Pubdate: Sat, 13 Oct 2001 Source: Arizona Republic (AZ) Copyright: 2001 The Arizona Republic Contact: http://www.arizonarepublic.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/24 Author: Beth DeFalco Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis) JUDGE'S ADDICTION WINS FELON AN APPEAL An Arizona death row inmate is entitled to know whether the judge who sentenced him was high on marijuana at the time, a federal appeals court ruled Friday. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals set aside the inmate's sentence, saying hearings are needed on whether the judge's marijuana addiction tainted the outcome. The decision could affect hundreds of criminal cases tried before former Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Philip Marquardt, who was thrown off the bench and disbarred for a marijuana conviction after a 20-year career. The appeal involves Warren Summerlin, who was found guilty of first- degree murder in 1981 and sentenced to death by Marquardt. The Arizona Supreme Court and lower federal courts upheld Summerlin's sentence. But a divided three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed it and ordered hearings that could lead to a new trial for Summerlin. "Under the majority's ruling, every one of these individuals - and there are no doubt hundreds of them - could petition to have their sentences set aside," Judge Alex Kozinski wrote in his dissent. Two other judges wrote that Summerlin had a "clearly established constitutional right" to have his sentence determined by a judge who was not acting under the influence of a mind-altering illegal drug. Marquardt pleaded guilty in 1991 to marijuana possession after being arrested in Texas. Marquardt, who at the time said he was suffering from an addiction, has denied that he was impaired when deciding Summerlin's sentence. Prosecutor Jessica Funkhouser said she didn't know drug use was an issue in the appeal since Marquardt was arrested after Summerlin's trial. - --- MAP posted-by: Terry Liittschwager