police said.
   Gifford remains on vacation until the end of the month, after which
Presiding Judge Barbara Miller will decide where he will be assigned, said
Joanne Lederman, an Alameda County courts assistant executive officer.
   James Murphy, a San Francisco attorney who has represented judges accused
of wrongdoing, said Friday that he doubted Gifford would be removed.
   "I seriously doubt they would seek removal or even censure, but because of
the notoriety, there is the possibility that they would seek to impose
public discipline," Murphy said.
   Gifford could very well return to hearing criminal matters with the
exception of prostitution cases, or all criminal matters without any
restrictions, his attorney said, adding that the judge has not made any
definite plans.
   "He could retire if he wants," Cardoza said. "It's absolutely up to him.
He's taking time to think about it. He's not going to make a decision in
an emotional state."
   E-mail Henry K. Lee at hlee@sfchronicle.com. ----------------------------------------------------------------------
Copyright 2004 SF Chronicle

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