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

November 18, 2020 Press Contact: SF Public Defender’s Office – Valerie.Ibarra@sfgov.org – (628)249-7946 San Francisco Public Defender Launches “CopWatch SF” Database to Ensure Public Access to Available Police Records SAN FRANCISCO – This morning, the San Francisco Public Defender’s “CopWatch SF” database went live, making available hundreds of public records about police and sheriffs. What...Read More

Lisa Fernandez of KTVU FOX 2 reported: California ICE detention center officials ignored COVID-19 protocols: attorneys after attorneys in the ongoing Zepeda-Rivas class action lawsuit against ICE discovered new documents showing how staff at the Mesa Verde detention center in Bakersfield, CA – operated by the private prison corporation GEO Group – failed to follow...Read More

Nico Savidge reported for the San Jose Mercury News: Prop 25 failed, but California’s fight over cash bail is far from over – Case before state Supreme Court could overhaul bail system critics say is unjust. He interviewed San Francisco Public Defender Mano Raju about the future of bail reform. The Humphrey case, which will...Read More

November 11, 2020 PRESS CONTACT: Valerie Ibarra – SF Public Defender’s Office – (628)249-7946 New Documents Reveal ICE and Private Prison Contractor Exacerbates a COVID Outbreak at Immigration Detention Center Hid Risks to Immigrants In Grave Danger Due to COVID Pandemic, Misled Court SAN FRANCISCO – Last night, detained immigrants held at the Mesa Verde ICE...Read More

November 5, 2020 San Francisco Public Defender Mano Raju’s Statement on Election’s Implications for Criminal Justice Reform in California “2020 has been a year of divisive politics and a national reckoning with racism, police brutality, and systemic injustice. However, this week there was consensus across California: voters made clear their desire to continue on a...Read More

Danielle Harris, Managing Attorney of the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office Integrity Unit, appeared in this in-depth interview with Al Jazeera – US: Why are people trapped in prison with COVID-19? She appeared alongside James King of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights and Adnan Khan on RE-Store Justice, both of whom were formerly...Read More

October 28, 2020  PRESS CONTACT: San Francisco Public Defender’s Office – Valerie.Ibarra@sfgov.org SF Public Defender’s Office Wins Acquittal for Client Accused of Carjacking and Robbery SAN FRANCISCO – Yesterday, a jury acquitted a client of the Public Defender of all carjacking and robbery charges stemming from an incident in May. The jury found that Valentine...Read More

Michael Barba of the San Francisco Examiner reported: SF jail closure prompts doctor to call for release of more inmates. “We have to defer to Dr. Pratt’s medical and public health expertise and experience as to the number of people the jail can safely house,” said Danielle Harris, a managing attorney at the Public Defender’s...Read More

Michael Barba of the San Francisco Examiner reported: Audit over lab worker meth arrest finds medical examiner is missing drugs. “Clearly, their security protocols around handling evidence have been lax, which means that an untold number of criminal cases have likely been compromised by their carelessness,” Raju said. “People are likely in jail or prison...Read More