The questions were prepared by the the Leagues of Women Voters of Santa Clara County and asked of all candidates for this office.

See below for questions on Sentencing, Juvenile Probation Department, Juvenile Crime Act

Click on a name for other candidate information.   See also more information about this contest.

Answer from William J. Monahan:

I understand the importance of keeping our community safe. I will take into consideration all of the factors in aggravation and mitigation that the court must evaluate. I will consider the seriousness or violent nature of the crime, the injuries to the victim, the age and circumstances of defendant, the defendant's criminal history, and other relevant matters brought before me.

Answer from Teresa Guerrero-Daley:

As a judge, I will be required to follow the sentencing guidelines and consider such areas as the nature of the crime, the harm to the victim and family, the defendant's criminal history, and any mitigating factors.

Answer from Teresa Guerrero-Daley:

The Presiding Judge is the spokesperson for the courts. If Measure A passes, it is an issue that could still be litigated therefore, the Canons of Judicial Conduct preclude judges and candidates from speaking to issues that may come before the courts.

However, more important than who is in control of the Probation Department, is the need to address the public concern that arose from allegations of improper treatment of minors in the Juvenile Hall. Any reform must take in consideration the safety of the probation officers that work in these facilities. In order to address these allegations, a fair, objective, and thorough process to address such complaints should be implemented. As the Independent Police Auditor, I work with these type of allegations and years of experience has taught me that even if the allegations are unfounded, the perception that such conduct occurred must still be addressed. Instituting mechanisms to intake, document, and investigate complaints coupled with methods of communicating the findings to the complainants is a good way to address these concerns and rebuild public confidence.

Answer from William J. Monahan:

The youth are our future. To solve the problems at juvenile hall and the probation department, it will take a collaboration between the courts and county board of supervisors. The focus must be on working together to improve the conditions, not grabbing power from each other. The system is seriously flawed. Now is the time to work together to fix it.

Answer from William J. Monahan:

If I were writing the law, I would have judges, not prosecutors decide which minors should be tried as an adult. That said, as a judge I will follow the law, whether I agree with it or not. There are some minors that must be tried as adults in order to keep our community safe. When they are, the accused defendant has all the guaranteed rights of an adult, such as the right to speedy and public jury trial where twelve members of the community must unanimously find them guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Answer from Teresa Guerrero-Daley:

I have known George Kennedy, District Attorney for Santa Clara County, for many years and know him to be a fair and reasonable leader. Since the passage and implementation of the Juvenile Crime Act, and in talking to my colleagues in the legal community, I have no information that would lead me to believe that a pattern of abuse of discretion exists in Santa Clara County.

The order of the candidates is random and changes daily.