Judge’s Attorney Defends Rulings : Judiciary: Juelann K. Cathey has angered the city attorney’s office by dismissing misdemeanor probation sentences in her San Fernando court.

A San Fernando judge accused by city prosecutors of acting beyond her jurisdiction believed it was common practice for county prosecutors to simultaneously handle a defendant’s felony and misdemeanor cases without a city prosecutor present, an attorney for the judge said Tuesday.

The judge had angered city prosecutors by dismissing misdemeanor probation sentences of defendants who pleaded guilty or no contest to a felony charge.

So far, the Los Angeles city attorney’s office has filed 22 writs in Los Angeles Superior Court, seeking to bar San Fernando Municipal Judge Juelann K. Cathey from dismissing such sentences. The writs also seek to void Cathey’s rulings for as many defendants.

Typically, the city attorney’s office prosecutes misdemeanor charges while the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office handles felony charges. City attorney officials contend that their office should have been notified before Cathey made decisions on misdemeanors during court hearings on felony matters.

But Cathey believed deputy district attorneys could perform double duty, standing in for an assistant city attorney so misdemeanors and felonies could be handled at the same time, said Principal Deputy County Counsel Daniel E. McCoy. It’s possible other judges believe the same, said McCoy, who represents Municipal Court and Superior Court judges.

Cathey and possibly other judges at the San Fernando Courthouse had “understood that this was a practice that had been going on for some time and understood nobody was questioning it,” McCoy said.

An investigation by the city attorney’s office at other city courthouses, particularly in Van Nuys, found that few if any judges believed that county prosecutors could stand in for city officials, said Maureen Siegel, chief of criminal operations for the Los Angeles city attorney’s office. Siegel said so far her office has filed only one writ complaining about a judge other than Cathey.

McCoy declined to comment on whether Cathey acted outside her jurisdiction, and a spokeswoman for Cathey said the judge could not discuss a matter still under investigation.

McCoy said his office is trying to determine when and how Cathey and perhaps other judges began dismissing sentences without city prosecutors present. It appears that the practice started before Deputy Dist. Atty. Stephen L. Cooley took over as head county prosecutor at the San Fernando Courthouse in January.

Cooley testified in a court declaration that with one exception, no deputy district attorney working in San Fernando had ever been authorized to stand in for an assistant city attorney. Also included in court papers is a memo prepared by Cooley reminding his staff that they are not to appear for the Los Angeles city attorney’s office on their cases.