FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 14, 2021 CONTACT: San Francisco Public Defender’s Office – Valerie.Ibarra@sfgov.org – (628) 249-7946 **PRESS RELEASE** San Quentin COVID-19 Outbreak on Trial: Hearing Starts May 17 Weeks of Evidence and Testimony Expected Hundreds of incarcerated petitioners allege CDCR caused an explosive, deadly COVID-19 outbreak at San Quentin constituting “cruel and unusual punishment”  ...Read More

DATE: May 10, 2021 MEDIA CONTACT: San Francisco Public Defender’s Office – Valerie.Ibarra@sfgov.org – (628)249-7946 **MEDIA ADVISORY** San Quentin COVID-19 Outbreak on Trial: Hearing to Start May 17 Weeks of Evidence and Testimony Expected WHAT: An evidentiary hearing in the case against San Quentin State Prison and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR)...Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 4, 2021 MEDIA CONTACT: SF Public Defender’s Office – (628)249-7946 – Valerie.Ibarra@sfgov.org **PRESS RELEASE** SF Jury Acquits on Murder Charge, Agrees that Public Defender Client Acted in Self-Defense SAN FRANCISCO – Today, a San Francisco jury found a Fresno man not guilty of murder by virtue of self-defense. Although the man...Read More

Reporter Bob Egelko of the San Francisco Chronicle reported that, on April 12, 2021, a San Francisco jury determined that U.S. military veteran George Kennedy, 49, was not guilty of two felony assaults because he was suffering from a mental health crisis and was unaware of his actions. Deputy Public Defender Martina Avalos and her...Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 13, 2021 MEDIA CONTACT: SF Public Defender’s Office – Valerie.Ibarra@sfgov.org – (628)249-7946 ** PRESS RELEASE** SF Jury Acquits U.S. Military Veteran on Assault Charges San Francisco Public Defender Showed that their Client was Suffering a Mental Health Crisis and was Unconscious SAN FRANCISCO – On Monday, April 12, 2021, a San...Read More

In this Op Ed published in The Nation, San Francisco Deputy Public Defender Carla Gomez, Hena Mansori of the Bronx Defenders, and Sophia Gurulé of Cook County Public Defenders penned these powerful critiques of President Biden’s “American Dream and Promise Act” otherwise known as HR 6. While the bill has many good measures, certain parts...Read More

The San Francisco Public Defender’s Office released previously unseen video surveillance footage of what happened the morning of March 17, 2021, at UN Plaza, when SF Defender client Steven Jenkins was arrested for hitting Xiao Zhen Xie at the corner of Market and 7th Streets. KTVU’s Andre Torrez reports on the video showing Mr. Jenkins...Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 8, 2021 MEDIA CONTACT: SF Public Defender’s Office – Valerie.Ibarra@sfgov.org – (628)249-7946 **PRESS STATEMENT** Deputy Public Defender Eric McBurney’s Statement on Case Involving His Client Steven Jenkins Includes Previously Unreleased Video Surveillance “My name is Eric McBurney, the Deputy Public Defender representing Steven Jenkins, who was arrested on March 17, 2021,...Read More

Our Integrity Unit keeps close tabs on the Police Commission and police officer misconduct. Our data revealed that, since 2016, more than two dozen SFPD officers have quit before a finding could be made by the Police Commission in serious misconduct investigations. This means an officer can undergo screening when moving to another department and...Read More

For Immediate Release: March 25, 2021  Media contacts: San Francisco Public Defender’s Office / (628)249-7946 / Valerie.Ibarra@sfgov.org  Civil Rights Corps / Amber English Coleman / Media@CivilRightsCorps.org  **PRESS RELEASE** California Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Pretrial Rights in Re Kenneth Humphrey Decision Court unanimously rules California’s money bail system unconstitutional, reiterates that detention should only...Read More