January 14, 2005

Judge Del Pozzo speaks to Evergreen Democratic Club

From Kent State to the bench

By Tom Harney
Special to the Times

“The Patriot Act is not patriotic in any sense of the word. Hopefully it will just fizzle away. I can’t believe that something like that is in this country,” said Judge Ron M. Del Pozzo, Superior Court, Santa Clara County, in his opening remarks to the Evergreen Democratic Club at their monthly meeting at the Villages on Tuesday, Jan. 4.

(From left) Patricia and Bing Kirk were among 54 members of the Evergreen Democratic Club who heard Judge Ron M. Del Pozzo speak at their monthly meeting on Jan. 4.

Del Pozzo grew up in Akron, Ohio and majored in business at nearby Kent State University in Kent, Ohio.

“If you were not a liberal in Ohio before May 4, 1970, when the Ohio National Guardsmen fired on the Kent State students who were protesting against the Vietnam War, and four students were shot—then you were a liberal after May 4, 1970,” said Del Pozzo.

“My father worked in the same factory for 45 years. He went to work at the same time every day. He came home at the same time every day. Those were different times. Labor was strong. Unions were strong,” added Del Pozzo, who moved to California to earn a law degree at Golden Gate University in San Francisco.

Following graduation from Golden Gate Law School, Del Pozzo, worked at the San Francisco office of the American Civil Liberties Union where he worked to restore rights to AIDS patients who were being quarantined.

He then served as a Deputy District Attorney in the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office for 12 1/2 years before being elected to the bench.

Del Pozzo, who sits as a judge in the criminal justice division, took many questions from the audience during his informal presentation. Wearing a sweatshirt, with a United States Flag emblazoned on the front of it, he answered questions candidly with a special view-from-the-bench perspective.

Topically, the questions ranged from the California Youth Authority rehabilitation programs to high-speed chases, and driving while under the influence (DUI) cases.

Del Pozzo, with his quick smile and a ready sense of humor, immediately connected with his audience. Once, when asked a question that seemed to go on forever, Del Pozzo responded with, “I think that there is a question in there, somewhere,” to the audience’s delight.

Following Del Pozzo’s presentation, Bob Applebaum, Club president, showed the independent film, entitled “Strange Fruit,” a film about a song that became a driving force for the birth of the civil rights movement.

“The film is a story of American history, from the late 1930s through the l960s, and it maintains its significance today,” said Applebaum.

“It blends the world of jazz with the struggle for social justice in this country, the period of anti-communism under McCarthyism and the government environment in which Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were executed as spies,” he continued.

“It is a very compelling film. I cry every time I watch it. I hope that the experiences portrayed in the film inspire viewers to believe in the importance of maintaining vigilance and avoiding complacency when civil rights are threatened,” added Applebaum.

Club members commented positively about the meeting. “I thought that Judge Del Pozzo was super,” said member Patricia Le Rocker. “Number one, he is an excellent speaker. I think he is down to earth, relaxed and sure of himself, in a very nice way. If I ever get in trouble, I hope that he is the judge for my case.”

Fifty-four members attended the meeting. They contributed $490 to the United Nations Childrens’ Education Fund for the Tsunami Disaster Relief, in addition to the $400 that the executive board members of the Evergreen Democratic Club voted to contribute to UNICEF at their monthly meeting earlier in the day. Evergreen Democratic Club members thus donated a total of $890 for the tsunami victims.

The speaker for the next meeting of the Evergreen Democratic Club will be Sanjeev Bery, director of the new ACLU office in San Jose. The meeting will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 1 at the Foothill Center at 3:30 p.m. Refreshments will be served.