News and Press Releases

Reporter Laura Kusisto of the Wall Street Journal interviewed San Francisco Public Defender Mano Raju about the legal actions he has taken to address the growing backlog of trials in San Francisco Superior Court during the COVID-19 pandemic. While many other counties have safely held jury trials throughout the pandemic, San Francisco Superior Court has not made sufficient courtroom space...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  March 17, 2022 CONTACT: Valerie Ibarra – SF Public Defender’s Office – (628) 249-7946 – Valerie.Ibarra@sfgov.org Anne Stuhldreher – SF Financial Justice Project – (415) 596-6138 – Anne.Stuhldreher@sfgov.org Rachel Marshall – San Francisco District Attorney’s Office – (415) 416-4468 – Rachel.Marshall@fgov.org  **PRESS RELEASE** The Golden State Warriors Release PSAs for San Francisco’s “Be The Jury” Pilot Program...

Photo credit to Jay Martin. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 15, 2022 CONTACT: SF Public Defender’s Office | Valerie.Ibarra@sfgov.org | (628)249-7946 **PRESS STATEMENT** From the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office José Inez García Zárate is Just Another Innocent Man Who Pled Guilty to a Crime He Did Not Commit On March 14, 2022, José Inez García Zárate pled guilty to two...

Photo credit to Jay Martin. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 15, 2022 CONTACT: SF Public Defender’s Office | Valerie.Ibarra@sfgov.org | (628)249-7946 **PRESS STATEMENT** From the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office José Inez García Zárate is Just Another Innocent Man Who Pled Guilty to a Crime He Did Not Commit On March 14, 2022, José Inez García Zárate pled guilty to two...

DATE: March 3, 2022 MEDIA CONTACT: PubDef-MediaRelations@sfgov.org |(628)249-7946 **PRESS STATEMENT** Statement from the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office on Governor Newsom’s “Care Court” Proposal Governor Newsom wants to have a fast solution to a very entrenched problem through his recently announced Care Court proposal. But the reality is that we already have a number of alternative courts. We don’t need...