Kenai Judge Indicted for Perjury Has Arraignment Postponed


By Jessica Schultz Pleasant


Alaskans were prepared to be present at the May 9, 2023, arraignment of Judge Margaret Murphy, a retired Homer judge accused of perjuring herself before a Kenai grand jury on November 3, 2022. In a turn of events, the arraignment was postponed to June 23, 2023, due to an unexpected recusal by the originally assigned judge, Judge Jason M. Gist.

Judge Margaret Murphy

Murphy’s State bio was taken down after her indictment.



According to Anchorage Daily News, on May 8, 2023, Judge Margaret Murphy was indicted on April 28, 2023. She was indicted for perjury, a Class B felony, committed on November 3, 2022. Murphy’s arraignment was scheduled for May 9, 2023, at the 2:30 PM hearings in Kenai. 



Supporters of Haeg and the Alaska Grand Jurors’ Association were calling into the Kenai courtroom to listen to the arraignment on May 9 arraignment. Some uninformed Alaskans sat through hours of hearings only to find out the arraignment of Murphy was rescheduled. At the end of the May 9 afternoon hearing, citizen callers were addressed by the court clerk to clear the line for the day. A caller asked the clerk what day the arraignment was rescheduled to be on. The clerk declined to answer.

Referring to Alaska’s online CourtView, the hearing for Murphy’s arraignment has been rescheduled to June 23, 2023, Courtroom 4, at the Kenai Courthouse.

On April 28, 2023, charging documents were filed against Judge Margaret Murphy. Murphy’s indictment was filed in the Superior Court, following a grand jury's decision to formally accuse Murphy of perjury. The court then issued a summons with a written arraignment script, which obligated Murphy to appear in court.

The special prosecuting attorney, Clint Campion, pursued the case against Murphy on behalf of the State of Alaska. Campion practices at the Sedor Wendlandt, Evans and Filippi firm. According to their website, Campion served nine years in the U.S. Army. He is marked as a “Member/Owner” of the firm.

Furthermore, SWEF describe Campion as: “Clint’s practice focuses on litigation, education law, health care law, and employment law. His prior litigation experience focused on criminal jury trials and military courts-martial. Clint has expertise in representing service members and peace officers in need of legal representation.”



Clint Campion
Source: Sedor, Wendlandt, Evans and Filippi

According to Anchorage Daily News, “Campion was a longtime prosecutor and served as Anchorage district attorney from 2015 to 2017 before going into private practice. It’s rare but not unheard of for the Alaska Department of Law to hire private attorneys as independent prosecutors in cases that present special conflicts.”

Campion’s name is a familiar one for those well informed of Haeg’s court case. On February 6, 2012 Campion signed the letter denying Haeg’s complaint requesting an investigation into possible crimes committed by Marla Greenstein, the 30+ year lead judicial investigator of Alaska.

Source: Alaska State of Corruption


On May 4, 2023, Campion filed a Non-Opposed Motion to Continue Arraignment motion. The Order Granting Non-Opposed Motion to Continue Arraignment was on May 8, 2023, one day before Murphy's arraignment. The contents within the motions are not disclosed to the public, leaving room for speculation about the underlying cause that required a continuance.

Alaska’s online CourtView search of Murphy’s name shows multiple cases on record. The reopened case, case number 3KN-23-00416CR, contains a list of legal actions taken on May 8. The order granting the continuance of the arraignment was filed along side the Recusal and Request for Reassignment. It was followed by the Recusals of Judges Lance Joanis, Kelly Lawson and Jason Gist.

Background

The case connected to Judge Murphy’s charge of perjury is regarding the State of Alaska and its courts mistreatment of David Haeg, an Alaskan game guide. In a letter from Haeg to the Alaska Commission on Judicial Conduct, to Marla Greenstein, discusses Judge Murphy and Trooper Gibbons seen spending personal time together. Murphy was Haeg’s judge, and Trooper Gibbons was a key witness against Mr. Haeg. Ever since, Haeg’s cries of foul play have been ignored for decades.

In the subsequent years after Haeg felt he was unjustly treated, grand jury investigations into his matter were repeatedly suspended. The day of Murphy’s perjury was a month prior to the efforts made to prevent Marla Greenstein from testifying before the Kenai grand jury investigating corruption. 

Greenstein has been the lead judicial investigator for the past 30 years. She was subpoenaed before the grand jury to answer their concerns around the time of Murphy’s perjury. 

To prevent Greenstein from going under oath, the State and the Supreme Court promptly changed the rules of the game by Supreme Court Order 1993 and changes to Criminal Rules 6 and 6.1. These rules were enacted within days of Greenstein’s subpoena before the grand jury.
Marla Greenstein
Source: American Judicature Society

According to American Judicature Society, Greenstein is described as:

“Marla N. Greenstein is the Executive Director of the Alaska Commission on Judicial Conduct, a position she has held since 1989. She also serves as Secretary of the Board of the Association of Judicial Disciplinary Counsel. She previously served as senior staff attorney for the Alaska Judicial Council and as senior staff attorney for the American Judicature Society in Chicago. Ms. Greenstein served as Chair of the Lawyers Conference of the American Bar Association (ABA)’s Judicial Division from 1996-97, Co-Chair and Vice-Chair of the ABA’s Judicial Division Ethics and Professionalism Committee, and a member of the Board of Directors and Executive Committee of the American Judicature Society. She is a graduate of Loyola University of Chicago School of Law and holds an undergraduate degree in American Government and Philosophy from Georgetown University. Ms. Greenstein serves on the Alaska Bar’s Ethics Committee and Fair and Impartial Courts Committee. She is the Ethics Column Editor for the ABA’s Judges Journal, authoring the quarterly column. She has lectured widely in the area of judicial ethics and has served as faculty for international judicial ethics seminars in Micronesia and Russia”.

Many Alaskans believe the passing of SCO 1993 was meant to protect Greenstein from being subpoenaed to testify before the grand jury. It led to multiple protests being held at courthouses across Alaska. The action by the State and courts was a large blow to the movement behind Haeg. The recent perjury charge against Judge Murphy has been welcomed news to many Alaskans seeking to hold the State and its courts responsible. A growing number of Alaskans have their own stories of pain to share. A charge against Murphy IS just the tip of the iceberg of corruption.

Other judges accused of abusing their power by Haeg include Judges Jennifer Wells and William Morse.
  

Source: Donn Liston


Sources:

Alaska State of Corruption. (2023). Alaska State of Corruption. Retrieved on May 11, 2023. http://www.AlaskaStateOfCorruption.com

Alaska Grand Jurors Association. (2023). Retrieved on May 11, 2023. http://www.AlaskaGrandJurorsAssociation.org

American Judicature Society. Conference Speakers - Marla N. Greenstein, Executive Director, Alaska Commission on Judicial Conduct. America Judicature Society. Retrieved on May 10, 2023. https://americanjudicaturesociety.org/national-conference/speakers/

Board, Riley. (14 MAR 2023). Kelly Lawson appointed to Kenai Superior Court (kdll.org). KDLL. Retrieved on May 11, 2023. https://www.kdll.org/local-news/2023-03-14/kelly-lawson-appointed-to-kenai-superior-court

Boots, Michelle T. (10 May 2023). Former judge indicted by Kenai investigative grand jury has court appearance delayed. Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved on May 9, 2023. https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/crime-courts/2023/05/09/judge-indicted-by-kenai-investigative-grand-jury-has-court-appearance-delayed/

Boots, Michelle T. (05 MAY 2023). Perjury charge for retired Homer judge signals a victory for grand jury activists in Alaska. Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved on May 10, 2023.

Clint Campion - Sedor Wendlandt Evans & Filippi (sweflaw.com) Retrieved on May 11, 2023. https://sweflaw.com/attorneys/clint-campion/


Liston, Donn. (02 JUL 2023). Kenai Court Judges Jennifer K. Wells & William F. Morse: “Never Mind the Alaska Constitution…”. Donn Liston, Alaska’s Advocate Writer. Retrieved on May 11, 2023. https://donnliston.co/2022/07/kenai-court-corruption/


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