Charles Poochigian
Encyclopedia
Charles S. "Chuck" Poochigian (born May 31, 1949, in Fresno, California) is an Associate Justice of the California Court of Appeal and a former California State Senator
.
He campaigned unsuccessfully in 2006 for California Attorney General
, losing to former Governor Jerry Brown
in the November general election.
. His family has farmed there since 1912.
He served six years in the California Air National Guard
.
From 1975 until November 1988, he practiced general civil and business law.
He received his undergraduate degree in business administration from California State University, Fresno
in 1972 and his Juris Doctor
(J.D.) from Santa Clara University
in 1975.
He and his wife, Debbie, married since 1977, have three grown children.
, who was running for Attorney General.
From 1985 to 1987, he served on the California Fair Employment and Housing Commission as an appointee of Governor Deukmejian. In 1988, he was chosen to serve on the senior staff of Governor Deukmejian. Poochigian served as the Chief Deputy Appointments Secretary, assisting the Governor in the selection of key administration officials and members of over 375 state boards and commissions.
named him the Appointments Secretary. While serving on the Governor's senior staff and overseeing the appointments unit, he assisted the Governor in the evaluation and selection of candidates for judicial appointments.
to represent the 29th Assembly District with 67.7% of the vote and was reelected in 1996 with 67.8% of the vote.
In his first Assembly term, he served as the chairman of the Assembly Appropriations Committee, as a member of the Republican Caucus Leadership (1995–1997), and as a member of the Budget Conference Committee (1995 and 1996). Additionally, he served as the Assembly's representative on California's Little Hoover Commission, having been appointed by both Republican and Democratic Speakers of the Assembly.
In 1996, the California Journal named him the Republican "Rookie of the Year" (out of a class of 22). The Journal also rated him among the top 5 legislators in the 80-member State Assembly in the following separate categories: Effectiveness, Integrity, Intelligence, Problem-solving, Potential, and Overall. In 1998, the California Journal also recognized him as one of the top 5 Assembly members in the categories of Integrity and Hardwork.
In 1998, he was unopposed in seeking election to represent California's 14th Senate District
, which included portions of Fresno
, Tulare
, and Kern
Counties.
In November 2002, he was again re-elected without opposition to the reapportioned 14th Senate District which now includes all or portions of Fresno
, Madera
, Mariposa
, San Joaquin
, Stanislaus
, and Tuolumne
Counties.
In 2006, Capitol Weekly named Poochigian the most effective Senator (excluding the Pro-Tem). However, Poochigian earned a zero rating from Equality California
(EQCA) for his opposition to LGBT
legislation. EQCA noted that Poochigian opposed every major LGBT bill, including: AB 1001 (prohibited discrimination based on sexual orientation); AB 537 (protected LGBT children from harassment and violence in public schools); and AB 25 (established the most basic rights for same-sex domestic partners.
, the former governor of California and at the time, mayor of Oakland, for California Attorney General
, receiving 38.2% of the vote, to Brown's 56.4%.
Poochigian's campaign was characterized as one of the most aggressive and creative down-ballot races in 2006. The campaign was featured by The Wall Street Journal and others for its use of emerging technology, such as MySpace, YouTube, and other online mediums, to reach out to voters and mobilize activists. One notable attack ad released by the Brown campaign voiced over by Peter Coyote
stated that Poochigian had a 0% rating on the environment. The ad also made the claim that Poochigian flatly rejects "Sound Science" which caused confusion about what exactly "Sound Science" means. The National Journals "Hotline" named the campaign one of the country's top 15 down-ballot races to watch.
A post-election Los Angeles Times article stated: "[T]he famously collegial Poochigian, 57, proved reliably feisty, hitting Brown hard for Oakland's skyrocketing murder rate and a past littered with Moonbeam moments during his long-ago stint in Sacramento and lefty pronouncements while he was a talk radio host in the 1990s."
, Fifth District Presiding Justice James A. Ardaiz, and Attorney General Brown. At the confirmation hearing, Chief Justice George "ripped into the commission that rated [Poochigian] "not qualified" for the post," noting that there was a "real problem in the process" used by the Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation, and strongly urging that there be "some revisions in the procedure." Chief Justice George and Justice Ardaiz criticized the JNE commission for disregarding its own standards and the statutory standards that are supposed to govern its processes.
Still, Poochigian's appointment was not without controversy. JNE Commission Chair Jonathan Wolf of San Francisco wrote to the Chief Justice that Poochigian “is intelligent, diligent, and articulate...and is committed to public service” but continued that in the Commission's view "Poochigian’s legal background [did] not qualify him for the appellate bench." In explaining the Commission's findings, Wolf continued, "he [Poochigian] had not practiced law for approximately 21 years and had not litigated a case in approximately the same amount of time. Moreover, he has no jury trials and no criminal law experience."
Among other groups, Poochigian's appointment was strongly opposed by the National Organization for Women
and Equality California
In a circulated letter opposing Mr. Poochigian's appointment, California National Organization for Women
President Patricia Bellasalma wrote,"Mr. Poochigian’s long political history of being vehemently opposed to the rights of women, the LGBT community, workers and people of color in addition to having no credible legal experience qualifying him for the bench, as determined by the California State Bar, amplifies this travesty.”
California State Senate
The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. There are 40 state senators. The state legislature meets in the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The Lieutenant Governor is the ex officio President of the Senate and may break a tied vote...
.
He campaigned unsuccessfully in 2006 for California Attorney General
California Attorney General
The California Attorney General is the State Attorney General of California. The officer's duty is to ensure that "the laws of the state are uniformly and adequately enforced" The Attorney General carries out the responsibilities of the office through the California Department of Justice.The...
, losing to former Governor Jerry Brown
Jerry Brown
Edmund Gerald "Jerry" Brown, Jr. is an American politician. Brown served as the 34th Governor of California , and is currently serving as the 39th California Governor...
in the November general election.
Personal
He is a third generation Armenian-American resident of the San Joaquin ValleySan Joaquin Valley
The San Joaquin Valley is the area of the Central Valley of California that lies south of the Sacramento – San Joaquin River Delta in Stockton...
. His family has farmed there since 1912.
He served six years in the California Air National Guard
California Air National Guard
The California Air National Guard is the air component of the California National Guard. The California Air National Guard is headquartered at Sacramento, California.One of the duties of the California Air National Guard is defense of the United States...
.
From 1975 until November 1988, he practiced general civil and business law.
He received his undergraduate degree in business administration from California State University, Fresno
California State University, Fresno
California State University, Fresno, often referred to as Fresno State University and synonymously known in athletics as Fresno State , is one of the leading campuses of the California State University system, located at the northeast edge of Fresno, California, USA.The campus sits at the foot of...
in 1972 and his Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
(J.D.) from Santa Clara University
Santa Clara University
Santa Clara University is a private, not-for-profit, Jesuit-affiliated university located in Santa Clara, California, United States. Chartered by the state of California and accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, it operates in collaboration with the Society of Jesus , whose...
in 1975.
He and his wife, Debbie, married since 1977, have three grown children.
Work for George Deukmejian
In 1978 he worked on the campaign of then-State Senator George DeukmejianGeorge Deukmejian
Courken George Deukmejian, Jr. born June 6, 1928) is an Armenian American politician from California who as a Republican served as the 35th Governor of California and as California Attorney General .-Early life:...
, who was running for Attorney General.
From 1985 to 1987, he served on the California Fair Employment and Housing Commission as an appointee of Governor Deukmejian. In 1988, he was chosen to serve on the senior staff of Governor Deukmejian. Poochigian served as the Chief Deputy Appointments Secretary, assisting the Governor in the selection of key administration officials and members of over 375 state boards and commissions.
Work for Pete Wilson
In 1991, Governor Pete WilsonPete Wilson
Peter Barton "Pete" Wilson is an American politician from California. Wilson, a Republican, served as the 36th Governor of California , the culmination of more than three decades in the public arena that included eight years as a United States Senator , eleven years as Mayor of San Diego and...
named him the Appointments Secretary. While serving on the Governor's senior staff and overseeing the appointments unit, he assisted the Governor in the evaluation and selection of candidates for judicial appointments.
California State Assemblyman (1994-1998)
In 1994, Poochigian was elected to the California State AssemblyCalifornia State Assembly
The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature. There are 80 members in the Assembly, representing an approximately equal number of constituents, with each district having a population of at least 420,000...
to represent the 29th Assembly District with 67.7% of the vote and was reelected in 1996 with 67.8% of the vote.
In his first Assembly term, he served as the chairman of the Assembly Appropriations Committee, as a member of the Republican Caucus Leadership (1995–1997), and as a member of the Budget Conference Committee (1995 and 1996). Additionally, he served as the Assembly's representative on California's Little Hoover Commission, having been appointed by both Republican and Democratic Speakers of the Assembly.
In 1996, the California Journal named him the Republican "Rookie of the Year" (out of a class of 22). The Journal also rated him among the top 5 legislators in the 80-member State Assembly in the following separate categories: Effectiveness, Integrity, Intelligence, Problem-solving, Potential, and Overall. In 1998, the California Journal also recognized him as one of the top 5 Assembly members in the categories of Integrity and Hardwork.
California State Senator (1998-2006)
California State Senate
The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. There are 40 state senators. The state legislature meets in the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The Lieutenant Governor is the ex officio President of the Senate and may break a tied vote...
, which included portions of Fresno
Fresno County, California
Fresno County is a county located in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California, south of Stockton and north of Bakersfield. As of the 2010 census, it is the tenth most populous county in California with a population of 930,450, and the sixth largest in size with an area of . The county...
, Tulare
Tulare County, California
Tulare County is a county located in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California, south of Fresno. Sequoia National Park is located in the county, as are part of Kings Canyon National Park, in its northeast corner , and part of Mount Whitney, on its eastern border...
, and Kern
Kern County, California
Spreading across the southern end of the California Central Valley, Kern County is the fifth-largest county by population in California. Its economy is heavily linked to agriculture and to petroleum extraction, and there is a strong aviation and space presence. Politically, it has generally...
Counties.
In November 2002, he was again re-elected without opposition to the reapportioned 14th Senate District which now includes all or portions of Fresno
Fresno County, California
Fresno County is a county located in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California, south of Stockton and north of Bakersfield. As of the 2010 census, it is the tenth most populous county in California with a population of 930,450, and the sixth largest in size with an area of . The county...
, Madera
Madera County, California
Madera County is a county of the U.S. state of California, located in the Central Valley and the Sierra Nevada north of Fresno County. It comprises the Madera-Chowchilla, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census the population was 150,865...
, Mariposa
Mariposa County, California
Mariposa County is a county in the U.S. state of California, located in the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains. It lies north of Fresno, east of Merced, and southeast of Stockton. As of the 2010 census, the population was 18,251 up from 17,130 at the 2000 census...
, San Joaquin
San Joaquin County, California
San Joaquin County is a county located in Central Valley of the U.S. state of California, just east of the San Francisco Bay Area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 685,306. The county seat is Stockton.-History:...
, Stanislaus
Stanislaus County, California
Stanislaus County is a county located in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California. As the price of housing has increased in the San Francisco Bay Area, many people who work in the southern reaches of the Bay Area have opted for the longer commute and moved to Stanislaus County for the...
, and Tuolumne
Tuolumne County, California
Tuolumne County is a county in the Sierra Nevada of the U.S. state of California. The northern half of Yosemite National Park is located in the eastern part of the county. As of the 2010 census, the population was 55,365, up from 54,501 at the 2000 census...
Counties.
In 2006, Capitol Weekly named Poochigian the most effective Senator (excluding the Pro-Tem). However, Poochigian earned a zero rating from Equality California
Equality California
Equality California or EQCA is a non-profit civil rights organization that advocates for the rights of LGBT people in California.-Early history:...
(EQCA) for his opposition to LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
legislation. EQCA noted that Poochigian opposed every major LGBT bill, including: AB 1001 (prohibited discrimination based on sexual orientation); AB 537 (protected LGBT children from harassment and violence in public schools); and AB 25 (established the most basic rights for same-sex domestic partners.
Attorney General campaign (2006)
In the 2006 California state election, Poochigian was defeated by Jerry BrownJerry Brown
Edmund Gerald "Jerry" Brown, Jr. is an American politician. Brown served as the 34th Governor of California , and is currently serving as the 39th California Governor...
, the former governor of California and at the time, mayor of Oakland, for California Attorney General
California Attorney General
The California Attorney General is the State Attorney General of California. The officer's duty is to ensure that "the laws of the state are uniformly and adequately enforced" The Attorney General carries out the responsibilities of the office through the California Department of Justice.The...
, receiving 38.2% of the vote, to Brown's 56.4%.
Poochigian's campaign was characterized as one of the most aggressive and creative down-ballot races in 2006. The campaign was featured by The Wall Street Journal and others for its use of emerging technology, such as MySpace, YouTube, and other online mediums, to reach out to voters and mobilize activists. One notable attack ad released by the Brown campaign voiced over by Peter Coyote
Peter Coyote
Peter Coyote is an American actor, author, director, screenwriter and narrator of films, theatre, television and audio books. His voice work includes narrating the opening ceremony of the 2002 Winter Olympics and Apple's iPad campaign. He has also served as on-camera co-host of the 2000 Oscar...
stated that Poochigian had a 0% rating on the environment. The ad also made the claim that Poochigian flatly rejects "Sound Science" which caused confusion about what exactly "Sound Science" means. The National Journals "Hotline" named the campaign one of the country's top 15 down-ballot races to watch.
A post-election Los Angeles Times article stated: "[T]he famously collegial Poochigian, 57, proved reliably feisty, hitting Brown hard for Oakland's skyrocketing murder rate and a past littered with Moonbeam moments during his long-ago stint in Sacramento and lefty pronouncements while he was a talk radio host in the 1990s."
Appellate Court Justice (2009)
On August 20, 2009, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger nominated Poochigian to become a justice of the California Court of Appeal, Fifth Appellate District. On September 24, 2009, Poochigian was unanimously confirmed to the court by California's Commission on Judicial Appointments, consisting in this case of Chief Justice Ronald M. GeorgeRonald M. George
Ronald Marc George is the retired 27th Chief Justice of California, where he headed the Supreme Court of California and the Judicial Council of California...
, Fifth District Presiding Justice James A. Ardaiz, and Attorney General Brown. At the confirmation hearing, Chief Justice George "ripped into the commission that rated [Poochigian] "not qualified" for the post," noting that there was a "real problem in the process" used by the Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation, and strongly urging that there be "some revisions in the procedure." Chief Justice George and Justice Ardaiz criticized the JNE commission for disregarding its own standards and the statutory standards that are supposed to govern its processes.
Still, Poochigian's appointment was not without controversy. JNE Commission Chair Jonathan Wolf of San Francisco wrote to the Chief Justice that Poochigian “is intelligent, diligent, and articulate...and is committed to public service” but continued that in the Commission's view "Poochigian’s legal background [did] not qualify him for the appellate bench." In explaining the Commission's findings, Wolf continued, "he [Poochigian] had not practiced law for approximately 21 years and had not litigated a case in approximately the same amount of time. Moreover, he has no jury trials and no criminal law experience."
Among other groups, Poochigian's appointment was strongly opposed by the National Organization for Women
National Organization for Women
The National Organization for Women is the largest feminist organization in the United States. It was founded in 1966 and has a membership of 500,000 contributing members. The organization consists of 550 chapters in all 50 U.S...
and Equality California
Equality California
Equality California or EQCA is a non-profit civil rights organization that advocates for the rights of LGBT people in California.-Early history:...
In a circulated letter opposing Mr. Poochigian's appointment, California National Organization for Women
National Organization for Women
The National Organization for Women is the largest feminist organization in the United States. It was founded in 1966 and has a membership of 500,000 contributing members. The organization consists of 550 chapters in all 50 U.S...
President Patricia Bellasalma wrote,"Mr. Poochigian’s long political history of being vehemently opposed to the rights of women, the LGBT community, workers and people of color in addition to having no credible legal experience qualifying him for the bench, as determined by the California State Bar, amplifies this travesty.”