Superior Court Judge Patrick J.Clifford denied a motion brought by Dr. Lishan Wang to stop the state, the police, the court and the news media from “discriminating” against him on the basis of race. Ruling from the bench Wednesday, the judge said “I don’t think there is any discrimination at all.”
The judge sought to explain to Dr. Wang that when he was first arrested on April 26, 2010, on charges he shot Dr. Vajinder Toor, 34, and attempted to kill his wife outside their Branford condo, he was brought into Superior Court on a public street in New Haven, where the press had gathered. They were permitted to photograph him. Similarly, at his arraignment, the press had permission to photograph him.
It was the latest episode in an unusual case — an accused murderer representing himself in court. It has been messy.
In his motion this week, Wang, 46, drew a comparison between himself and James Holmes, who is charged in a massacre at a Batman movie showing in Aurora, Colorado. He said the media had no photo of Holmes in shackles and handcuffs as Dr. Wang has been photographed at his arraignment. Why? Because according to Dr. Wang, Holmes “was carefully protected based on the skin color and national origin.
At his court hearings Dr. Wang, who is usually in a prison jump suit as was Holmes in court, has his handcuffs removed.
Wang, whom Judge Roland Fasano originally permitted to act as his own attorney, submitted six motions to the court Wednesday, none of which were made available to either the judge, the prosecutor or the stand-by public defender until minutes before the session at Superior Court on Church Street began at 2 p.m.
None of the motions had been vetted by his stand-by attorney. The one the judge ruled on was filled with incriminating statements, statements that help the prosecutor’s case.
This has been an ongoing issue — the late arrival of motions that have not been read by anyone before the hearing begins.
Although the discrimination motion was before the judge, Wang had second thoughts and told the judge: “I am not asking you to rule.” The judge quickly replied: “I am going to rule.” Then he added that the discrimination motion Wang had filed” is not even a proper motion in our practice book.”
In fact, the discrimination motion raised a number of separate issues involving the police, so-called “lies” from the Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center, where Dr. Toor and Dr. Wang were colleagues, accusations of slander, accusations against the public defender’s office that it has obstructed justice and various accusations against the correctional institutions where Dr. Wang has been sent. From Dr. Wang’s point of view, discrimination against him “has become a pattern. The defendant has persistently been treated differently by the police, court, state, Department of Corrections, Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center, EEOC and news media.”
As part of an annual court rotation, Judge Clifford, the former head of the criminal courts in New London, replaced Judge Fasano, who has overseen the case for more than two years. Judge Fasano is now sitting in Waterbury Superior Court.
Judge Clifford was well-versed in the case having read the law and talked to Judge Fasano, he said. Like Judge Fasano he made a plea to Dr. Wang for full legal representation at this point so that expert witnesses in psychiatry and ballistics could be paid. The experts are essential for trial. Click here to read Judge Fasano on this issue.
Judge Clifford said he knows the case law well and that he could rule that the judicial branch is not going to pay for his experts. “Then what happens?”
“Well, I would go without experts,” Dr. Wang replied.
“So you would represent yourself without experts you may need at trial. Do you think that is better for you, when you have no legal background? Do you think that is better?” At one point the judge said: “It seems to me this is an all nothing situation.”
Judge Clifford suggested a “middle-ground” in which Wang accepts full public defender representation at this phase in the case and then acts as his own attorney once the trial begins. Dr. Wang, once again, rejected that idea. He made it clear that he does not trust the public defender’s office and nothing will change his mind.
When he took the bench Judge Clifford explained that “this is my first involvement with the case.” While Judge Fasano had found Dr. Wang competent to stand trial and competent to represent himself, Judge Patrick told the courtroom that “there are two different standards of law” for each designation. “That could change. I am not saying it will. I respect Judge Fasano’s decision,” but Judge Clifford held out the possibility that the idea of Dr. Wang representing himself might be back on the table.
Another major issue is that in order for the trial to get underway, the judge needs to subpoena documents and Dr. Wang’s unedited, non-legal approach toward this task is in need of “streamlining,” he said, before they can be filed in New York.
The judge asked Jeffrey LaPierre, the public defender stand-by, if he was supposed to help Dr. Wang with the subpoenas. He conceded he was supposed to but it hadn’t happened yet. “I haven’t had time to sit down and do it with him,” he said. Judge Fasano asked the same set of questions, even asking that subpoenas be completed by yesterday. But LaPierre is only stand-by and given the delays, stand-by may not mean sit-down to work on the subpoena issue.
From Dr. Wang’s point of view the evidence by way of records and evaluations over the two years he was a physician at Kingsbrook “is very crucial. Very critical. I want them to surrender all documents to me,” he said. He also has a pending civil lawsuit against the hospital and the civil case seems to be concern him a great deal.
In an effort to expedite the documents Dr. Wang is seeking, the judge observed that if a subpoena were signed by the court and the documents were then received by the court, he could review the material in camera, or privately, in order to make a decision on privilege or confidentiality.
“For a while we have been going nowhere,” he observed. I am taking a common sense approach to get as many personnel records as possible and then review them in camera.”
He asked Eugene R.Calistro, Jr., senior assistant state’s attorney, about the status of these records. Calistro said he had turned over everything to the defense. He said the state had not sought health or mental health records. “They were excluded,” he said. Calistro said he would oppose obtaining similar records for Dr. Toor. Calistro said the only thing not yet turned over to Dr. Wang was a tape that showed an encounter between Dr. Wang and Dr. Toor at Kingsbrook in 2008.
The primary theme during the 90-minute hearing was the judge’s strong arguments advising Dr. Wang, who is indigent, to consider having the public defender’s office represent him at this juncture in the case. He noted that in refusing, “you may be hamstrung by your decision.”
When Dr. Wang seemed to hint he might just wait until the trial began, the judge peered at him.
“At the last minute you are going to ask for a public defender?” The question hung in the air.
The case was continued to Oct. 10 at 2 p.m.
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