Case filings up since Lam stepped down

By Greg Moran
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

October 3, 2007

In the seven months since Carol Lam was forced to resign as the U.S. attorney in San Diego – ostensibly because she was not prosecuting enough cases – criminal case filings have increased significantly in the federal courthouse.

And if the current pace continues, more cases will be filed this year in the southern district of California than in any year since 2001.

Filings were up 70 percent in August, compared with the year before. At this rate, filings will be up 32 percent overall for the year.

However, the surge in case filings began even before Lam left office, data from the Federal Court Clerk's Office show.

In January, when word of Lam's imminent departure first leaked out, 230 criminal cases were filed. That was a 38 percent increase from the same month in 2006.

It set the trend for the year. Only in June did filings fall – down by 10 percent from June 2006. Since then, filings rebounded.

The sharp increase is quietly welcomed by some federal law enforcement officials. They say U.S. Attorney Karen Hewitt, a career prosecutor named to replace Lam in February, displays a greater willingness to prosecute border-related cases.

Federal court cases by the numbers:

392 Number of cases filed by the U.S. Attorney's Office in August

70% Increase in case filings compared with August 2006

327 Number of cases filed in July

54% Increase from July 2006

32% Increase for all of 2007, compared with 2006, if trend continues

SOURCE: Federal Court Clerk's Office


“She's made changes and is putting her fingerprint on the office,â€