Court Watch

In the case of Goldstein v. The City of Long Beach, the Ninth Cricuit Court of Appeals held “that the County of Los Angeles could be liable pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 because the district attorney acted as final policymaker for the County when adopting and implementing internal policies and procedures related to the use of jailhouse informants.”

The plaintiff in this case, Thomas Goldstein, spent 24 years in prison after being convicted for murder based largely upon the perjured testimony of unreliable jailhouse informant Edward Fink.  Mr. Goldstein was released after a district court determined that Mr. Fink “had lied and that it might have made a difference if the prosecution had told plaintiff’s lawyer that Fink had received prior rewards in return for favorable testimony.”

By Catherine Woodward

DUI Trial – Brandon Robinson, represented by Attorney Amy Caskey, is charged with driving under the influence, with additional enhancements for having a high blood alcohol content. His jury trial began on Wednesday, May 8. Deputy District Attorney Brandon Finn is prosecuting on behalf of the People.

Around 4:45 a.m. on August 11, 2012, CHP Officers Vazquez and Salizzoni responded to a single-vehicle collision on southbound I-5, just north of Woodland. The vehicle had crashed through several fence posts and the perimeter fence before coming to rest straddling an irrigation ditch. It was still dark outside, and there were not any streetlights. The officers initially believed that the vehicle had been abandoned, but upon approach they saw three men inside. Officer Salizzoni helped the occupants get out of the vehicle safely. Due to the vehicle’s precarious position, Officer Salizzoni testified that it would have been difficult, but not impossible, for the men to change seats.

The Yolo County Grand Jury investigated how the “Yolo County Probation Department (YCPD) measures the effectiveness of its evidence-based tools for evaluating the risk that probationers may violate the terms of their probation or commit new offenses.”

The investigation was reportedly prompted by Probation Department statistics that demonstrate “a reduction in the number of adult offenders returned to state prison for probation violations and a substantial reduction in the population in the county’s Juvenile Detention Facility.”

Just over a year after the Yolo County District Attorney’s office filed 21 misdemeanor charges against twelve protesters, accused of conducting a protest in front of the US Bank in UC Davis’ Memorial Union which allegedly interrupted business to the point where US Bank made the decision to close its doors, attorneys for the twelve individuals and Deputy District Attorney Michael Cabral reached a plea agreement.

The agreement called for the protesters to plead to a single infraction of disturbing the peace.  The rest of the charges except for count 1, the conspiracy, would be dropped.  The protesters would face a fine and have to serve 80 hours of community service.  Neither UC Davis nor US Bank are pursuing restitution.

You can’t really make this stuff up.  Lost in the national debate over gun control and the Boston Marathon Bombers and their post-arrest treatment is the federal trial in New York that is charging that the department’s “stop-and-frisk” practices are biased and therefore unconstitutional.

The suit contends, “These NYPD practices have led to a dramatic increase in the number of suspicion-less stop-and-frisks per year in the city, with the majority of stops in communities of color.”  And the trial made early headlines when one of the officers released his recorded meetings that purportedly showed the department advocating for the use of racial quotas.

By Charmayne Schmitz

On Thursday, the trial of People vs. Ryan Baird continued with evidence presented by the prosecution. The defendant is charged with 2^nd Degree Murder, Gross Vehicular Manslaughter and Driving Under the Influence of both alcohol and drugs.

Deputy District Attorney Amanda Zambor questioned a witness sworn in the previous day, CHP Officer Pascoe. This officer was the lead investigator of the accident, which occurred on the evening of January 6, 2012. We heard about various items that were found in the vehicle or on the ground near the vehicle, such as energy drink cans. Zambor asked if it’s possible to test a person for this type of consumption. The officer was not aware of any such test.

By Catherine McKnight

The expected two-week trial of People v. Baird began on Wednesday, May 1 in Department 7 under the Honorable Judge Janet Gaard. Prosecuting the case is Deputy District Attorney Amanda Zambor, with private counsel Richard Dudek defending Ryan Baird.

Ryan Baird is being charged with 4 counts, including several enhancements, involving a tragic car accident when the defendant was allegedly driving under the influence and launched his car off of an exit ramp in Woodland, ejecting the other 3 passengers’ bodies out of the vehicle.

By Catherine McKnight

Editor’s Note: Last fall, a federal jury acquitted the three officers in federal wrongful death and civil rights lawsuit.

April 30, 2013, marked the fourth year anniversary of the death of 26-year-old Woodland resident and farmer, Luis Gutierrez. He was a friend to many, a son, and from what is said about him by those close to him – someone who always obeyed the law.

For those who are not familiar with the case, Luis was shot six times and killed by three plain-clothed sheriffs with the Yolo County Gang Task Force on April 30, 2009. After a 13-day trial in October 2012, all three officers were acquitted of any wrongdoing and of all liability of Luis’ death.

by Antoinnette Borbon

It was a very long day and a half with the jury selection process in Department 2, Judge Timothy Fall’s courtroom.

James Mings has been charged with the killing of a chronically ill man. Kevin Seery, 42 years old, was found face down with what was later identified as a piece of a sock, gauze and a toilette stuffed inside his mouth.

By Ibrahim Baig

On the morning of Monday April 28, 2013, the Honorable Judge Gaard heard motions for the upcoming trial of Ryan Baird.

Among Mr. Baird’s serious charges are murder and gross vehicular manslaughter.

A few days ago, Ross Ramsey, a columnist with the Texas Tribune, argued that Texas prosecutors are no longer “unassailable.”

“An elected prosecutor used to have one of the most respected jobs at any level of Texas government,” Mr. Ross writes.  “Running a political campaign against a sitting prosecutor in Texas was a job for egotistic dunces and legal-minded Quixotes. Even weak DA’s were invincible.”

This week, I was amazed about how quickly we hearkened back to a time from a decade ago, where fear and uncertainty once again cloud our better judgment and restrain our finer angels.  It is for these times of uncertainty that we have a Constitution, a rule of law, and if we do not adhere to our principles when it is difficult, they are not principles at all, they are simply platitudes.

The Associated Press reports that Federal Magistrate Judge Marianne Bowler went to the hospital and convened a court hearing in the hospital room of the accused bombing suspect, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, about 16 hours after a complaint was filed in her court.

By Jeanne Woodford

GUEST COMMENTARY – What do the gas chamber, state secrets and illegally manufactured drugs all have in common?

They are all in Senator Joel Anderson’s preposterous new bill, SB 779, sponsored by the California District Attorneys’ Association.

By Charmayne Schmitz

On Thursday, we heard the closing arguments in the case of People vs. Madderra. The defendant was charged with selling cigarettes to a minor in a sting operation. It was her second day of work as a cashier.

Deputy District Attorney Kyle Hasapes stressed that the law is the law and every law has consequences. The defendant made a bad decision. It doesn’t matter if she did not have the experience or the knowledge.

By Antoinnette Borbon

On Wednesday in arraignment court came the short testimony of a woman, who testified to the character of a defendant in custody who is being linked to “gang activity.” Attorney Lawrence Cobb is defending the young man.

In a statement to Commissioner Janene Beronio, Mr. Cobb argued that the defendant is a good kid who has no criminal record and has people in his neighborhood who can attest to his character being reliable and responsible. He is a young defendant, already a father, as we learned today.