SAN FRANCISCO, CA – The San Francisco Public Defender’s Office this week publicly stated that there’s a heavy backlog of trials because of the COVID-19 pandemic and suggested more defendants should get their day in court sooner than later.
The office noted, as an example of what can happen when defendants get that day in court, that a San Francisco jury returned a 10-2 decision weighing heavily in favor of “not guilty” this week in a case alleging rape where physical and circumstantial evidence pointed to a false accusation.
Deputy Public Defender Kwixuan Maloof, who represented the accused man, presented extensive witness testimony and physical evidence to show the prosecution’s case was compromised by “inconsistencies.”
“These are very difficult cases and we appreciate that the jury largely understood that there were serious credibility issues with this accusation. The prosecution and our defense team presented extensive evidence during the trial which lasted over a month, and 10 of 12 jurors voted not guilty,” said Maloof.
“This indicates to us that nothing would substantially change in a re-trial and we urge the District Attorney’s office to dismiss these charges to let our client get back to his life and family,” added Maloof.
“It was a robust trial, and I am proud of Mr. Maloof and the entire defense team for presenting clear and convincing evidence that pointed to our client’s innocence. There are many other serious cases waiting for a chance to be heard in court, and it is our collective responsibility to keep moving justice forward,” said San Francisco Public Defender Mano Raju.
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