The regulating body for lawyers in Oregon on Friday said it had dismissed an ethics complaint filed by a prominent Lewis & Clark Law School professor against Multnomah County district attorney candidate Nathan Vasquez who referred to a man as a murderer though he has not been charged.
Linn Davis, assistant general counsel for the Oregon State Bar, told law professor Aliza Kaplan that he found “no sufficient basis” to advance the complaint through the organization’s disciplinary process.
In his Oregon Secretary of State Voters’ Pamphlet statement, Nathan Vasquez, a senior prosecutor challenging DA Mike Schmidt, referred to the case of convicted felon Jesse Lee Calhoun, 39, though he did not identify Calhoun by name.
Vasquez wrote that under Schmidt “a violent criminal who was arrested for kidnapping and assaulting a police officer was released from prison. Once free, he murdered four women. This is unacceptable.”
Kaplan complained to the bar that Vasquez violated the Oregon Rules of Professional Conduct by commenting on the case outside of court proceedings and that his remarks undermined fairness and justice.
Davis disagreed, writing that there’s no “imminent” court proceeding in the matter and he said he found no evidence that Vasquez’s statement would undermine the integrity of a proceeding.
“In fact, in the statement publicly disseminated by Mr. Vasquez, he took care not to identify the person to whom his statement referred, reducing the likelihood of causing such prejudice to any future adjudicative proceeding,” Davis wrote.
“Finally,” he continued, “I am mindful that the application of this rule may be limited by core free speech protections relating to the democratic process and the need for vigorous public debate of relevant issues in an election.”
Kaplan said she’s “obviously disappointed” with the bar’s decision.
“It is incredibly troubling that any prosecutor would do this strictly for the purpose of political advantage,” she said in a written statement to The Oregonian/OregonLive.
Vasquez welcomed the dismissal, calling Kaplan’s complaint “nothing more than a political stunt.” Kaplan supports Schmidt’s candidacy.
Investigators suspect Calhoun may be linked to the deaths of five women: Kristen Smith, 22 of Gresham, Charity Lynn Perry, 24, of Vancouver, Bridget Leann Ramsay Webster, 31, of Milwaukie, Ashley Real, 22, of Portland, and JoAnna Speaks, 32, of Portland.
Police have released no information about the investigation. Only Speaks’ death has been ruled a homicide. Investigators have not said how the other women died.
Calhoun has not been charged in connection with any of the deaths.
Meanwhile, a bar complaint against Schmidt over his handling of cases under consideration for commutation is still under review. A spokesperson said Friday that Schmidt asked for an extension to respond to the complaint; he is expected to file that response by July 1.
— Noelle Crombie is an enterprise reporter with a focus on criminal justice. Reach her at 503-276-7184; ncrombie@oregonian.
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