Judge followed proper procedure, facts in case

Paul Krames' Nov. 14 guest opinion ("Justice is not served in hate crime incident") is based on a misunderstanding that in itself does not serve justice.

Krames states that Magistrate Debra Heise was "unwilling to try this case on the basis of it being a hate crime."

The magistrate was not presiding over a trial, and she did not pick the charges that were the subject of the hearing at which she did preside. Crimes reach the court in the form of charges that are brought by the state by the county prosecuting attorney.

Hate-crime charges from the episode in which Ilaura Fleck was burned were never filed by the prosecuting attorney and thus were never brought before the court. Judge Heise's failure to deal with accusations originating from outside the legal system was not a matter of judicial "willingness." It was a matter of her respecting legal procedure and judicial authority.

Krames admits that he may "need a primer in jurisprudence." Justice would be better served if he consulted one before condemning Judge Heise in ignorance.

Incidentally, reporting of this case has been characterized by a dismayingly high level of inaccuracy, especially in the Spokesman-Review. Citizens who are scandalized by what they have read are urged to listen to the proceedings on tape (available for a nominal fee from Boundary County) and to read the Nov. 7 article entitled "Defense disputes claims plea deal forced on family" that appeared in the Bonner County Daily Bee.

DORIS A. SANGER

Sandpoint