MAVERICK DEFENSE ATTORNEY HONORED.

Byline: Holly Edwards Staff Writer

Throughout the murder trial of Sandi Nieves, her attorney, Deputy Public Defender Howard Waco, was reviled and ridiculed by the judge, the prosecution and several courtroom observers.

Judge. L. Jeffrey Wiatt referred to Waco as a ``clown'' and said his primary expert witness seemed like he was ``from another planet.''

Prosecutors could be seen chuckling during Waco's questioning, and some spectators whispered obscenities while Waco questioned the victims' relatives.

But Waco's colleagues say the public defender's controversial performance during the three-month trial capped a 35-year career defined by perseverance in the face of adversity.

In honor of Waco's achievements, the Los Angeles County Public Defender's Association recently named him Public Defender of the Year and presented him with the Gessler Award, named for former Chief Deputy Charlie Gessler.

``Howie was the target of quite a bit of unjust abuse during that trial, but he hung in there and fought day after day,'' said Gessler. ``He fights for his clients as long and as hard as it's possible to fight.''

Nieves, 37, was ultimately convicted and sentenced to death for killing her four young daughters in a 1998 arson fire in her Seco Canyon home.

While relatives testified tearfully about their loss and attorneys argued about Nieves' mental stability, a separate courtroom drama played out beneath the surface almost daily.

Angry exchanges between Waco and Wiatt became routine, Waco was fined a total of $5,000, mostly for making inappropriate objections. All but $500 of the sanctions were excused by Wiatt at the end of the trial.

For Waco, 62, the Nieves trial was simply one more battle against a system that destroys the lives of ``nobodies'' and allows ``somebodies'' to literally get away with murder.

``When I go to trial, it's sort of like a war,'' Waco said. ``Everyone wants things to go smoothly in the courtroom and nobody wants to make waves. But when I'm in there, things don't necessarily go smoothly.''

Waco said he doesn't hesitate to express his feelings in court - sometimes in unconventional ways.

On July 27, the day Nieves was convicted of four counts of first- degree murder, Waco wore a necktie covered with kangaroos - symbolic mockery of what he perceived to be a kangaroo court.

Mid-trial, Waco filed a motion seeking Wiatt's removal, claiming the judge's bias in the death penalty case was putting Nieves' life in danger. It was ultimately denied.

Ironically, a previous conflict between Waco and a judge led the U.S Supreme Court to give judges even more protection in the courtroom.

In 1989, Van Nuys Superior Court Judge Raymond Mireles ordered two Los Angeles police officers to forcibly bring Waco to his courtroom. The public defender was then grabbed from another courtroom, dragged down a hallway and forced through the doorway into Mireles' courtroom.

Waco sued the judge, but in a 1990 decision the high court ruled that judges can be sued only for actions unrelated to their courtroom duties.

Now nearing the end of his career, Waco said he is trying to focus on what he can do for his ``abused and mistreated'' clients.

``Even if my clients lose and go to jail, they see someone speaking up for them for the first time in their lives,'' he said.

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Howard Waco

Public Defender of Year