February 25, 2008

Today I attended the Santa Clara County Superior Court pre-trial conference of Sargent Binkley at the Palo Alto Courthouse, Dept 84, Judge Thang Nguyen Barrett presiding.

Here is my report of the proceedings, Monday, February 25th, 2008

At about 2:30 p.m., Sargent Binkley and his two attorneys were called. Attorney Charles J. (Chuck) Smith of Redwood City announced that he has filed a request to be joined in the defense in Santa Clara County by Attorney at Law, Edward G. Fernandez, and that request was accepted by the court.

Neither of the two court-ordered reports* were available. One of the two doctors, Dr. Chamberlain, had written the court requesting an extension in submitting his report until March 7th, 2008. Judge Barrett granted that extension. Assistant District Attorney Deborah Medved announced that a document had been received in the court from the other appointee, Dr. Ashley Cohen, PhD. However, Medved said, "we don't know where it is; we're trying to track it down". Dr. Cohen's report had been due on Friday, February 22d, and since Sargent has not been interviewed by her, this missing document is presumed to be a request for something from the court, e.g. an extension.

The pre-trial conference will be continued at a later date.

Sargent Binkley's Santa Clara County jury trial in the Palo Alto Courthouse is still scheduled for Monday, April 7th at 8:45 a.m.
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* The two medical examiners had been appointed under Section 1027 of the Penal Code. They were to "determine if the person has a diagnosed mental disorder such that he or she is likely to engage in acts of criminality without appropriate treatment and custody" and to state their conclusion "as to this question based upon the language below".

The test for legal insanity is whether a criminal defendant proves by a preponderance of the evidence that
"he or she was incapable of knowing or understanding the nature and quality of his or her act and of
distinguishing right from wrong at the time of commission of the offense." In any criminal proceeding in
which a plea of not guity by reason of insantiy is entered, this defense shall not be based solely on the basis
of a personality of adjustment disorder, a seizure disorder, or an addiction to or abuse of intoxicating substances.

Notes:

Before the court opened, I introduced myself to Sargent Binkley who was seated in the audience with his parents. He was impeccably dressed in a blue blazer, white shirt and tie. It looks like he has been eating well, and appeared calm and composed. He had been brought from his bail location, The Jericho House in Daly City by one of that treatment center's staff, Adrian. Adrian later came down to my seat to say hello. He recognized me from classes we had attended together at the College of San Mateo. Judge Barrett didn't appear right away, and when he did there were a series of preliminary hearings for persons in jail suits, some in chains.

Before the hearing, I was asked by Sarge's attorney, Chuck Smith if I were a part of the Binkley group. I said yes. I was impressed with the fervor of Smith who said that that this case was not just for Sargent, but for all the men and women who return from service suffering from PTSD. He was very glad to see me and thanked me several times for coming to show support. He repeated his thanks again after court, and asked how I had known about this case. I told him that I had received an email from Troy Ryder, USMA '94. Smith said Troy's been doing a great job. I told Attorney Smith I hesitated to send him informative emails about Sarge. He said they would not be a bother and to please send them. Finally, he said he again appreciated my show of support by being there and hoped that there would be a large show of support in attendance at the April 7th jury trial.

Regarding letters that you can send, I quote from the Support Sarge Web site, http://supportsarge.org/:

"The district attorney presently handling the case in Santa Clara Country is Deborah Medved; up until the trial, she has the discretion to offer a plea deal to Sargent's legal team. Public pressure may help convince Ms. Medved to consider Sargent's circumstances and offer a fair deal instead of going to trial. We are also soliciting letters of support to elected officials, please click the link for their addresses.

Steve Wagstaffe, the assistant DA in San Mateo County, will conclude his prosecution once proceedings in Santa Clara County are finished. In spite of his private offer to reduce the charges, he has not made any personal appeal to the Santa Clara District Attorney's office to remove the gun charge and pursue a more lenient sentence including probation and treatment. Letters or phone calls to his office in support of Sargent are equally as important as those to the District Attorney in Santa Clara County, because they may convince Mr. Wagstaffe to influence the outcome of sentencing there."

See the "How You can Help" section of the Support Sarge Web site at: http://supportsarge.org/?q=node/8 for addresses and sample letters.