Hatch loses dispute over judge
By BRIAN BAKST Associated Press Writer
ST. PAUL (AP) - Attorney General Mike Hatch failed Friday in his effort to disqualify a judge from a case, a procedural defeat in an unusually public feud.
Ramsey County District Judge Gregg Johnson said his colleague, Judge William Leary III, won't have to give up the gavel in a couple of debt-collection lawsuits Hatch's office is pursuing.
The dispute, which boiled over this summer, is also the basis of a Republican ethics complaint against Hatch. The GOP accuses Hatch of making improper contact with a judge and trying to intimidate him.
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The tussle got extra attention because Hatch is the Democratic candidate for governor.
In court filings, Hatch and lawyers in his office accused Leary of making comments construed as biased in favor of the defendants, whose debt-collection practices are under fire. Hatch caught flak for making an after-hours phone call to confront Leary, which exposed the attorney general to the allegations that he broke court conduct rules.
Johnson said there was nothing wrong with Leary trying to facilitate settlement negotiations between Hatch's office and the debt collectors. He wrote that removing Leary from the case would set a dangerous precedent.
"It would further create havoc within our system of justice if a party was allowed to make disparaging remarks about a trial judge to the press and then demand the judge's removal from the case based on tensions created by that party's own actions," Johnson wrote.
Hatch's office reacted to the ruling with a written statement.
"While we respect the court's decision, we are obviously disappointed with the outcome," it read. "We are reviewing our options at this time."
Hatch has argued there was nothing improper about his June 12 call to Leary to discuss the case. He initially said the call was harmless and lasted less than a minute, but Leary's version conflicts with Hatch's. The judge produced records showing a seven-minute call, which Hatch later confirmed.
Leary was appointed to the bench in 2002 by Independence Party Gov. Jesse Ventura. Besides court filings that give his account, Leary has kept a low profile.
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Brian Bakst can be reached at bbakst(at)ap.org
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)