San Francisco Public Defender

San Francisco, CA – Last week, robbery and assault charges against two men were dismissed based, in part, on videotaped evidence from San Francisco crime-surveillance cameras. The videotapes, which were obtained by the Public Defender’s Office, confirmed their alibis that they were elsewhere at the time the crimes were committed. The two men, Neil Butler, [...]

San Francisco, CA – Chief Attorney Teresa Caffese, the lead defense attorney in the much publicized 2005 LaShuan Harris case, will discuss her trial strategy at the 38th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law this weekend in Miami, Florida. She will join John Gould, M.D., Maguire Correctional Facility, Chief Psychiatrist, [...]

San Francisco, CA – The Public Defender’s Office was again able to successfully remove a person from the City Attorney’s gang list, this time in the Western Addition injunction. Makia Johnson was ordered excluded from the Western Addition gang injunction by Superior Court Judge Peter J. Busch. In a 14-page decision, Judge Busch ruled that [...]

San Francisco, CA – Public Defender Jeff Adachi announces victory for his client Antonio Buitrago who was ordered excluded from the Mission gang injunction by Superior Court Judge Patrick Mahoney. Judge Mahoney ruled that “the record does not establish by clear and convincing evidence that (Antonio Buitrago) is an active gang member.” The decision granting [...]