On Wednesday, February 28, 2024, KDLL reported that an Anchorage judge had dismissed a perjury charge against a former Homer judge who had been indicted by a Kenai grand jury last spring. According to the report, Anchorage Superior Court Judge Thomas Matthews concurred with all four of the arguments made by retired Judge Margaret Murphy’s attorneys for dismissal of the indictment in his 32-page decision.
Judge Matthews found that the grand jury lacked a necessary quorum when it indicted Murphy, with only 11 jurors present for the vote rather than the required 12 under the state constitution. Independent prosecutor Clint Campion, who handled the case rather than the district attorney, had admitted during oral arguments in January that there was not a proper quorum.
Additionally, Matthews ruled that the one-sentence indictment lacked sufficient details, as it did not describe how exactly Murphy had supposedly committed perjury. Perjury charges require proving certain elements like a knowingly false statement, which the indictment failed to address adequately. The order also stated that Campion provided inaccurate instructions to the grand jury by telling them an indictment did not require evidence likely to lead to conviction.
Matthews also determined that the grand jury received tainted evidence from David Haeg, whom Murphy had presided over in a 2005 wildlife case. Haeg testified for four hours and brought three binders of materials to the grand jurors alleging corruption, which the judge described as containing inadmissible hearsay and speculation. Haeg had also directly approached a grand juror outside of the hearing.
Campion acknowledged reviewing Judge Matthews’ thorough order but had not yet decided whether he would present the case to a new grand jury within the 10-day window. The independent prosecutor commended Matthews for his handling of the unusual circumstances. If Campion does not pursue a new indictment, the perjury charge against the retired Homer judge will be dismissed.
Source: KDLL
