News and Press Releases

Zac Dillon of our Integrity Unit was quoted in the Examiner and Mission Local when he spoke at the September 1, 2021, meeting of the San Francisco Police Commission where they were discussing proposed legislation, SB 16, to expand police transparency laws in California. Both the new legislation and the original police transparency bill, SB 1421, which was signed into...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 26, 2021 CONTACT: SF Public Defender’s Office – Valerie.Ibarra@sfgov.org – (628)249-7946 **PRESS RELEASE** 16 Public Defender Clients Graduate Behavioral Health Court First Virtual Graduation Celebrates Participants as they Strive to Heal Amidst Pandemic SAN FRANCISCO – Today, in a ceremony held on zoom and presided over by Superior Court Judge Charles Crompton, sixteen clients of the...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 26, 2021 CONTACT: SF Public Defender’s Office – Valerie.Ibarra@sfgov.org – (628)249-7946 **PRESS RELEASE** San Francisco Public Defender calls for release of Ricardo Vasquez Cruz, one of only 3 remaining ICE detainees at Yuba County Jail amidst COVID outbreak SAN FRANCISCO – The San Francisco Public Defender is urgently calling for ICE to release its client Ricardo...

On August 12, 2021, SF Weekly featured as its cover story – Jury-Mandering: San Francisco may soon pilot a new program aimed at balancing the scales of justice by increasing juror diveristy – with artwork by Olivia Wise. The in-depth article “Balancing the Scales of Justice” by Lily Sinkovitz discusses our Be the Jury pilot program, which aims to create...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 12, 2021 CONTACT: SF Public Defender’s Office – pubdef-mediarelations@sfgov.org – (628)249-7946 ** PRESS RELEASE** SF Jury Acquits Man of Misdemeanor Domestic Violence  Defense Presents Case of Self-Defense SAN FRANCISCO – This week, a jury acquitted a San Francisco man of misdemeanor domestic violence after Deputy Public Defender Cooper Findlay presented a case of self-defense that ended...