Demanding Accountability

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As Bad as it Gets -
Jody Vaughan
Deschutes County, Oregon Prosecutor
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By Edward Snook
Investigative Journalist

Bend, Oregon – In the May, 2010 Primary Election held in Deschutes County, Oregon, for the office of District Attorney, Patrick Flaherty unseated Michael Dugan who has held the office since Ronald Reagan was President.

Dugan was ousted by a large majority of voters who were fed-up with corruption, created within his office. Recently, Flaherty informed deputy prosecutors that they would need to submit applications if they want to remain employed by the Deschutes County District Attorney’s Office, when he takes office in January, 2011. Further, Flaherty informed Chief Deputy Darryl Nakahira that his job would be terminated. Flaherty has eluded that other changes would be made as well.

Deputy District Attorneys closed ranks and voted to form a Union in an attempt to keep their jobs. They are currently negotiating with Deschutes County officials regarding a contract that would require Flaherty to follow a specific process before disciplining or dismissing his deputies. The Union was created for the sole purpose of allowing deputy prosecutors to keep their jobs and side-step Flaherty’s authority as an elected public official.

Deschutes County Officials should think long and hard before they decide to preempt an elected official from running his office – from stripping his authority. The US~Observer will publicly shame any that do so, especially in light of the documented corruption that exists in the Deschutes County District Attorney’s Office. This corruption has cost tax-payers hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Two Lengthy Trials Cost Taxpayers Hundreds of Thousands

Deputy prosecutor Jody Stutsman Vaughan reportedly caused a number of deputy prosecutors to resign from the Deschutes County District Attorney’s Office, with one of them receiving a six-figure settlement.

Recently, Jody Vaughan, with Michael Dugan’s consent and blessings attempted to falsely prosecute Kevin Driscoll on serious felony rape charges, even though they were provided plenty of evidence that he was completely innocent. These two lengthy trials cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands.

Vaughan is currently creating a very theatrical issue about prosecuting a Redmond, Oregon man on “multiple counts of rape, sex abuse and other crimes.” The Redmond man is represented by Flaherty’s wife Valerie Wright. Vaughan is complaining that she might not be able to continue the prosecution in light of Flaherty notifying her that she would need to re-apply in order to have a chance at keeping her job. Vaughan is also claiming in the affidavit she filed that she re-applied to keep her job, but that she fears that her opposing Flaherty’s wife in the rape case could hurt her chances of holding onto her position as deputy prosecutor. In essence, Vaughan is saying that she is aware that Flaherty will get rid of her once he enters office in January and rightfully so. Vaughan is also playing the role of a drama queen with the local press in her lame attempt to keep her job.

It just might be, the Redmond, Oregon man is fortunate that Vaughan won’t be prosecuting his case, because she will factually use any means whatsoever to get a conviction, even if it means violating all sorts of ethics and laws in doing so.

We have only touched on Vaughan’s obvious and habitual corruption. I could go on and tell how she factually lies to jurors as she attempts to falsely prosecute and how she obstructs justice by assisting and or prompting witnesses to structure their testimony in a direction that would benefit her attempts to falsely prosecute the innocent, but I’ll leave that for my fellow writer who is covering these very issues in this edition, in the article titled “Is This Justice?”

Deschutes County voters should be commended for getting rid of District Attorney Michael Dugan and if they are concerned with their pocket-books, they will stand behind Patrick Flaherty and stop any attempts by Deschutes County Officials that would hinder him from cleaning-up the Deschutes County District Attorney’s Office in January 2011.

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