Le Louis v. Superior Court

Petitioner prays for peremptory writ of mandate and/or prohibition to compel disqualification of trial judge (Code Civ. Proc., § 170.6) and for stay of criminal trial.

Facts

On March 24, 1987, the Kern County District Attorney filed felony complaint No. 45642 in West Kern Municipal Court, charging petitioner, a Bakersfield attorney, with two counts of solicitation of murder (Pen. Code, § 653f, subd. (b)). On that same date, the Honorable H. A. Staley, judge of the West Kern Municipal Court, Division D, issued a “no bail” warrant for petitioner’s arrest based on the complaint. The next day, petitioner appeared before Municipal Court Judge C. P. McNutt and was arraigned. The maximum punishment in case No. 45642 was seven years and four months. Judge McNutt refused to set bail at the arraignment and set the matter over for a bail review and setting hearing in Division D. On the same date, petitioner’s counsel of record filed a declaration against the Honorable H. A. Staley to preclude him from acting in case No. 45642 (Code Civ. Proc., § 170.6).

On March 27, 1987, the Kern County District Attorney filed felony complaint No. 45677 in the West Kern Municipal Court, charging…