2024-05-24 Merit Appeals Board Minutes

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Merit Appeals Board May 24, 2024 CHR. CABANAS: Yes, it is legal verbiage but I think we should be mindful of our intent to not make it so much with legal verbiage. MS. BOND: Right. Yeah, `cause it really sounds like a word salad there— CHR. CABANAS: Yes. MS. BOND: And to your average idiot on the Board, it's kind of like no, wait, now I have to stop and think about this three times. MR. WISEMAN: Usually, strategically in court, it's a mistake to do that —to wait until CHR. CABANAS: Oh, is it? MR. WISEMAN: because when we had the jury trial, for example, and the prosecutor gets up, he tells his story —if they know what to do they tell a story. They don't say, "The evidence will show" —forget that. They tell a story, the jury hears that. And then, the trial begins with witnesses. So, they don't have the other sides position until after all that —of the prosecution finishes. Then the defense comes up and states his position, but the jury's already, pretty much, preoccupied with that position. MS. MATHEWS: So, why would somebody do it? MR. WISEMAN: Because they have nothing to say maybe. MS. MATHEWS: And then, they suddenly decide they do? MR. WISEMAN: Yeah. MS. MATHEWS: Okay. And does this change the balance if the County has an opportunity but the Appellant does not? CHR. CABANAS: Well, that's basically what David is saying because they're hearing a whole bunch of information at the very onset —that information gets implanted in, let's say, jurors' minds. In our case, it would be Board members' minds. MS. MATHEWS: Right. But that doesn't change if the Appellant is nervous and says, "No, I'm not going to say anything." And then, down the road they say, "Oh, I do want to make an opening statement." MR. WISEMAN: Then the evidence would have been proceeding already. CHR. CABANAS: Yeah. MR. WISEMAN: I mean, if they don't make an opening statement, that's their right I think. Page 23