August 17, 2020 PRESS CONTACT: SF Public Defender’s Office – (628) 249-7946 – Valerie.Ibarra@sfgov.org Petitioners Allege CDCR Purposefully Ignored Marin County Health Official Warnings about Dangers at San Quentin; Over 400 pages of Evidence Presented  Habeas petitions allege CDCR actions causing explosive and deadly Covid-19 outbreak at San Quentin constitute “cruel and unusual punishment”  SAN...Read More

August 15, 2020 PRESS CONTACT: San Francisco Public Defender’s Office – (628) 249-7946 – pubdef-mediarelations@sfgov.org After Judge Ordered ICE to Test All Detainees and Staff at Mesa Verde, Fifty Percent of Detainees Test Positive for COVID-19 SAN FRANCISCO — In an emergency order late yesterday, federal District Court Judge Vince Chhabria ordered the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement...Read More

August 14, 2020 PRESS CONTACT: SF Public Defender’s Office – (628)249-7946 – Valerie.Ibarra@sfgov.org SF Public Defender Wins Acquittal in First Trial since COVID-19 Crisis SAN FRANCISCO – On August 13, a man who was held in custody for over a year pre-trial was found not guilty of residential burglary.  This was  the first completed jury...Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 11, 2020 CONTACT: pubdef-mediarelations@sfgov.org ***PRESS RELEASE*** San Francisco Public Defender Successfully Frees Client; Fights Back Against a Life-in-Prison Charge SAN FRANCISCO – Yesterday, the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office secured freedom for a man who spent nearly 5 months in jail for an incident wherein he acted in self-defense. The agreed...Read More

Bob Egelko of the San Francisco Chronicle reported: Judge orders Bakersfield immigration holding facility to test all detainees weekly. San Francisco Public Defender Mano Raju, whose office also represents the detainees, said ICE “continues to demonstrate its failure to act to prevent a COVID crisis, which has devastating consequences to those in its custody.”Read More

Andrea Castillo of the LA Times reported: ICE deliberately limited testing at Bakersfield immigration facility with COVID-19 outbreak. The San Francisco Public Defender’s Office is part of a class action suit against ICE and GEO Group for conditions in immigration detention centers during the COVID-19 pandemic, in partnership with the ACLU of Northern and Southern...Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  August 6, 2020  Media Contacts  Sam Lew, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area slew@lccrsf.org, 415-272-8022  Valerie Ibarra, San Francisco Public Defenders valerie.ibarra@sfgov.org, 628-249-7946 American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California press@aclunc.org, (415) 621-2493 American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California communications@aclusocal.org, (626) 755-4129 ***PRESS RELEASE*** Judge Orders ICE...Read More

KRON interviewed Danielle Harris, the Managing Attorney of the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office Integrity Unit, in the segment: San Quentin inmates petition to be released due to coronavirus concerns. “tHERE’S JUST NO SUCH THING AS SIX-FOOT DISTANCING IN AN OVERCROWDED PRISON.” – DANIELLE HARRISRead More

We’re excited to announce our Young Defenders Program – a 40-week paid internship for 25 high school students focused on criminal justice issues. It’s a unique collaboration between the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office, Mayor Breed’s Opportunities for All initiative, Teachers for Social Justice, the San Francisco Human Rights Commission and SF Unified School District....Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, August 3, 2020 Contact:         Public Defender’s Office, Valerie.Ibarra@sfgov.org  Mayor’s Office of Communications, mayorspressoffice@sfgov.org  ***PRESS RELEASE*** MAYOR LONDON BREED AND PUBLIC DEFENDER MANO RAJU ANNOUNCE YOUNG DEFENDERS INTERNSHIP PROGRAM Paid internship program, created in partnership with the Mayor’s Office, Public Defender’s Office, Human Rights Commission, and Teachers 4 Social Justice, provides...Read More