Haggerty

Alameda County Supervisor Scott Haggerty has been appointed chairman of the National Association of Counties’ Transportation Steering Committee. See full release below.

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Before the Alameda County Board of Supervisors tackled a lengthy, controversial hearing yesterday on whether to immediately appoint Nancy O’Malley to succeed imminently retiring Alameda County District Attorney Tom Orloff, they passed a resolution celebrating the 10th anniversary of the “sister county” relationship with Taoyuan County, Taiwan.

Supervisor Scott Haggerty, he of the recently shifting political allegiances, noted that during a visit to Taoyuan County, he discovered that the equivalent title to “supervisor” there is “governor,” and so he was being introduced around as “Governor Haggerty.”

“I really enjoyed that,” he said.

Death-penalty opponents have taken up a call begun by local officials last week for the Alameda County Board of Supervisors to take more time and care in appointing a replacement for District Attorney Tom Orloff.

The Alameda County Coalition for Alternatives to the Death Penalty — which includes local League of Women Voters chapters, the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California, Death Penalty Focus, and various religious congregations — will ask the Board at its meeting tomorrow “to implement a fair, open and transparent process for selecting an interim District Attorney,” according to its news release. The Board has placed “consideration” of the appointment on the agenda but not made public what process, if any, will be used to select an interim appointee; Orloff urged the board last week to appoint Chief Assistant District Attorney Nancy O’Malley to succeed him, saying she’s the most qualified and knowledgable person to deal with the office’s issues.

“Our concern is with the process for filling a vacancy caused by an incumbent resigning a few months before an election,” Marion Taylor of the League of Women Voters in Oakland said in the coalition’s release. “By appointing someone now, they create a different race for the office when it comes up for election.”

“The interim District Attorney will have the authority to make key decisions, such as seeking the death penalty rather than permanent imprisonment, which costs the county millions of additional tax dollars,” said Stefanie Faucher of Death Penalty Focus. “The Board needs to consider the serious consequences of this decision for the people of Alameda County.”

“Appointing an interim District Attorney is one of the most important duties delegated to the Board of Supervisors and it is not a decision that should be made behind closed doors,” said Natasha Minsker of the Northern California ACLU. “We are asking the Board to implement a fair, open and transparent process to ensure that Alameda County residents can know how this critical decision will be made.”

The coalition says 67 community groups have adopted its resolution calling for the District Attorney to stop pursing death sentences, and more than 1,500 individuals have signed its petition.