News and Press Releases

SF Public Defender Mano Raju spoke on the Sana G Morning Show on KMEL in the wake of nationwide calls to defund the police as the Black Lives Matter movement and millions of Americans took to the streets in the wake of recent police killings, including the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd, and the Louisville police killing of Breonna...

Public Defenders Call for Major Statewide Police Reform June 25, 2020 – Public Defenders sent this letter to Governor Newsom and California Lawmakers today calling for major statewide police reforms, seeking “meaningful, radical change” in line with the movement of the moment.  Download the full letter here: Public-Defenders-Recommendations-for-CA-Policing-ReformDownload

ICE CONFIRMS MEDICAL PROVIDER AT MESA VERDE DETENTION CENTER TESTS POSITIVE FOR COVID-19, EXPOSING ITS CONTINUED FAILURE TO PROTECT HEALTH DURING PANDEMIC SAN FRANCISCO – On June 19, 2020, government lawyers disclosed that a medical provider at the Mesa Verde Detention Center in Bakersfield, CA, tested positive for COVID-19. The disclosure came at a hearing in connection with a class...

SF Public Defender Mano Raju Applauds SF Police Commission Budget Vote – Echoes Public Call for Fundamental Change  “I was very glad to see our San Francisco Police Commissioners unanimously voting to reject the police budget at 2:30am this morning after 9 hours of public comment, over 99 percent of which featured San Franciscans of all ages and backgrounds demanding...

Photo: Donis with his youngest of three children and his wife, following his release by court order. Judge Orders ICE to Maintain Pandemic Protections at Detention Centers SAN FRANCISCO — This afternoon a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction in response to a class action legal challenge by immigrants detained at two California immigration detention centers where conditions are rife...