News and Press Releases

A judge dismissed a vehicular manslaughter charge Tuesday against a motorist involved in a 2009 fatal crash after determining that prosecutors unreasonably delayed the case and police lost critical evidence.

A police officer and potential witness in an upcoming narcotics trial was once suspended for gouging a handcuffed man’s face with a broken crack pipe. Friday, prosecutors declared they were ready for trial, despite never disclosing the incident to the public defender.

In a 26-page ruling, a Superior Court judge lays responsibility for hundreds of dismissed drug cases squarely at the feet of the District Attorney, stating prosecutors hid behind a procedural mechanism after failing multiple times to disclose evidence involving SFPD witnesses.

In the wake of two law enforcement misconduct scandals that have thrown thousands of criminal cases into jeopardy, the 2010 Public Defender’s Justice Summit: There Must Be Justice will be devoted to exposing and preventing every day injustice.

San Francisco, CA – San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi has been named Defender of the Year by the California Public Defenders Association, while Teresa Caffese, chief attorney for the Public Defender’s office, has been honored by the Daily Journal as one of the state’s top 100 women litigators. Adachi will receive the award during the CPDA annual convention, held...