Development in the DA induced civil court logjam

As the readers of the IELB know, I have been very distressed by the lack of civil trials in our fair county. Indeed, I have not shied from appointing blame for the virtual shutdown of the civil justice on the District Attorney's Office. I am not alone in believing that the current system cannot continue. The PE reports that the plaintiffs in a construction defect lawsuit petitioned the local court of appeal for relief from the backlog. The California Code of Civil Procedure requires that civil actions proceed to trial within five years of the date of filing. The plaintiffs' lawsuit was originally filed over 2002. They did not get at trial within the statutorily allowed period of time.

It will be very interesting to see how the Court of Appeal responds. The current situation simply cannot continue. Each and every plaintiff with an outstanding case is simply being deprived of justice by the current backlog. The article concludes by stating that Riverside County should have 133 judges but only has 76 judges. There is no question but that this is true. However, this shortage of judgeships predated the start of current District Attorney Ron Pacheco's tenure. It is plain that the district attorney's policies (discussed ad nauseum previously) are the cause of the backlog.