I was an outspoken supporter of Judge Gary Kreep. I enjoyed when the man spoke because he viewed the law from the lens of the US Constitution. Today, that appears to be his downfall:
Kreep, 63, was reassigned on Sept. 9 from the downtown San Diego courthouse to a Kearny Mesa facility that handles traffic offenses and small claims.
The move came after prosecutors from the City Attorney’s Office began to boycott his courtroom over his legal approach.
For instance, Kreep often declined to take away a defendant’s 4th Amendment rights against search and seizure — something prosecutors can legally request at various points during the criminal process.
I generally like City Attorney Goldsmith but, if his attorneys are complaining about Judge Kreep’s rulings on the Fourth Amendment, and the Presiding Judge is unilaterally acting upon those complaints, our system of jurisprudence is corrupted. Republicans would do well to stand for the rule of law on ALL accounts, not just when it suits them.
PS: UT-San Diego really needs to stop referring to Kreep as a “birther”. The man was an attorney representing a client. Not every client is a rational actor but all citizens, popular or not, are entitled to legal representation.
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Judge Kreep was the executive director of a birther group, not its lawyer, whatever else you want to say about him, it is entirely accurate to label him a birther.
http://www.sdcitybeat.com/sandiego/blog-1003-gary-kreep-needs-your-help-to-throw-obama-off-the-ballot.html.
That being said, I’m not a fan of the City Attorney’s use of blanket preemptions, even when used against birther wing-nuts.
Gary Kreep’s ill-advised obsession with the “birther” conspiracy is unfortunate. But Kreep’s obsession with enforcing the U.S. Constitution is spot-on. Would that other judges shared Kreep’s sadly unique “obsession.”