Judge of the Year: Controversial Past

0:00A judge in Orange County named Thomas Baty just got named judge of the year by the Constitutional Rights Foundation's local chapter. They praised him as their top volunteer for high school mock trial competitions, saying students and coaches loved his work. But here's the twist. He used to be a top prosecutor in the office that ran the infamous snitch scandal, illegally using jailhouse informants to snag. Confessions without lawyers present. That scandal under former D.A. Tony Rokaka's led to a federal pro confirming systematic rights violations. B.T.A. denied any wrongdoing back then, even as a San Diego judge accused them of covering it up. Current D.A. Todd Spitzer fired him for withholding evidence in a murder case, yet B.T. bounced back, winning election to the bench with big. Endorsements from judges and cops. Critics are fired up. Scott Sanders, the ex-public defender who blew the scandal wide open, called the award disgusting for a group pushing constitutional rights. Then there's Paul Wilson, whose wife died in the county's worst mass shooting.

1:04He protested outside the award ceremony, handing out letters slamming Baty's past. Sanders and Wilson, once courtroom foes, now team up to fix old wrongs. Sanders retired after helping overturn or lighten about 60 tainted convictions, including one guy who did 41 years before walking free at. age 69. B.T. prosecuted many of those cases. Plenty more convictions need reviewing, and folks like Sanders say every Baty case deserves a hard look. The fight for real justice in Orange County rolls on, exposing those old shields of misconduct one step at a time. That wraps California news today, brought to you with AI. I'm Cory with the story.