A father facing eight years in prison comes forward to the Guardian as lawyers and advocates say US prosecutors are criminalizing free speech and targeting people injured by officers.
Sam Levin | The Guardian | June 13, 2025
The changes will take effect Jan. 1, but local governments get a decade to comply. For cash-strapped counties, it may not be enough time without more state aid.
Jerry Cornfield | Washington State Standard | June 9, 2025
The state Supreme Court on Monday responded to a “crisis” in Washington’s public defense system by slashing caseloads for those providing counsel to poor defendants facing criminal prosecutions.
Justices unanimously agreed to set the new statewide standards, which call for public defenders to handle a maximum of 47 felony cases or 120 misdemeanor cases in a year, depending on one’s primary area of practice. The current thresholds are 150 felonies and 400 misdemeanors.
Read the Washington Supreme Court's Order here.
If you’re accused of a crime, will someone investigate your side of the story? In California, there’s no guarantee.
Anat Rubin | Cal Matters | June 5, 2025
Nelson was charged with kidnapping and murder. Siskiyou’s chief public defender, Lael Kayfetz, thought there was little chance of overcoming a signed confession and an eyewitness account. Then the prosecutors turned over the recordings of Nelson’s interrogation. When Kayfetz watched the footage, she said, “my eyeballs fell out of my head.”
She realized she needed to test the claims against her client, but she couldn’t do it on her own. “I’m an expert on the law,” Kayfetz said. “I’m not an expert on getting the facts.” She needed an investigator.
The prosecutors were working closely with detectives at the sheriff’s office, issuing warrants and building a case. They also employed their own team of five investigators.
That year, Siskiyou County’s public defender didn’t have a single defense investigator on staff.
A CalMatters investigation finds a dangerous shortage of defense investigators across the state.
Anat Rubin | Cal Matters | June 5, 2025
“We know where the contraband is coming from,” said Kate Chatfield, executive director of California Public Defenders Association. “People who work in the institutions know where it’s coming from. The contraband is coming from the employees of the institution. But they are blaming everyone. This will have a real adverse impact on the ability of people to visit incarcerated people.”
Cayla Mihalovich |CalMatters | June 2, 2025
Nigel Duara | CalMatters | June 4, 2025
New court documents reveal how the feds tried to unmask the Columbia students — and got blocked by federal judges on First Amendment grounds.
Shawn Musgrave |The Intercept | June 4, 2025
Joe Garcia | CalMatters | May 28, 2025
“I think it’s absolutely shameful that this program is being considered to be cut in the May Revise,” said Alameda County Chief Public Defender Brendon Woods.
“When you think about the cost of this program — about $27.5 million, and the cost that, as a state, we pay nearly $14 billion to incarcerate people in prison — it’s kind of ridiculous that this small amount was being cut to make sure that our juries are more diverse.”
Woods spoke not only about the impact of losing the Jury Duty Pilot Program, but also what that means in light of voters passing Proposition 36, which signaled a swing away from criminal justice reform and a return to more tough-on-crime, mass incarceration era policies.
“As a state, we recently passed Prop. 36 — a law that is going to incarcerate more low income or Black and brown people,” said Woods. “They’re going to be in prison and jail because of that law. And while we’re doing that, we’re also saying that we’re gonna cut funding from a program that’s going to actually give people who are low income — Black and brown — a chance to have a voice in the system.
“So we’re increasing incarceration of people while also removing their power. I cannot think of something that’s actually more devious than that.”
After mystery illnesses and toxic reports, prisoners at California’s Mule Creek State Prison worry their water is killing them.
D. “Razor” Babb, Emily Nonko, Nina Zweig | The Appeal | May 15, 2025
"For decades, people incarcerated at Mule Creek have raised the alarm about the prison’s drinking water. Reporting from inside Mule Creek State Prison, with interviews and surveys from nearly 100 people—including currently incarcerated, formerly incarcerated, loved ones of the incarcerated, and former prison staff—and a review of thousands of pages of records, reveals troubling concerns and observations of the prison’s water quality for the last 20 years. Many reported illnesses during their time of incarceration, ranging from mysterious rashes to life-changing diagnoses that studies link to exposure to environmental pollutants. People living near the prison have been exposed to dangerous chemicals in their well water, and investigators have discovered severely corroded pipes beneath the facility. Guards bring bottled water to work. Contractors have gotten sick on the job."
Nigel Duara | CalMatters | May 14, 2025
"Gov. Gavin Newsom today called for the closure of another prison in his new budget proposal, which would be the fifth facility closed under his watch, though he didn’t specify which institution now has a target on its back.
The closure, which Newsom proposed take place by October 2026, would happen despite the implementation of Proposition 36, a new California law that is predicted to briefly increase the number of people in the prison system.
“While Proposition 36 is expected to increase (the prison) population, the population should continue its downward trend over the long-term,” Newsom said in the proposal.
Newson's proposed budget pledges that a prison closure would save about $150 million annually. He called for the shutdown as part of his plan to close a $12 billion deficit."
Marisa Kendall | CalMatters | May 12, 2025
"Gov. Gavin Newsom has a new strategy to eliminate the large, long-standing homeless encampments that have been a thorn in his side throughout his administration: Push cities to make them illegal.
The governor on Monday called on every local government in the state to adopt ordinances that restrict public camping “without delay.” He provided a hypothetical model ordinance that lays out exactly what he’d like to see banned: Camping in one place for more than three nights in a row, building semi-permanent structures such as make-shift shacks on public property, and blocking streets or sidewalks.
“We want to see this model ordinance across the state of California,” Newsom said during a virtual news conference Monday. “We want to see how quickly communities that have not adopted a local ordinance adopt it.”
Published May 13, 2025
"SACRAMENTO, CA—Promising his podcast listeners an engaging and enlightening conversation, California Gov. Gavin Newsom reportedly sat down Tuesday with a serial killer who targets the homeless population. “So what do you think Democrats can learn from somebody who, like you, targets the most vulnerable among us?” said Newsom, who acknowledged that while he and the murderer might not see eye to eye on the best way to eliminate the homeless, he was grateful for the opportunity to exchange ideas and perspectives. “You hate the homeless, I hate the homeless. People have been very hard on you, but I think at the end of the day, we all really just want the same thing. So, do you wear their skin?” At press time, podcast listeners were praising the killer for his civility."
Malcolm Maclachlan | Daily Journal | May 9, 2025
"Public defenders in California are seeking $120 million over three years for indigent defense. According to letters to lawmakers, this money is needed in part to deal with a flood of new cases under Proposition 36.
'On behalf of the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors, I am writing to join with the California Public Defenders Association and Smart Justice California to respectfully request $120 million over 3 years to support indigent defense providers across California in implementing holistic defense services,' wrote Humboldt County Administrative Officer Elishia Hayes in an April 30th letter to legislative leaders and budget committee heads.
'Proposition 36 is going to send more Black and brown people to jail and prison," said Alameda County Public Defender Brendon Woods. 'It will send more unhoused people to jail and prison. It will send more people suffering from mental health challenges to jail and prison.' Woods added, 'It was never ever, ever, about treatment. Anybody who tells you it was is lying.'"
Chris Willman | Variety | May 7, 2025
"The art of the protest song is not dead. Fiona Apple has a compelling one with her first new composition to be released in five years, “Pretrial (Let Her Go Home),” which turns a spotlight on the cause of women and especially Black mothers who are jailed without conviction because they can’t afford bail.
Apple released a music video for “Pretrial (Let Her Go Home),” although only her hands appear in it, playing percussion, along with the briefest appearance of her face popping into frame. Instead, the video is filled with still images or video clips of hundreds of women who have languished in jail in a cash-bail system that Apple contends results in rampant, systemic injustice. It also includes some of the singer’s written information about the cause, after years of serving as a volunteer “court watcher,” and links where viewers can take action."
Listen to the song and watch the video here.
Joe Fitzgerald Rodriguez | The San Francisco Standard | May 9, 2025
"For the first time in more than a decade, the San Francisco public defender’s office is so overloaded with cases that it has closed up shop.
The office will decline new clients on one business day each week....
Public Defender Mano Raju says the office is overwhelmed with drug cases. Raju explained the move in a Board of Supervisors hearing Wednesday. The meeting was aimed at addressing District Attorney Brooke Jenkins’ budget, but Raju took the floor.
“We’re in a position where we can’t take any more cases,” he told the supervisors. “If we keep on taking cases, we’re not going to be able to provide the representation our clients deserve, and it’s going to have a negative impact on the just outcome of the case.”
Raju said his office has tackled a 40% increase in felony filings since 2020 and handled more trials last year “than when we started keeping track.”
There were 200 more arraignments in the first four months of 2025 than in the same period last year."
"A court has denied the state of Maine’s request to halt habeas hearings for people who cannot afford a lawyer and were not provided with legal representation, a violation of their Sixth Amendment rights.
The Kennebec County Superior Court ruled it will proceed with hearings to consider releasing indigent defendants who have been jailed without legal counsel for at least 14 days, and to dismiss charges against indigent defendants who have been denied a public defender for more than 60 days after their initial court appearance."
Package of bills would make tweaks aimed at preserving the right to a speedy trial and legal counsel
AnnMarie Hilton | Maine Morning Star | May 2, 2025
"The Maine Commission on Public Defense Services is asking the Legislature to consider a proposal to improve confidentiality between attorneys and incarcerated people communicating in jails.
LD 1825, would prohibit a jail or third-party contractor who provides communication services from intercepting communication between a person who is incarcerated and an attorney or an employee of a law office. It would also bar them from charging a fee for those communications.
Current law requires the commission to send a list of names and contact information for attorneys who provide legal services to incarcerated people to all sheriff’s offices on a weekly basis. The legislation would also require each jail to send electronic communications to each attorney on that list certifying that communications will not be intercepted or come with a fee."
Philip Atiba Solomon | Time | May 1, 2025
My dissertation advisor, a veteran of segregated Chicago, liked to say that social science is not rocket science—it’s a lot harder. Social systems and social progress have a lot more variables than physical ones and behave much less predictably.
The five years following George Floyd’s lynching have demonstrated the wisdom of his words.
In 2020, after the largest protests in U.S. history, there was no shortage of outrage. No lack of political will. No confusion about what people wanted—accountability, dignity, safety. Police unions and politicians who once claimed racism was “over” suddenly spoke publicly about the need to do something in response to such a grotesque event. For a moment, our nation had moral clarity, and it felt like we might finally be on the cusp of change that was as large as our collective outrage.
But then the variables changed, and the social systems largely did not. Perhaps that is because there is still a bit about large-scale social progress that is like a moonshot. The launch is hard enough—controlling the explosion of energy, the singular mission, the sense of purpose. But the magic comes in sustaining momentum long enough to stick the landing. And, in the wake of 2020, we have not stuck the landing.
Daniel Beekman | Seattle Times | April 29, 2025
"Washington will more than double the money it sends to counties for public defenders in an attempt to reduce strain on the legal system, state lawmakers decided in the two-year budget they passed Sunday.
Yet the state will still cover less than 10% of what counties are spending on public defense, and those costs are increasing, so advocates say serious problems with the system may continue.
Low pay, high caseloads and changes in the legal field have led to public defender shortages in communities across Washington, sometimes depriving defendants of proper representation and hampering prosecutions."
Lillian Mongeau Hughes | The Oregonian/OregonLive | April 23, 2025
"The Portland City Council’s public safety committee passed a resolution 3-2 Tuesday that would make Portland Street Response, which responds to mental health crises, an independent, co-equal branch of the city’s emergency response system.
The resolution will now go to the full City Council for consideration.
This resolution serves as a first step, a statement of values and a roadmap for where we want to go,” said Portland City Councilor Sameer Kanal, who represents North and Northeast Portland and was one of the sponsors of the resolution.
Were it approved by the full City Council, the resolution would urge the mayor to offer Portland Street Response staff the same benefits as other first responders, launch a nationwide search for a new manager of the program and staff the program to provide 24-7 services, among other items."
Brian Krans | KQED | April 18, 2025
"J. Gary Gwilliam, another attorney representing the plaintiffs, said the case was about the government — specifically employees of the Stanislaus County sheriff and district attorneys offices and the Modesto Police Department — going after someone for political reasons, something that is “very topical of what’s going on in our country.”
“Why did they go after Frank Carson? Because he was a very good defense attorney. He’d taken them on, he’d beaten them, and they decided to frame him, quite frankly, and go after him in years and years of litigation,” Gwillliam said. “And I guess, in one way, they may have won their battle, because ultimately it cost him his life and it ruined his family.”
In half the country, sex offense civil commitment incarcerates people after they complete their prison sentences.
October Krausch | The Appeal | April 21, 2025
"Nationally, more than 6,000 people are held in sex offense civil commitment, according to a 2024 report from the Prison Policy Initiative. While the states that run such programs say they’re focused on rehabilitation, critics have long said the systems seem to be a thinly veiled way to warehouse people instead of treating them. Such programs have long been called untransparent and stacked with draconian release conditions. Furthermore, studies have shown that sex offense civil commitment does not prevent sexual violence."
Michigan’s Supreme Court created new protections against life sentences for people up to 20, pushing the line for who gets second chances beyond age 18.
Daniel Nichanian | Bolts | April 18, 2025
"Michigan’s supreme court ruled last week that it is unconstitutional to impose an automatic sentence of life without the possibility of parole on young adults up to age 20, saying they deserve an individual judgment specific to their circumstances. This protection was already in place for youth up to age 18, but the justices ruled that the cutoff should be higher, pointing to scientific research that shows people’s brain development continues into their 20s."
Joe Eskenazi | Mission Local | April 17, 2025
San Francisco DA’s breach is ‘more egregious’ than that of L.A. prosecutor, legal experts say — but only one is facing six years in prison
"[T]he underlying material Teran is accused of accessing is not nuclear secrets or the New York Times crime-against-humanity green pea guacamole recipe. Again, these were public documents, court files written by judges, regarding potentially problematic officers who might hamper future prosecutions. This is something the Los Angeles DA’s office would want to know, and is mandated to compile by law.
You can’t say the same thing about Jenkins, who accessed private and protected records she had no business accessing, and then sent them to the personal email of a colleague who also had no business possessing them."
Delaney Nolan | The Appeal | April 14, 2025
"As U.S. homelessness rates reach record highs, President Donald Trump has pledged to ban street camping, relocate unhoused people to privately-managed “tent cities,” and arrest anyone caught violating the new laws. But while Trump’s threats certainly sound draconian, they’re not exactly novel. In recent years, several states have organized increasingly harsh homeless sweeps—perhaps most typified by Louisiana, where the governor recently oversaw a possible model for the sort of mass relocation that Trump has promised."
Records suggest Quest Diagnostics erroneously detected opiates. Lawyers say parole requests were jeopardized in the process.
Sam Levin | The Guardian | April 9, 2025
"Thousands of drug tests used by a major US diagnostic company in California prisons last year are suspected to have generated false positive results, an enormous error that has jeopardized the parole requests of some incarcerated people, according to civil rights lawyers and prison medical records.
California prison officials have known about the issue for months, but have failed to clear people’s records or reverse the consequences people have faced from the tests."
DA’s stated rationale to State Bar for downloading and disseminating privileged information appears to be a tacit admission of breaking the law
Joe Eskenazi | Mission Local | April 9, 2025
"Say what you will about the State Bar — and it is unclear how rigorous an investigation it mounted over these past 29-odd months beyond asking Jenkins questions and leaving it at that — but someone over there has a sense of humor. Jenkins, in her two years and change atop the office, has moved drastically away from the diversionary programs championed by her ousted predecessor, Chesa Boudin. Now, to borrow the line from “Pirates of the Caribbean,” she’s in one.
State Bar spokesperson Rick Coca said that the attorneys shunted into the diversion program are, by and large, “those who have not been the subject of prior discipline, who do not have a history including 15 or more complaints within the last five years, and who are the subjects of complaints alleging that they engaged in isolated misconduct with a low risk to public protection.”
Diversion, he continues, “serves many of the purposes of discipline” in part through “education, direction [and] warning.” Ultimately, the program leads to the “rehabilitating” of the “attorney receiving diversion.”
Yes — rehabilitating. Via diversion. The irony is strong with this one. No doubt about it, someone over there has a transcendent sense of humor."
In some parts of the state, misdemeanor defendants routinely face charges without representation.
Jolie McCullough | New York Times | April 4, 2025
"The right to a criminal defense lawyer is so ingrained in the American idea of justice that fans of TV police dramas can recite these two lines from the Miranda rights by memory: You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you.
But in much of Texas, that right is routinely denied. Every year, more than half of rural Texans accused of misdemeanors are left to represent themselves — five times the rate of defendants in urban areas, according to estimates from the Texas Indigent Defense Commission, which is tasked by state statute with ensuring the right to an attorney is protected."
Gustavo Arellano | Los Angeles Times | April 3, 2025
"The longtime Orange County public defender changed local history in 2013 when he presented a judge with evidence that sheriff’s deputies had illegally used jailhouse snitches for decades.
Although prosecutors and law enforcement have long used jailhouse informants, they can’t be tapped once the defendant has been charged and has a lawyer. Sanders claimed that the O.C. District Attorney’s office repeatedly and knowingly violated this constitutional protection. Prosecutors, for their part, derided Sanders in court and to the press as a desperate hack willing to lie to defend Scott Dekraai, a client accused of massacring eight people at a Seal Beach salon.
But Sanders was right."
The “crime panic” was a myth. But an analysis by The Appeal shows the narrative helped local police buy facial recognition software, drones, license plate readers, social media surveillance tech, and more.
Joey Scott | March 27, 2025
Alabama’s attorney general said he would charge abortion funds for helping people end their pregnancies in other states. On Monday, a federal judge said doing so would violate the U.S. Constitution.
Meg O'Connor | April 1, 2025
The decision by Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs to resume capital punishment aligns with a larger trend of death penalty states hiding key details about executions.
Pascal Sabino, Lauren Gill | March 17, 2025
In a predominantly Black area of Chicago, police can now directly file gun charges without a prosecutor’s approval. The new program rolls back a process that serves to check misconduct.
Shawn Mulcahy | March 14, 2025
For several years now, Oregon has been violating people’s constitutional rights to counsel.The familiar refrain, “You have a right to an attorney. If you can’t provide one, one will be provided for you” is no longer guaranteed in this state. And the problem is growing. The number of people without counsel recently reached an all-time high.
Lauren Dake | March 13, 2025
Inspections have found repeated violations of federal standards at GEO Group’s Central Louisiana ICE Processing Facility.
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg, Ethan Corey | March 10, 2025
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