My View: Local Disappointments Aside, Governor Brown Diversified the Judicial Bench
In the waning days of Governor Jerry Brown’s tenure as Governor, he disappointed some local residents with…
Use of Force and Police Stops in 2017
Second Annual Report from California’s Racial and Identity Profiling Advisory Board Illustrates Use of Force and Racial…
Supreme Court Denies Effort to Block Access to Police Records
In a one-sentence ruling the California Supreme Court denied the efforts by police unions to gut or…
How Our Local Legislators Fared on Police and Criminal Justice Reform Issues
It was a banner year on police and criminal justice reform issues before the state legislature. The…
Commentary: Does Juvenile Reform Bill Go Too Far? Depends on Whom You Ask
Governor Brown just signed SB 1391 over the weekend. The timing is interesting, because Daniel Marsh’s hearing…
Governor Brown Signs New Law to Help the Wrongfully Convicted
(From Press Release) – On Sunday evening Senate Bill 1050, authored by State Senator Ricardo Lara (D-Bell…
Governor Brown Signs Eyewitness Identification Reform Bill
New Law Requires Best Practices for Conducting Photo & Live Lineups (From Press Release) – California Governor…
Governor Brown Signs Bill Ending Sentencing of 14- and 15-Year-Olds in Adult Court
One of the big questions surrounding the signing of SB 1391 is what that will mean for…
Governor Brown Signs Post-Conviction Discovery Bill
New Law Provides Innocent People Access to Materials Available at Trial (From Press Release)— Governor Jerry Brown…
Monday Morning Thoughts: How Big Was SB 1421?
I wrote a pretty scathing op-ed that was published Friday in our premium newsletter, on the Democratic…
ACLU Flips to Opposition of Bail Reform Bill but SB 10 Passes Assembly
The ACLU of California announced early on Monday that they had taken a step further than last…
Sunday Commentary: Does Bail Reform Go Far Enough?
A lot of people don’t really understand bail reform. The purpose of bail reform is not to…
Bills on Police Transparency and Use of Force Advance
California Mother Whose Son was Killed by Police Applauds Committee Approval of Bill to Open Police Records…
ACLU Pulls Support as Bail Reform Legislation Watered Down
ACLU of California Statement on Changes to Bail Reform Legislation (From Press Release) – Today, Senator Hertzberg…
Immigrant Supporters March Outside Sac Hotel as AG Sessions Calls Out Cal ‘Open Border Radicals’
By Crescenzo Vellucci SACRAMENTO – Dozens of television news cameras, from CNN to local and regional broadcast…
Commentary: AG’s Office Looks Other Way at Orange County Wrongdoing
Back in August, we asked why the supposedly liberal California Attorney General’s office was trying to seek…
California Values Act Sanctuary Bill Passes Legislature
Bill Now Goes to Governor for His Expected Signature (From Press Release) – The California Senate today…
Analysis: Supreme Court Upholds Death Penalty in Prop 66 But Re-Writes Key Timeline Provision
When Proposition 66 surprisingly passed last year, it was clear the proposition that aimed to speed up…
California’s Values
by William Kelly SB 54 has been called “the sanctuary state bill,” the “freeze out ICE [Immigration…
Broad Coalition Supports Effort to Reform California’s Unfair and Costly Money Bail System
Current System Exacerbates Racial and Economic Injustice and Does Not Keep Communities Safe (From Press Release)-A broad…
