Letter to the Editor; Endorsement of Garth Dano for prosecutor

To the Editor:

My name is Diane Upky. I am writing this letter to the editor to endorse and support Garth Dano for Prosecutor. Mr. Dano was our family’s attorney about three years ago when my son and his friend nearly died as the result of a car accident caused by a drunk driver. Both young men have sustained life altering injuries and had medical expenses exceeding $1 million.

I was astonished by the poor treatment we received from Mr. Lee and the Grant County Prosecutor’s office, during the case against the driver.

Mr. Dano notified Grant County Prosecutor, Mr. Lee, of our desire to participate in the criminal prosecution, including restitution hearings regarding the defendant driver. Mr. Dano was told by the Grant County Victim Witness Coordinator that we would be notified of all hearings and assisted and helped by the Grant County Prosecutor’s office and by Mr. Lee, who was handling the case.

There were three separate hearings scheduled in this case. My husband and I took time off work to come to Ephrata for them.

During the first hearing, we sat in the courtroom all morning. When the case was called, Mr. Lee rushed into the court, said the matter had been stricken and then he refused to talk to us and quickly left the courtroom. Neither he nor the Victim Witness Coordinator ever expressed any sympathy or acknowledged our presence.

At the second hearing, Mr. Lee assigned the case to three other prosecutors. They told the court they had “made a deal” with Mr. Moberg, the defendant’s attorney. We were never given the opportunity to review or speak to the prosecutors or the crime victim coordinator. All three prosecutors objected to Mr. Dano spiaking to the court, on our behalf, saying he had no right to speak for us. We found this outrageous and unbelievable!

During the third hearing in October, 2010, neither we nor our attorney, Mr. Dano, were allowed to address the court concerning the impact the defendant’s conduct had on our family. A new prosecutor was handling the case, but it was obvious she had not seen the file before and had never handled a restitution hearing. She did not speak with me, my husband, nor the two young men who had been nearly killed in the accident.

All this talk about prosecutors “protecting the crime victim” is a sham. Mr. Lee did not even speak to us or assist us in dealing with the devastation done to our family and my son, physically, emotionally and financially. To this day, Mr. Lee has never acknowledged my son or our family in any way.

I am asking you to please vote for Garth Dano, a man who cares, is fair, firm and consistent. His years of experience and his track record prove he is a man of integrity and will make the right changes in the prosecutor’s office.

Diane Upky

Moses Lake