Paper asks Supreme Court to review ruling

The Yakima Herald-Republic has asked the state's highest court to review a local ruling that keeps secret the taxpayer-financed costs of defending a man convicted of aggravated first-degree murder.

At issue is how $1.5 million was spent to defend Jose "Junior" Sanchez who was convicted of killing a 21-year-old man and the man's 3-year-old daughter in 2005. He is serving life without parole.

The records of spending were sealed when prosecutors were considering the death penalty and have remained sealed.

The newspaper contends the records should be open under the state's Public Records Act.

While the court is exempt from the state records law, the newspaper believes the law applies in this case because of an unusual arrangement in which Yakima County Superior Court Judge James Lust was appointed to serve as a "budget judge" to review billing requests from defense attorneys in the case. A different judge handled Sanchez's actual trial.

Attorneys for the newspaper argued that Lust's handling of the records was inherently administrative, not judicial. But a late June ruling, visiting Kittitas County Superior Court Judge Michael Cooper disagreed, and refused to release the records.

The Herald-Republic is now asking the state Supreme Court to review Cooper's ruling because if the case is taken to the state Court of Appeals it's unlikely to end there. That's because whatever decision that court renders is likely to be appealed by the losing side.

"We need the state Supreme Court to rule on this as an important public records case," said Sarah Jenkins, editor of the Herald-Republic. "While we recongize the rights of defendants in court, we are asking that the justices also recognize the right of taxpayers to know how their money is being spent."

Arguing against opening the billing records are attorneys Gregory Click and Susan Wilk of the Washing-ton Appellate Project, which is appealing Sanchez's criminal conviction.

While the two Seattle attorneys did not represent Sanchez at his Superior Court trial and are not responsible for his $1.5 million defense, they contend opening the records would jeopardize their client's opportunities in an appeal.

It is not clear when, or even if, the Supreme Court will accept direct review of the Sanchez case.

* Chris Bristol can be reached at 577-7748 or cbristol@yakimaherald.com.