Opinion ID: 7347067
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Count 1(G): Habbestad

Text: Greg Habbestad knows Judge Stanford through the volunteer work they have done together at the Good Samaritan Center for more than 15 years. Habbestad attended annual barbecues for the ministry at the judge’s home and once attended a baseball game with him. He is an aerospace engineer at Boeing. In September 2009, Habbestad received a citation for speeding, going 56 mph in a 40 mph zone. The courtesy notice was sent on November 2, indicating a total bail amount of $332. In November, the judge and Habbestad were working at Good Samaritan Center when other volunteers were having a conversation about traffic tickets. Habbestad mentioned he had received a ticket and expressed surprise about how expensive the fine was. After the center closed and the other volunteers had left, Judge Stanford told Habbestad that he would take care of the ticket so Habbestad did not have to go to court and could pay a lower fine. Sometime later, Habbestad provided the judge with a copy of the courtesy notice. Judge Stanford thereafter directed his clerk to enter a disposition of traffic school, with all fines and fees waived other than the $51 county traffic school fee. There was no appearance. The matter was entered in the minutes as “chambers work.” The minutes also included a finding of compelling and extraordinary circumstances for waiver of the assessment and security fees. The judge’s clerk testified that the entry was not made at the judge’s direction; rather, it was a code she entered in order to effectuate the judge’s directive to waive those fees. Judge Stanford delivered the documentation to Habbestad who then went to court and paid the $51. The traffic clerk who took the payment does not recall ever seeing “someone get traffic school without any payment other than the county fee,” but she would not have questioned a disposition by a judge. Habbestad told his wife and other friends, including a police officer, that the judge helped him with the ticket.