J. Joseph Curran Jr. has spent nearly a half-century in politics ? as a delegate, state senator, lieutenant governor and for the last two decades, as attorney general. The Examiner recently sat down with him to talk about his career.
Q. What does an attorney general really do?
A. We are the lawyer for the state. The state is a $29 billion corporation, and we are the law firm for the state and the people of the state. The constitution spells out what our duties are and then there are certain statutes that have expended the duties. Anti-trust, consumer protection and in recent years, the legislature has expanded our authority.
Q. You were heavily involved in the sex offenders? law.
A. I thought it was not wise to simply release them, but that they should be monitored. I wanted to monitor them in a setting like Perkins [maximum security hospital]. That didn?t pass. So that?s why we did the research on the sexual predators and searched the laws in all the other states and chose to introduce, through [House Speaker] Mike Bush and [Senate President] Mike Miller, [the] sexual predator law that passed last session. It wasn?t everything I?d wanted, but it?s a real step in the right direction.
Q. What about things you haven?t been able to do?
A. I don?t know why we didn?t pass the price-gouging bill for two straight years. That would have given us at least a platform to be able to say at least there is the appearance of unnecessary spikes [in prices].
Q. Tell us about your thoughts on the criminal problems with prescription drugs.
A. There needs to be the ability to monitor how pain killer drugs are getting from the pharmacies to the drug trade. The federal government urges all states to do this. We worked all last year, before January, with every interest group; we had a bill put in, it passed overwhelmingly in the House and Senate. It was a landslide victory, and the governor vetoed it. I was very disappointed in that. I think he said he wanted to have more study. Well, I have studied this thing till my fingers were worn out.
Q. The governor talks about how he needs his own lawyer, an attorney general that will be more compatible with him.
A. This governor does in fact have a staff of lawyers that can advisehim on his issues. We worked closely with his people, but the constitution indicates that it is the attorney general who does the law work and appears in court. There will come a time when I am not the attorney general and the governor is not the governor, but the constitution will remain and whoever follows me or whoever follows the governor has to follow the constitution.
Q. But he has stopped you from doing some things that you wanted to do.
A. In the environmental area. We are downwind by our very geography of power plants in Ohio and West Virginia. We wanted to challenge a change in the Bush administration with the environmental protection laws because we thought the law should be strengthened, not changed. I wanted to join, but it?s not my decision, and I have to go by what my client wants, and my client didn?t want that.
Q. Do you see a conflict in the role of representing the governor and the legislature at the same time?
A. Not really, the constitution gives us that role and that?s our role.
If the General Assembly should pass a law, we defend it. I can?t say, “Well, gee, I like that law therefore I will defend it” or “I don?t like that law I won?t defend that law.” We defend all the laws that are passed by the General Assembly that are presumed to be legal.
Q. A couple of things have lost in court, recently. Wal-Mart, that was federal court, the Tom Perez opinion, the early voting.
A. The Wal-Mart thing, that?s in court now, that?s down the Fourth Circuit, that?ll be decided I?m assuming sometime later this year. We gave an analysis of that, and the analysis also supported by other court decisions. When you give analysis, you better make sure that there is merit to your position. You just can?t go off the deep end.
Q. And that?s an appeal that the governor didn?t really want you to make.
A. That?s the problem. What laws passed by the General Assembly do I arbitrarily not appeal? The same-sex marriage thing was a law that was challenged in Baltimore City and it was ruled unconstitutional. I suppose I could?ve said well I?m not going to appeal that, because I agree with the court. Well, people would?ve been outraged. The practice is that if there is merit to the position, you appeal it, and let the final umpire ? the Court of Appeals, or the federal court ? decide.
Q. Does gambling spur economic growth?
A. The growth industry in Atlantic City, and I?ve said this, is pawn shops. That?s a true story/statement. The growth industry, and that?s what we?ve said also, that the real growth industry in Atlantic City after 1978-79, was in the springing up of horrific number of pawn shops. The point I?m making is that, if you?re gonna pass this gambling thing, please make sure that you take into consideration the social impact, the adverse social, and make sure that there?s some way to deal with the gambling disease, some way to make sure that there?s not more abuse in families.
J. Joseph Curran Jr.
» Age: 75, born July 7, 1931, West Palm Beach, Fla.
» Education: Bachelor?s, law degree, University of Baltimore
» Career: Attorney in private practice
» Political career: House of Delegates, 1959-62; state Senate, 1963-82; chairman, Judicial Proceedings Committee; Lieutenant governor under Gov. Harry Hughes, 1983-86; Attorney General, 1987-2006.
» Family: Married with five grown children, including Judge Catherine Curran O?Malley, wife of Baltimore Mayor Martin O?Malley.
