No Charges Filed Over Assistant D.A’s Use of Files

The state attorney general’s office said Wednesday that it won’t file felony charges against Assistant Dist. Atty. Brent Romney for asking a secretary to pull sentencing files of Superior Court Judge Anthony Rackauckas, a Romney rival for district attorney in 1998.

Chief Assistant Atty. Gen. George Williamson said there is “insufficient and inconclusive evidence to establish beyond a reasonable doubt” that Romney’s motive for researching Rackauckas’ sentences was “purely political.” It is a felony to use county resources for political purposes. The office also cleared Romney of wrongdoing in an allegation that he used public resources to distribute candidate fliers for his campaign.

“No crime occurred,” Williamson wrote.

The file-pulling episode promised to embarrass both Romney, in his first run for public office, and Dist. Atty. Michael R. Capizzi, running for attorney general next year on his record of fighting political corruption. Capizzi’s career highlights include the conviction of former Orange County Supervisor Bob Battin for the same felony violation of misusing county resources for which Romney was investigated.

Neither Romney nor Rackauckas could be reached for comment Wednesday.

Capizzi said his office’s administrative investigation of the incident has been on hold pending a decision by Atty. Gen Dan Lungren’s office.

“Since they have concluded there is no basis for anything of a criminal nature, we will have to determine if there are any ramifications from a personnel point of view,” Capizzi said. “But those decisions are confidential and private. It is not something we will be able to discuss.”

While the closing of the investigation ends the matter criminally, it promises to reverberate next year in the district attorney’s race.

“He’s dead politically,” California Republican Party Chairman Michael Schroeder said of Romney, one of three candidates in the race with Rackauckas and Assistant Dist. Atty. Wallace J. Wade.

At issue were allegations by Deputy Dist. Atty. Sean Stafford that, in August, Romney had an office secretary gather files to research a list of 13 felony cases prosecuted before Rackauckas. They were three-strikes cases in which the defendant was sentenced to less than the maximum time.

Romney, who supervises misdemeanor cases in Municipal Court, said he pulled the files to check the accuracy of a “three-strikes” case report that the office generates monthly. He denied pulling the files to use the information later in the campaign to charge that Rackauckas was soft on crime.

Among those demanding an investigation of Romney’s conduct was Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Huntington Beach), whose wife, Rhonda Carmony, is being prosecuted on felony charges stemming from a controversial 1995 special election. She is due back in court next month for trial after a jury deadlocked in favor of conviction in her first trial, prosecuted by Romney.

Assemblyman Scott Baugh (R-Huntington Beach) also is being prosecuted on charges stemming from the election. A Municipal Court judge threw out some of the charges Wednesday and ordered both sides to seek a compromise in the case.

“The assistant D.A. and his henchmen blow any minor infraction into felony charges for people they don’t like, and now their cronies in the legal system bend over backward to hide their illegal misconduct,” Rohrabacher said in a statement. “It appears that the only time these public servants are going to get their comeuppance is when they come before the voters.”

Times political writer Peter M. Warren contributed to this article.