Contact: C. Edward Mack

By C. Edward Mack

THE LOS ANGELES METROPOLITAN NEWS NEEDS TO GET THEIR FACTS STRAIGHT

My campaigns have always been grassroots because of having limited funds to hire professional campaign workers and consultants. In the primary campaign of June 2006, I had several supporters and confidants suggest that I hire a professional writer to re-work my campaign literature in a more professional style, so I hired someone, who I believed did an excellent job. The information that I supplied to the writer was in a document entitled, "resume". It said, "Legal Experience. More than 22 years of legal experience (17 years criminal experience as a trial attorney and five years legal experience in the civil field as a law clerk)." The document went on to describe in detail what I did at the Municipal Court and at the Office of the Public Defender, a chronological breakdown of my work experiences, professional affiliations, military history, awards and honors, a list of supporters and statements from some key supporters. The writer produced several documents. Initially there were the ones entitled, "Resume", "I will make a difference-Resume" (with my picture on the cover page), and "Fund-raising with Qualifications" (with my picture on the cover page). All of these documents had the exact language aforementioned that I had supplied. In the end, the writer developed a more attractive and professional looking letterhead for the literature that had my picture on the cover page. There were two versions, both listed under qualifications, "Five years civil experience" as the first bullet point, then under the third bullet point the documents said "Experience reviewing cases. Clerked for the presiding judges of the Los Angeles Municipal Court from December 1985 to September 1990, evaluating cases for entry of civil default judgments and ex parte orders". Furthermore the documents had the exact language I provided listed again within the documents. Additionally, the writer placed the same information that was generated, on the internet on the League of Women Voters website: http://smartvoter.org/2006/06/06/ca/la/vote/mack_c/. Although I take full responsibility for information that is generated by my campaign, to my knowledge no such campaign literature or other document claiming that I have five years of civil experience "practicing law as a civil attorney" exists. I do not believe that any of the professionally prepared documents were misleading. Nor do I believe that published documents implying such came out of my campaign, and certainly none which have been sanctioned by me.

I can only conclude what the Met-News is saying is that I have no right to say I have 5 years of civil experience, and to do so is misleading. I worked in the Municipal Court in the Legal Processing Department; first as a law clerk while in law school as a part-time employee (though I worked 40-hours per week), then about 2 years later as a full time law clerk with benefits. After graduating from law school and passing the bar, the Municipal Court promoted me to a Supervisor of Court Defaults then to a Research Attorney. The Met-News is saying that the civil experience as a law clerk doesn't count as civil experience, even though I was responsible for reviewing and evaluating cases for entry of civil default judgments and ex parte orders for the presiding Municipal Court Judges. Evaluations included such cases as breach of contracts, common counts, torts, promissory notes, Unruh's, mechanic's lien, auto leases, Rees-Leverings, claim and deliveries, civil and unlawful detainer stipulations, and unlawful detainers. The Met-News is saying that the civil experience as a law clerk doesn't count as civil experience even though I was also responsible for reviewing ex-parte applications and orders, such as writs of attachments and possession and stay orders for writs of execution, and noticed motions, such as demurrers, motions to strike and summary judgments.

Why in the world is this misleading, and why can't this be considered as civil experience? Especially when I went to great lengths to make sure that it was understood that I gained this civil experience while clerking for the judges? Though the Met-News claims I said I had 5 years civil experience in the practice of law as a civil attorney in an interview, this is an outright lie and I challenge the Met-News to review my two previous interviews with them THAT WERE TAPE RECORDED. I challenge the Met-News to produce the proof to back up their baseless claim. Anyone can review the interviews of the two past campaigns that I did with the LA County Bar, the Los Angeles Times and the Daily Journal and any other publication. Review the interviews I had with any other organization or individual including the LA County Democratic Party, the Democratic Party of the San Fernando Valley, the New Frontier Democratic Club, The Pasadena/Foothill Democratic Club, The Malibu Democratic Club, the San Fernando Valley Republican Club, the Courtroom Clerks Association, the LA County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO, LA County Sheriff Lee Baca, U.S. Congresswomen Diane E. Watson and Maxine Waters, CA State Senator Mark Ridley-Thomas, CA Assemblymen Jerome Horton and Mervyn Dymally; who by the way, all endorsed me in the last election, and show me where I ever said I had five years civil experience in the practice of law as a civil attorney. I have always, always, always stated clearly that I have five years civil experience while working as a law clerk for the Municipal Court. Furthermore the Met-News insists that I was a court-room clerk at the Municipal Court. I have never been a court-room clerk. I was a law clerk working in the Legal Processing Department. This information can be easily verified by checking with the judges I worked with that include; Justice Richard Paez, currently serving in the Federal Court, Larry Fidler, Jon Mayeda, Susan Bruguera, Karl Jaeger, Juanita Veron and Diana Wheatley to name a few and retired Commissioner Anthony Filosa, who personally supervised the Legal Processing Department before becoming a commissioner.

The Met-News mentioned that I was rated qualified for the Superior Court twice by the LA County Bar, but didn't mention that in the last election I was rated exceptionally well qualified by the Langston Bar Association. I was also given an outstanding rating by the Black Women Lawyers of Los Angeles which ranged from exceptionally well-qualified and well-qualified, "having a noted degree of experience and training, skill, leadership, integrity and several abilities to serve competently in the role of judge, based on an extensive review" in an endorsement for appointment that was made for me to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger just a few months ago. The Met-News always concludes that I have little or no chance to win an election because I don't have much money, and no political advisor or consultant and that I am basically wasting my time...the implication....that I should quit. Our country is built on the foundation of government by and for the people, not by and for only those who can afford to pay for it. What the Met-News obviously doesn't understand about me is that I have never been a person of privilege or connections, and I am use to working hard for what I want, and that I am undaunted by the difficulties I always face along the way to each objective and ambition. They don't appreciate and can't understand my character for being tenacious and having a never say die work ethic and that I will overcome the odds of their negative predictions because I refuse to quit. Quitters never win, and winners never quit.