The sad and sordid scandal involving officials at the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Department has now officially come to an end, with former Undersheriff Rick Song pleading guilty to a pair of bribery-related offenses related to a pay-to-play operation involving political donations in exchange for concealed carry permits.
Former sheriff Laurie Smith was previously convicted of bribery related charges in a civil trial for her role in the operation, which took place before the Bruen decision resulted in California’s “may issue” laws being replaced with a “shall issue” licensing regime. In the bad old days, Smith and her top deputies were accused of ignoring concealed carry applications from ordinary residents, but granting rarely-issued permits to those who offered cash and prizes to the department and a supposedly independent campaign supporting Smith’s bid for reelection.
Like the other officials who were convicted, Sung won’t have to serve any time behind bars, but his days in law enforcement have hopefully come to an end.
As a result of a plea agreement in which Sung admitted guilt to two separate felony bribery solicitation counts, Sung will surrender his state law enforcement license and serve 400 hours of community service, and be under two years or probation. Deputy District Attorney John Chase also moved to dismiss a connected charge against defendant Harpreet Chadha.
Another part of the plea agreement includes the prosecution allowing Sung, once he completes his community service and probation terms, to petition to reduce the felonies to misdemeanors, and then seek expungement, or retroactive dismissal, of the charges.
Sung’s only remarks to Superior Court Judge Hanley Chew were “I do” when asked if he understood the pleas he was entering, and “Guilty” when Chew asked Sung to confirm his pleas.
In a written statement after the court hearing, Sung’s attorneys, Naomi Chung and Tamara Crepet, characterized the pleas as putting a needed end to a “politically motivated” case that sidestepped the fact that only Smith, then the sheriff, had the authority to issue the CCW permits.
“This case was never about Mr. Sung lining his own pockets,” the statement reads. “It concerned concealed-weapons permits, which under California law only the Sheriff, not the Undersheriff, has the authority to issue.”
If that’s how Sung feels then he shouldn’t have taken a plea deal, and he damn sure better not be able to get those convictions reduced and expunged until he takes responsibility for his own actions. Yes, Smith was the sole person who had the authority to sign off on concealed carry permits, but Sung apparently went along with it.
The wider bribery and corruption case involved a series of investigations and charges that revolved around Smith and longtime accusations of political and other kinds of favor-trading in how her office issued CCW permits. The case became public with a 2020 criminal indictment of the captain and three Smith supporters who facilitated key meetings.
Prosecutors outlined a long-running ploy that brokered the coveted CCW permits in backroom deals while largely ignoring applications from ordinary citizens.
Things have gotten better since Smith stepped down, but justice won’t be done in Santa Clara until the average citizen can exercise their fundamental right to bear arms without paying an arm and a leg. Even under the “shall issue” laws in place, it’s still far from easy for Santa Clara County residents to exercise their right to carry.
As California Rifle & Pistol Association and Second Amendment Foundation pointed out in a lawsuit against the county, it costs nearly $2,000 to apply for a permit, with the county charging nearly $1,000 for application fees alone. Add in the cost of training, the mandatory psych evaluation, and fingerprinting, and a concealed carry permit is still beyond the reach of many residents… just as it was when Smith, Sung, and other sheriff’s officials were ignoring the applications from ordinary residents altogether.
Editor’s Note: The radical Left will stop at nothing to enact their extreme gun control agenda and strip us of our Second Amendment rights.
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