The criminal case against one of Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price’s biggest critics appears to be at an end.
The California Attorney General’s Office on Wednesday dismissed the case against Amilcar “Butch” Ford. The move ends a year-long saga that sparked concerns that Price had targeted one of her most vocal political rivals by charging him with an oblique crime, one rarely charged by prosecutors anywhere in the state.
The ordeal began in July 2023, when Price’s office charged Ford with the rarely-cited misdemeanor of defending after public prosecution as the prosecutor. If convicted, Ford could have been disbarred.
Price claimed that Ford filed a declaration while still employed by Price that supported police union attorney Michael Rains’ bid to disqualify the district attorney from a case against Jason Fletcher. Fletcher, a former San Leandro police officer, faces a manslaughter charge in the 2020 on-duty shooting death of Steven Taylor.
Ford has repeatedly sparred with Price over the years, having even appeared at a rally last year on the steps of the René C. Davidson Courthouse in downtown Oakland while calling for her to be recalled from office. He later left the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office for a job as a prosecutor under San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins.
In January, an Alameda County judge tossed Price’s office from the case amid concerns that Price had a “significant conflict of interest” in the case.
“I’m not saying she has expressed an opinion that a member of the public cannot express — she has every right to do so,” Cramer said. “The problem here for me is that the elected district attorney has made repeated comments about the defendant in this case, Mr. Ford.”
An appeal by Price’s office was denied last month, setting the stage for the California Attorney General’s Office to take over the prosecution.
On Wednesday, Caitlin Duprey, a deputy attorney general, said moved to dismiss the case for a lack of evidence, and “in the interest of justice.”
Ford’s case marked the first of at least two instances this year of Price’s office being booted from a case amid concerns of a conflict of interest.
In March, Price’s office also was removed from Fletcher’s case, amid concerns about comments that the district attorney made in that case as well. A judge has yet to make a ruling on an appeal filed by Price’s office on that ruling.
Check back for updates to this developing story.