FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 28, 2023
MEDIA CONTACT:
San Francisco Public Defender PIO Valerie Ibarra | (628) 249-7946 | PubDef-MediaRelations@sfgov.org
**PRESS RELEASE**
SF Public Defender’s Office Concludes “Summer Sit-In” Series Protesting Speedy Trial Violations and Court Backlog;
Reports Progress in Felony Courts, Continued Violations in Misdemeanors
More than 1,100 trials are delayed past their Constitutionally-mandated deadlines, with 115 people languishing in SF jail subject to near-lockdown conditions and no sunlight.
SAN FRANCISCO — Today, the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office held its eighth and final “Summer Sit-In” demonstration to draw attention to San Francisco Superior Court’s severe trial backlog. The backlog is denying more than 1,100 individuals of their Constitutional right to a speedy trial, and 115 of these individuals have been languishing in San Francisco jail for months and even years past their trial deadlines, subject to near-lockdown conditions and no sunlight. The Public Defender’s Office has been urging the court to use all available courtrooms for criminal jury trials or to dismiss overdue cases, as other counties have done. Today, the office announced that the court has begun honoring speedy trial rights in felony cases for the first time since March 2020, while nearly 1,000 misdemeanor cases remain overdue.
To draw attention to this ongoing crisis, staffers from the San Francisco Public Defender’s office and community allies have been gathering in front of various city courthouses on eight consecutive Fridays to hold up large posters displaying the latest number of individuals deprived of their Constitutional trial rights and pass out factsheets to educate the public about the trial delays and ongoing litigation efforts.
Today’s (July 28th) Summer Sit-In session was held on the steps of the Hall of Justice at 850 Bryant St. The demonstration addressed the continuing efforts to challenge the trial backlog, in particular the backlog of misdemeanor trials. Speakers included elected San Francisco Public Defender Mano Raju, Deputy Public Defender Douglas Welch of the Felony Unit, Deputy Public Defender Jacque Wilson of the Misdemeanor Unit, and two community members who have participated in the weekly protests.
“Thanks to the work and pressure of so many people, the court has begun honoring the 60-day speedy trial deadlines in felony court. Even though some cases remain overdue, this is a huge step,” said Welch.
“Speedy trials have become an endangered species in San Francisco,” said Wilson, after noting that pre-pandemic, the court would hold up to 150 misdemeanor trials per year, but since misdemeanor trials resumed in 2021, the court is only averaging 15 misdemeanor trials per year.
“This situation is by no means over and our work is not done,” said Raju. “The bulk of cases that are delayed past their Constitutionally mandated deadlines are misdemeanors, and those cases are still getting unacceptably delayed. We’re going to continue to fight in the courtroom and in the public to end trial delays and we’re going to keep putting the pressure on because justice delayed is justice denied.”
Background and Impact of the SF Trial Backlog:
In September 2021, Raju joined taxpayers and mothers of incarcerated individuals, and filed a civil lawsuit against SF Superior Court to contest the court’s practice of continuing cases past their last day. In June 2023, a state appeals court ruled that this lawsuit was allowed to proceed. The Court of Appeal roundly criticized the SF Superior Court’s arguments that Raju did not have legal standing to sue, describing the court’s arguments as “specious” and “plainly without merit,” and calling out their “outright misleading” “selective quotation” of case law. Read more about this legal challenge here.
Community members have seen their lives completely upended by the backlog, only to have charges dismissed or to be acquitted at trial.
- In June 2023, a jury acquitted Charles Underwood after only two hours of deliberation in a misdemeanor trial that was already four months overdue. Mr. Underwood is legally blind but was ordered to abide by a broad stay-away order from an area of town where he’s resided unhoused for three years. Upon an arrest for panhandling in the restricted zone in May, he asked to stay in jail in hopes that he’d get to trial faster so he would no longer be subjected to those unreasonable restrictions.
- In November 2022, a judge dismissed charges against Sarina Borg, a mother who was accused of aiding and abetting a homicide in May 2020. Borg’s trial came two years past her Constitutionally-mandated deadline, and she was caged in the San Francisco Jail for 2.5 years total.
- In January 2022, a jury acquitted former firefighter Stephen Kloster of felony assault charges after deliberating for a day and a half. Kloster, the primary caregiver for his 87-year-old mother who suffers from schizophrenia, had spent 410 days in jail, including 274 days past his trial deadline.
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For more information about the San Francisco Superior Court backlog, please visit https://sfpublicdefender.org/open-sf-courts-now.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 21, 2023
MEDIA CONTACT:
San Francisco Public Defender PIO Valerie Ibarra | (628) 249-7946 | PubDef-MediaRelations@sfgov.org
**PRESS RELEASE**
SF Public Defender’s Office Continues “Summer Sit-Ins” to Draw Attention to Worsening Trial Backlog; Seventh in Series Focuses on Legal Challenges to the Backlog
More than 1,100 trials are delayed past their Constitutionally-mandated deadlines, with 115 people languishing in SF jail subject to near-lockdown conditions and no sunlight.
SAN FRANCISCO — Every Friday this summer, the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office is holding a series of demonstrations, “Summer Sit-ins,” taking place in front of the city’s courthouses to draw attention to San Francisco Superior Court’s severe and worsening trial backlog. The backlog is denying more than 1,100 individuals of their Constitutional right to a speedy trial, and 115 of these individuals are languishing in San Francisco jail for months and even years past their trial deadlines, subject to near-lockdown conditions and no sunlight. The court has failed to meaningfully address the growing trial backlog or to dismiss overdue cases, as other counties have done.
To draw attention to this ongoing crisis, staffers from the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office and community members are gathering in front of the city’s courthouses (either at 850 Bryant St. or 400 McAllister St.) on eight consecutive Fridays from noon to 1 p.m. to educate the public and hold up large posters displaying the latest number of individuals deprived of their Constitutional right to a speedy trial.
Today’s (July 21st) Summer Sit-In session was at the Civic Center courthouse at 400 McAllister St., where misdemeanor trials take place. Despite a backlog of over 900 overdue misdemeanor cases, only two courtrooms have been allotted to hold misdemeanor trials. Currently, one of those two is empty while a judge is on vacation without a replacement.
Today’s (July 21st) demonstration addressed the legal challenges that the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office has launched against the Superior Court backlog. Speakers included Sujung Kim, managing attorney for the San Francisco Public Defender’s Research Unit, and Deputy Public Defender Zach Waterman from the Misdemeanor Unit.
Kim discussed the civil lawsuit challenging the backlog filed in September 2021 by SF Public Defender Mano Raju, along with taxpayers and mothers of incarcerated individuals. In early June, a state appeals court ruled that this lawsuit was allowed to proceed. The Court of Appeal roundly criticized the SF Superior Court’s arguments that Raju did not have legal standing to sue, describing the court’s arguments as “specious” and “plainly without merit,” and calling out their “outright misleading” “selective quotation” of case law. Read more about this legal challenge here.
Community members have seen their lives completely upended by the backlog, only to have charges dismissed or to be acquitted at trial.
- In June 2023, a jury acquitted Charles Underwood after only two hours of deliberation in a misdemeanor trial that was already four months overdue. Mr. Underwood is legally blind but was ordered to abide by a broad stay-away order from an area of town where he’s resided unhoused for three years. Upon an arrest for panhandling in the restricted zone in May, he asked to stay in jail in hopes that he’d get to trial faster so he would no longer be subjected to those unreasonable restrictions.
- In November 2022, a judge dismissed charges against Sarina Borg, a mother who was accused of aiding and abetting a homicide in May 2020. Borg’s trial came two years past her Constitutionally-mandated deadline, and she was caged in the San Francisco Jail for 2.5 years total.
- In January 2022, a jury acquitted former firefighter Stephen Kloster of felony assault charges after deliberating for a day and a half. Kloster, the primary caregiver for his 87-year-old mother who suffers from schizophrenia, had spent 410 days in jail, including 274 days past his trial deadline.
“Summer should be a time spent with family and community, not locked in a cage while your Constitutional rights continue to be trampled upon,” said Raju. “We must keep pressure on the court system to right this wrong because the backlog just keeps growing. The right to a speedy trial is enshrined in the Sixth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution to prevent the government from violating the liberty of all who are presumed innocent under the law. But too many people in San Francisco are waiting months and years, often in jail or shackled to 24/7 ankle monitors, just to get that chance.”
The Public Defender’s Office welcomes the public to join the Summer Sit-In series to learn more about the trial delays, and will be handing out factsheets during the demonstrations.
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For more information about the San Francisco Superior Court backlog, please visit https://sfpublicdefender.org/open-sf-courts-now.
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SF Public Defender’s Office Continues “Summer Sit-Ins” to Draw Attention to Worsening Trial Backlog; Fifth in Series Focuses on Police Traffic Stops
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 7, 2023
MEDIA CONTACT:
Jessie Seyfer, SF Public Defender’s Office | (415) 851-2212 | PubDef-MediaRelations@sfgov.org
**PRESS RELEASE**
More than 1,100 trials are delayed past their Constitutionally-mandated deadlines, with 115 people languishing in SF jail subject to near-lockdown conditions and no sunlight.
SAN FRANCISCO — Every Friday this summer, the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office is holding a series of demonstrations, “Summer Sit-ins,” taking place at the Hall of Justice to draw attention to San Francisco Superior Court’s severe and worsening trial backlog. The backlog is denying more than 1,100 individuals of their Constitutional right to a speedy trial, and 115 of these individuals are languishing in San Francisco jail for months and even years past their trial deadlines, subject to near-lockdown conditions and no sunlight. The courts have failed to meaningfully address the growing trial backlog or to dismiss overdue cases, as other counties have done.
To draw attention to this ongoing crisis, staffers from the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office and community members are gathering on the front steps of the Hall of Justice at 850 Bryant St. on eight consecutive Fridays from noon to 1 p.m. to hold up large posters displaying the latest number of individuals deprived of their Constitutional right to a speedy trial.
Today’s (July 7th) Summer Sit-In session addressed police “pretext” traffic stops, which commonly lead to unnecessary searches, police violence and overpolicing of Black and brown communities. Such stops also clog the courts with matters that add to the trial backlog and do not improve the health and safety of San Francisco communities. San Francisco’s Police Commission passed the most comprehensive policy limiting pretext stops in the nation earlier this year, but it has not yet been put into practice. Speakers at today’s Summer Sit-In included ACLU of Northern California Criminal Justice Program Director Yoel Haile and San Francisco Public Defender Integrity Unit Chief Brian Cox.
In early June, a state appeals court ruled that a civil lawsuit challenging the backlog that San Francisco Public Defender Mano Raju, along with taxpayers and mothers of incarcerated individuals, filed in September 2021 against SF Superior Court, was allowed to proceed. The Court of Appeal roundly criticized the SF Superior Court’s arguments that Raju did not have legal standing to sue, describing the court’s arguments as “specious” and “plainly without merit,” and calling out their “outright misleading” “selective quotation” of case law. Read more about this legal challenge here.
Community members have seen their lives completely upended by the backlog, only to have charges dismissed or to be acquitted at trial.
- In June 2023, a jury acquitted Charles Underwood after only two hours of deliberation in a misdemeanor trial that was already four months overdue. Mr. Underwood is legally blind but was ordered to abide by a broad stay-away order from an area of town where he’s resided unhoused for three years. Upon an arrest for panhandling in the restricted zone in May, he asked to stay in jail in hopes that he’d get to trial faster so he would no longer be subjected to those unreasonable restrictions.
- In November 2022, a judge dismissed charges against Sarina Borg, a mother who was accused of aiding and abetting a homicide in May 2020. Borg’s trial came two years past her Constitutionally-mandated deadline, and she was caged in the San Francisco Jail for 2.5 years total.
- In January 2022, a jury acquitted former firefighter Stephen Kloster of felony assault charges after deliberating for a day and a half. Kloster, the primary caregiver for his 87-year-old mother who suffers from schizophrenia, had spent 410 days in jail, including 274 days past his trial deadline.
“Summer should be a time spent with family and community, not locked in a cage while your Constitutional rights continue to be trampled upon,” said Raju. “We must keep pressure on the court system to right this wrong because the backlog just keeps growing. The right to a speedy trial is enshrined in the Sixth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution to prevent the government from violating the liberty of all who are presumed innocent under the law. But too many people in San Francisco are waiting months and years, often in jail or shackled to 24/7 ankle monitors, just to get that chance.”
The Public Defender’s Office welcomes the public to join the Summer Sit-In series to learn more about the trial delays, and will be handing out factsheets during the demonstrations.
##
For more information about the San Francisco Superior Court backlog, please visit https://sfpublicdefender.org/open-sf-courts-now.
______
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 30, 2023
MEDIA CONTACT:
SF Public Defender’s Office | PubDef-MediaRelations@sfgov.org | (628)249-7946
**PRESS RELEASE**
SF Public Defender’s Office Continues “Summer Sit-Ins” to Draw Attention to Worsening Trial Backlog; Fourth in Series to Focus on Bill of Rights
More than 1,100 trials are delayed past their Constitutionally-mandated deadlines, with 115 people languishing in SF jail subject to near-lockdown conditions and no sunlight.
SAN FRANCISCO — Every Friday this summer, the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office is holding a series of demonstrations, “Summer Sit-ins,” taking place at the 850 Bryant Street Hall of Justice to draw attention to San Francisco Superior Court’s severe and worsening trial backlog. The backlog is denying more than 1,100 individuals of their Constitutional right to a speedy trial, and 115 of these individuals are languishing in San Francisco jail for months and even years past their trial deadlines, subject to near-lockdown conditions and no sunlight. The courts have failed to meaningfully address the growing trial backlog or to dismiss overdue cases, as other counties have done.
To draw attention to this ongoing crisis, staffers from the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office and community members are gathering on the front steps of the Hall of Justice at 850 Bryant St. on eight consecutive Fridays from noon to 1 p.m. to hold up large posters displaying the latest number of individuals deprived of their Constitutional right to a speedy trial.
Today’s (June 30th) Summer Sit-In session, in advance of the Fourth of July holiday, celebrated our constitutional rights by reading from the Bill of Rights, including the Sixth Amendment which guarantees the right to a speedy trial.
In early June, a state appeals court ruled that a civil lawsuit challenging the backlog that San Francisco Public Defender Mano Raju, along with taxpayers and mothers of incarcerated individuals, filed in September 2021 against SF Superior Court, was allowed to proceed. The Court of Appeal roundly criticized the SF Superior Court’s arguments that Raju did not have legal standing to sue, describing the court’s arguments as “specious” and “plainly without merit,” and calling out their “outright misleading” “selective quotation” of case law. Read more about this legal challenge here.
Community members have seen their lives completely upended by the backlog, only to have charges dismissed or to be acquitted at trial.
- Last week, June 2023, a jury acquitted Charles Underwood after only two hours of deliberation in a misdemeanor trial that was already four months overdue. Mr. Underwood is legally blind but was ordered to abide by a broad stay-away order from an area of town where he’s resided unhoused for three years. Upon an arrest for panhandling in the restricted zone in May, he asked to stay in jail in hopes that he’d get to trial faster so he would no longer be subjected to those unreasonable restrictions.
- In November 2022, a judge dismissed charges against Sarina Borg, a mother who was accused of aiding and abetting a homicide in May 2020. Borg’s trial came two years past her Constitutionally-mandated deadline, and she was caged in the San Francisco Jail for 2.5 years total.
- In January 2022, a jury acquitted former firefighter Stephen Kloster of felony assault charges after deliberating for a day and a half. Kloster, the primary caregiver for his 87-year-old mother who suffers from schizophrenia, had spent 410 days in jail, including 274 days past his trial deadline.
“Summer should be a time spent with family and community, not locked in a cage while your Constitutional rights continue to be trampled upon,” said Raju. “We must keep pressure on the court system to right this wrong because the backlog just keeps growing. The right to a speedy trial is enshrined in the Sixth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution to prevent the government from violating the liberty of all who are presumed innocent under the law. But too many people in San Francisco are waiting months and years, often in jail or shackled to 24/7 ankle monitors, just to get that chance. To address this human rights crisis, in September 2021, I sued the SF Superior Court to demand an end to the trial delays. I applaud the state appeals court decision allowing my lawsuit to proceed.”
The Public Defender’s Office welcomes the public to join the Summer Sit-In series to learn more about the trial delays, and will be handing out factsheets during the demonstrations.
##
For more information about the San Francisco Superior Court backlog, please visit https://sfpublicdefender.org/open-sf-courts-now.
______
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 16, 2023
MEDIA CONTACT: SF Public Defender’s Office | PubDef-MediaRelations@sfgov.org | (415) 851-2212
**PRESS RELEASE**
SF Public Defender’s Office Continues “Summer Sit-Ins” to Draw Attention to Worsening Trial Backlog; Second in Series Focuses on Racial Justice in Honor of Juneteenth
More than 1,100 trials are delayed past their Constitutionally-mandated deadlines, with 115 people languishing in SF jail subject to near-lockdown conditions and no sunlight.
SAN FRANCISCO — Every Friday this summer, the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office is holding a series of demonstrations, “Summer Sit-ins,” taking place at the 850 Bryant Street Hall of Justice to draw attention to San Francisco Superior Court’s severe and worsening trial backlog. The backlog is denying more than 1,100 individuals of their Constitutional right to a speedy trial, and 115 of these individuals are languishing in San Francisco jail for months and even years past their trial deadlines, subject to near-lockdown conditions, and no sunlight. The courts have failed to meaningfully address the growing trial backlog or to dismiss overdue cases, as other counties have done. To draw attention to this ongoing crisis, staffers from the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office are gathering on the front steps of the Hall of Justice at 850 Bryant St. on eight consecutive Fridays from noon to 1 p.m. to hold up large posters displaying the latest number of individuals deprived of their Constitutional right to a speedy trial.
Today’s (June 16) Summer Sit-In session honored Juneteenth, and highlighted the impact of the trial backlog on the Black community. This session was co-hosted by the SF Public Defender’s Office Black Affinity Group and its Racial Justice Committee. Speakers included Anietie Ekanem, a member of the San Francisco African American Reparations Advisory Committee, and San Francisco Deputy Public Defender Tamani Taylor.In early June, a state appeals court ruled that a civil lawsuit challenging the backlog that San Francisco Public Defender Mano Raju, along with taxpayers and mothers of incarcerated individuals, filed in September 2021 against SF Superior Court, was allowed to proceed. The Court of Appeal roundly criticized the SF Superior Court’s arguments that Raju did not have legal standing to sue, describing the court’s arguments as “specious” and “plainly without merit,” and calling out their “outright misleading” “selective quotation” of case law. Read more about this legal challenge here.
Community members have seen their lives completely upended by the backlog, only to have charges dismissed or to be acquitted at trial. In November 2022, a judge dismissed charges against Sarina Borg, a mother who was accused of aiding and abetting a homicide in May 2020. Borg’s trial came two years past her Constitutionally-mandated deadline, and she was caged in the San Francisco Jail for 2.5 years total. In January 2022, a jury acquitted former firefighter Stephen Kloster of felony assault charges after deliberating for a day and a half. Kloster, the primary caregiver for his 87-year-old mother who suffers from schizophrenia, had spent 410 days in jail, including 274 days past his trial deadline.
“Summer should be a time spent with family and community, not locked in a cage while your Constitutional rights continue to be trampled upon,” said Raju. “We must keep pressure on the court system to right this wrong because the backlog just keeps growing. The right to a speedy trial is enshrined in the Sixth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution to prevent the government from violating the liberty of all who are presumed innocent under the law. But too many people in San Francisco are waiting months and years, often in jail or shackled to 24/7 ankle monitors, just to get that chance. To address this human rights crisis, in September 2021, I sued the SF Superior Court to demand an end to the trial delays. I applaud the state appeals court decision allowing my lawsuit to proceed.”The Public Defender’s Office welcomes the public to join the Summer Sit-In series to learn more about the trial delays, and will be handing out factsheets during the demonstrations.##For more information about the San Francisco Superior Court backlog, please visit https://sfpublicdefender.org/open-sf-courts-now.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 9, 2023
MEDIA CONTACT:
SF Public Defender’s Office | PubDef-MediaRelations@sfgov.org | (415) 851-2212
**PRESS RELEASE**
SF Public Defender’s Office Launches “Summer Sit-Ins” to Draw Attention to Worsening Trial Backlog as State Appeals Court Allows a Lawsuit Challenging the Backlog to Move Forward
More than 1,100 trials are delayed past their Constitutionally-mandated deadlines, with 115 people languishing in SF jail subject to near-lockdown conditions and no sunlight.
SAN FRANCISCO — Today, the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office launched a series of demonstrations, “Summer Sit-ins,” taking place every Friday this summer at the 850 Bryant Street Hall of Justice, to draw attention to San Francisco Superior Court’s severe and worsening trial backlog. The backlog is denying more than 1,100 individuals of their Constitutional right to a speedy trial, and 115 of these individuals are languishing in San Francisco jail for months and even years past their trial deadlines, subject to near-lockdown conditions, and no sunlight. The courts have failed to meaningfully address the growing trial backlog or to dismiss overdue cases, as other counties have done.
To draw attention to this ongoing crisis, staffers from the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office will gather on the front steps of the Hall of Justice at 850 Bryant St. on eight consecutive Fridays from noon to 1 p.m. to hold up large posters displaying the latest number of individuals deprived of their Constitutional right to a speedy trial.
Yesterday, a state appeals court ruled that a civil lawsuit challenging the backlog that San Francisco Public Defender Mano Raju filed in September 2021 against SF Superior Court along with mothers of incarcerated individuals, was allowed to proceed. Read more about this legal challenge here.
The Public Defender’s Office is also awaiting a decision by the California Supreme Court on whether it will take up a petition to review a separate lower court decision that denied relief to two public defender clients who sought to have their overdue cases dismissed. That petition, filed in April 2023, is supported by the national non-profit Civil Rights Corps.
Community members have seen their lives completely upended by the backlog, only to have charges dismissed or to be acquitted at trial. In November 2022, a judge dismissed charges against Sarina Borg, a mother who was accused of aiding and abetting a homicide in May 2020. Borg’s trial came two years past her Constitutionally-mandated deadline, and she was caged in the San Francisco Jail for 2.5 years total. In January 2022, a jury acquitted former firefighter Stephen Kloster of felony assault charges after deliberating for a day and a half. Kloster, the primary caregiver for his 87-year-old mother who suffers from schizophrenia, had spent 410 days in jail, including 274 days past his trial deadline.
“Summer should be a time spent with family and community, not locked in a cage while your Constitutional rights continue to be trampled upon,” said Raju. “We must keep pressure on the court system to right this wrong because the backlog just keeps growing. The right to a speedy trial is enshrined in the Sixth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution to prevent the government from violating the liberty of all who are presumed innocent under the law. But too many people in San Francisco are waiting months and years, often in jail or shackled to 24/7 ankle monitors, just to get that chance. To address this human rights crisis, in September 2021, I sued the SF Superior Court to demand an end to the trial delays. I applaud the state appeals court decision yesterday allowing my lawsuit to proceed.”
The Public Defender’s Office welcomes the public to join the Summer Sit-In series to learn more about the trial delays, and will be handing out factsheets during the demonstrations.##For more information about the San Francisco Superior Court backlog, please visit https://sfpublicdefender.org/open-sf-courts-now.
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