By Jose Medina
SACRAMENTO – Defendant Omari Gaphne’s attorney—after the Sacramento Sheriff’s Department apparently didn’t do what a Sacramento County Superior Court judge ordered—tried to resolve the misstep by the sheriff, but the move shocked a different judge.
Appearing in front of Judge Michael A. Savage in Sacramento Superior Court Department 62 for an arraignment hearing, Gaphne’s lawyer Steve Whitworth told the court that Gaphne was previously ordered by Judge Michael Sweet to be hooked up to an electronic monitoring device.
However, the Sacramento Sheriff’s Department refused, for unknown reasons, to do it, said Whitworth, and counsel decided to take matters into their own hands and searched for a private company that could provide a GPS device so that Gaphne may be monitored.
Gaphne was hooked up to the monitoring device, so Whitworth believed that, by “putting the defendant on something, we would be within the spirit of Judge Sweet’s order.” 
Judge Savage seemed to be very surprised by what he just heard.
The goal of the current hearing was to review the amendment of the complaint held against Gaphne, but it was now being sidetracked to address the issue that was inadvertently presented before Savage, who said, “Let me just say I anticipate there is going to be a problem because not only is the Sheriff not doing GPS, but I do not believe they are allowing private monitoring companies.”
Judge Savage’s bewilderment put Gaphne’s due process in danger of being prolonged. Judge Savage has serious concerns that could put many people within legal departments in trouble if Gaphne’s case were to continue in its current state.
Judge Savage added he felt uncomfortable with moving forward with the case because he was certain that Gaphne’s GPS, through a private company, would not be allowed, noting that “the Sheriff Department doesn’t want the liability of a pre-trial detainee, on a private GPS if something were to go awry then that would be on the Sheriff.”
Judge Savage was adamant that he would not have ruled to allow Gaphne to be monitored by a GPS device provided by a private company. He then suggested to “put this in front of Judge Sweet in a week or so maybe sooner, and see how you want to proceed.”
Judge Savage proceeded to schedule a new arraignment hearing for Aug. at 1:30 pm in Department 61 with Judge Sweet.
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