Temecula Lawyer Seeks Seat on Superior Court Bench

A Temecula attorney seeking to unseat a Riverside County Superior Court judge in Tuesday's election says his opponent has a record of not "following the law'' and has made decisions harmful to the public, which the judge asserts is completely "made up'' for political purposes and evidence of his challenger's unfitness for a seat on the bench.

Richard T. Nixon, 57, of Valley Center is challenging Judge Gary B. Tranbarger, 60, of Riverside in the June 5 primary. Voters countywide will determine the winner of the judicial race, and whoever prevails will serve a six-year term.

Nixon, who is married and the father of two adult children, retired from the Riverside County District Attorney's Office in 2006 after 18 years as a prosecutor and is now in private practice in Temecula. The attorney told City News Service that he was inspired to run after months of hearing from friends in the legal community about the need "to replace a judge who is not following the law.''

"This is not about me wanting to be a judge,'' Nixon said. "I'm doing this because someone needs to do it. Gary Tranbarger needs to be replaced.''

Nixon has compiled a string of cases over which Tranbarger presided that the lawyer claims demonstrate the jurist's disregard of public safety and inappropriate exercise of discretion where the law is clear.

Topping the list is People vs. George Lewis Thornton. According to court papers, the repeat offender was convicted of robbing a wheelchair-dependent cerebral palsy patient -- whose life he threatened for $20 -- in 1995.

Thornton had three felony strikes on his record, warranting a sentence of 35 years to life in prison, according to Nixon, who said Tranbarger set aside two of the defendant's strikes and imposed a 16-year sentence. The District Attorney's Office appealed, leading the California Fourth District Court of Appeal to conclude that Tranbarger had "abused his discretion,'' court papers state.

The case was remanded back to the judge, who -- six years later -- imposed the maximum punishment sought by prosecutors under the three-strikes law. "This is representative of Judge Tranbarger's conduct,'' Nixon said. "It's that kind of outright refusal to follow the law that should worry people.''

Tranbarger said he chose to set aside the strikes on Thornton's record because the defendant "had no acts of violence in his background.'' In their decision, however, the appellate justices noted that in one of his earlier robberies, Thornton had broken into a 77-year-old neighbor's house and thrown him to the floor before stealing his money.

The Riverside County Deputy District Attorneys' Association, which has contributed more than $15,000 to Nixon's campaign, lists other cases in which, the union argues, Tranbarger exceeded his authority.

According to the RCDDA, while presiding in People vs. Victor Ung last year, the judge held off-the-record meetings with the prosecution and defense, trying to pressure the D.A.'s office to plea bargain the case.

Ung is accused of multiple counts of child molestation for allegedly sexually abusing his daughter from the time she was 3 years old until she was 13. If convicted, the defendant could face 80 years in prison.

According to the RCDDA, Tranbarger believed some of the charges should be dropped, and when prosecutors refused to negotiate a deal, the judge "began making rulings to get a desired result.'' Jurors hung 9-3 in favor of convicting Ung. Another trial has since been held with the same result, and the D.A.'s office is expected to move ahead with a third trial later this year.

Tranbarger declined to comment on the case. "My concern with the D.A.'s association and Mr. Nixon is that they make stuff up when they try to come up with a reason as to why I shouldn't be re- elected,'' the judge said."People should not make stuff up just to try and win a political race. If you can't be trusted to tell the truth as a candidate, why should anyone trust that you will be a good judge?''

Tranbarger said Nixon and the prosecutors' union have wrongly claimed that former District Attorney Grover Trask had sought to block him from hearing criminal cases because of a perceived bias. "Grover Trask is a big supporter of mine,'' the judge said. "He was one of the first people to endorse me.''

Trask's successor, former D.A. Rod Pacheco, did challenge Tranbarger's authority to hear criminal cases, filing repeated motions to disqualify him, which eventually led to his hearing only civil matters. That ended shortly after the election of D.A. Paul Zellerbach, a former judge, whom Tranbarger acknowledged is a personal friend and to whose campaign he contributed in 2010.

Nixon said Tranbarger has "made comments to people that indicate he feels superior to others and has a superior intellect,'' which can impact courtroom dynamics and affect juries.

"A good judge listens and creates a comfortable and pleasant atmosphere so that litigants and their attorneys can do their best work,'' Nixon said. "That's how I would run my courtroom. It's a place where the people's business is conducted, and it's serious business.''

Tranbarger said that there is "no truth'' to allegations of his being dismissive or arrogant. The jurist said that, if re-elected, he would continue to "follow the law without outside influences, taking each case one at a time, treating each person who comes before me as an individual, just as I've been doing for 18 years.''