Law Commons^™

Texas Heartbeat Act Poses Threat To The Future Of Abortion Access, Kodie Mcginley

GGU Law Review Blog

As the abortion debate in the United States has grown increasingly tense over the recent years, a newly enacted Texas law could lay the groundwork for a national trend of restrictive abortion laws. SB 8, also known as the Texas Heartbeat Act, was first signed by Texas Governor Greg Abbott in May 2021, and came into effect on September 1st. The Texas Heartbeat Act is not the only recent bill that attempts to challenge Roe v. Wade. In 2018, Mississippi passed the Gestational Age Act, which bans abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. The Texas Heartbeat Act is even …

Constitutional Rights In The Time Of Covid-19: Sf Public Defender Sues Sf Superior Court, Alleging Violations Of Detainees’ Sixth Amendment Rights, Golden Gate University School Of Law

GGU Law Review Blog

“One of the most oppressive things a state can do is to take away your freedom and then deny you what’s necessary to win it back,” said Manojar Raju, San Francisco Public Defender, during a rally held on the front steps of San Francisco’s Hall of Justice.

On September 14, 2021, Raju filed a lawsuit against the Superior Court of California and the city of San Francisco. The lawsuit alleges that the San Francisco Superior Court has been routinely violating citizens’ Sixth Amendment right to a speedy trial.

In fact, as of August 30, 2021, there are about 429 people …

Holistic Public Safety: Prosecutor-Led Reform Through Ab 1308, Gwen West

GGU Law Review Blog

Prosecutors can promote safety in communities by approaching public safety holistically and by participating in legislative efforts to reform criminal justice. Some prosecutors in California did just that in 2021.

The First Step In Overhauling Criminal Justice? Abolish The Death Penalty, Rachel A. Van Cleave

Publications

Since the killing of George Floyd by a police officer, many changes to criminal justice have been proposed and some have been enacted. However, none of these reforms will be meaningful unless and until we require the government to dismantle the laws and procedures that implement the death penalty, an inherently biased and horrific practice. The fact that the federal government and twenty-seven states still have the death penalty reveals an attitude that is diametrically counter to the mindset necessary to end mass incarceration.

The Time Is Overdue To Fix The Judicial Confirmation Process, Rachel A. Van Cleave, Sonia Bakshi

Publications

Politics must not drive the decisions by those who serve as gatekeepers to justice for survivors of sexual violence. The #MeToo Movement has thoroughly exposed the many myths surrounding sexual violence, but as Professor Hill pointed out, many gatekeepers have yet to “get it.”

Reimagining Criminal Justice: How We Traded Out Asylums For Prisons, Zaynah Zaman

Reimagining Criminal Justice

The criminal justice system fails to adopt alternative mental health reforms better equipped to handle mental health crises rather than placing the mentally ill in institutions that have proven to worsen their illness. The criminalization of mental illness must end, says Zaynah Zaman, a student at Golden Gate University School of Law.

Remembering California’S History In Youth Corrections, Sadie Minjares Odom

GGU Law Review Blog

California Governor Gavin Newson’s 2021-22 state budget sets forth plans to permanently close the California’s Division of Juvenile Justice and transition any children in the state’s care to the counties who committed them. On September 30, 2020, California lawmakers passed SB 823, the pillar of this transition. As the closure of the state-run juvenile correctional system marks a new journey for California’s youth, the state’s gloomy history in youth corrections looms overhead.

Attacks On The Asian Community: When Can Prosecutors Seek Hate Crime Enhancements?, Golden Gate University School Of Law

GGU Law Review Blog

At the start of 2021, images of violent attacks on Asian individuals all across the nation began flooding social media timelines. Large protests shortly followed these attacks in support of the Asian Community to “Stop Asian Hate.” Since then, reports and images of such attacks have only become more and more common, with the Atlanta Spa Shootings at the forefront of the conversation. As a result, much of the public and the media have been referring to these attacks as “hate crimes.” Yet, prosecutors are not seeking hate-crime enhancements in many of these cases. Several high-profile cases demonstrate the evidentiary …

Reimagining Criminal Justice: In Defense Of Self-Defense, Jude Diebold

Reimagining Criminal Justice

Since the Louisville, Kentucky police killed Breonna Taylor in the middle of the night in her own apartment, the United States has seen an uptick in protests against racially motivated police violence. However, the officers responsible for her death have not been criminally charged, in part because her boyfriend, unaware that police were entering the apartment in the middle of the night, shot one of the officer’s in the leg, “justifying” the next six rounds that were shot by the police and ultimately killed an innocent woman during the botched police raid.

As if this was not outrageous enough, in …

Reimagining Criminal Justice: What Good Has Come From The 'Good' Faith Exception?, Yasamin Elahi-Shirazi

Reimagining Criminal Justice

On March 13, 2020, Breonna Taylor settled into bed with her boyfriend Kenneth Walker after she finished working back-to-back shifts as an emergency room technician in Louisville, Kentucky. At around 12:30 a.m., the couple heard banging coming from their front door, they asked who was at the door. They heard no response. Suddenly, the front door “flies off its hinges” and armed men began to enter their apartment. Walker, a licensed gun owner, fired at the intruders, shooting one in the leg, to protect himself and Ms. Taylor from unknown intruders.

The intruders returned fire, with around thirty rounds, killing …

Reimagining Criminal Justice: The Disparate Impact Ofthe 'Castle' Doctrine, Carmen Wierenga

Reimagining Criminal Justice

On October 12, a mobile phone video showed a Black man being followed and harassed by a white man in Las Vegas. As the Black man is walking away, a voice on the recording says “why can’t you handle it like a … man?” The white man then throws a punch, and the Black man turns and shoots the white man. The white man survived, according to the sparse news coverage I found online. As of October 12, the shooter had not been found. The video spurred discussion, though: would the Black shooter succeed on a stand-your-ground claim? The answer …

Reimagining Criminal Justice: A New System Is Required For Police Accountability, Thomas Johnson

Reimagining Criminal Justice

In 1997 Daniel Mendoza was shot by an off-duty Las Vegas Metro police offcer. The offcer who pulled the trigger had been drinking heavily and wanted to “harass dopers and bangers.” The offcer in question fired into a group of people from the passenger side of a vehicle. This offcer was tried and convicted, which sounds like a success.

However, when an offcer is not stopped before killing a citizen without regard to whether there was a suspected crime, it highlights a problem of accountability.

Reimagining Criminal Justice: Black And Brown Youthin Gang Database Are Guilty Until Proven Innocent, Irish Tapia

Reimagining Criminal Justice

Young men of color growing up across this nation face a hurdle most of us will never have to imagine. If a student of color is not diverted to the criminal justice system, suspended or expelled, they might nonetheless be labeled and marked as having gang affliations, based solely on the discretion of local law enforcement.This ‘identity’ has significant long-term consequences. The “shared gang database” is real. Individuals named in the database do not have to agree to be listed, and they also do not have control over getting off it. A young man of color in a public school, …

California Is On Fire – Firefighters And Prisoners To The Rescue, Cathryn Howell

GGU Law Review Blog

California is burning at a record high rate and has seen unprecedented damage due to the increase of the severity of fires as well as the increase in the duration of fire season. However, many are unaware that inmates have been playing a very important role in mitigating these fires while serving their prison sentences by helping alongside employed firefighters in battling these dangers.

Despite all of the training and first-hand experience, many inmates are unable to become employed firefighters because the California Emergency Medical Services Authority (EMSA) will not issue them an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) Certificate, which is …

Reimagining Criminal Justice: The Violence Of Incarceration In The Midst Of The Covid-19 Pandemic, Tammy Henson

Reimagining Criminal Justice

Six years after the infamous and disturbing elevator video of former NFL player Ray Rice punching his fiancée Janay Palmer in the face, knocking her unconscious and then dragging her out of the elevator, Rice and Palmer remain happily married, both speaking out against domestic violence. Contrast Rice’s story to that of Samuel Lee Scott, a husband charged with murdering his wife hours after a nonprofit group posted his bail in a domestic violence case. The difference in these cases: Rice was given domestic violence counseling in lieu of jail, Scott was incarcerated. Research shows that incarceration actually increases future …

Reimagining Criminal Justice: The Lasting Effects Of The 3 Strikes Law And Proposition 20, Markie Flores

Reimagining Criminal Justice

Despite many people calling for cuts to police budgets this year, police unions have contributed more than half of the nearly $4 million raised for Proposition 20’s campaign deemed the “Reducing Crime and Keeping California Safe Act.” The proposition would erode the impact of Proposition 36 and 57 and expand the list of crimes for which early release is not an option. Proposition 20 wishes to define 51 crimes and sentence enhancements as violent. Listing them as violent will ensure they are excluded from the early release program Proposition 57 enacted in 2016.

Hiv Is Not A Crime, There Should Be No Jail Time, Bacilio Mendez Ii

GGU Law Review Blog

By way of personal, activist narrative, this blog post will provide broad context to the post-Stonewall legal landscape and the gay rights (now, the LGBTQ+) movement. The stage set, the writer will inform the audience of specific injustices brought upon persons living with HIV, during modern times, in the United States, simply based on their serostatus and offer solutions and actions that readers can take themselves.

This article includes links to State-by-State Statutory Information and several embedded video interviews, as well as an extensive bibliography.

Poverty, Domestic Violence, And The Covid-19 Pandemic, Tammy Henson

Poverty Law Conference & Symposium

There is a distinct correlation between domestic violence and level of income; the lower the income, the higher the prevalence of domestic violence. When poverty and domestic violence intertwine, the consequences for a family in poverty can be devastating. The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 has added immense pressure to families in poverty already suffering economic hardship. The sudden loss of income due to the nationwide shelter in- place mandate coupled with prolonged proximity to partners and children all day make for a ticking time bomb for many families in poverty.

Law enforcement, criminal courts, and family & dependency courts follow …

Unconstitutionally Redefining Murder: Ca Legislature Takes A Significant Overstep With S.B. 1437, Alex Rifkind

GGU Law Review Blog

Senate Bill 1437 (“S.B. 1437”), effective January 1, 2019, substantially changed the law relating to accomplice liability under the felony murder rule (the “FMR”) and the doctrine of natural and probable consequences. State prosecutors have challenged S.B. 1437 as an unconstitutional amendment of Propositions 7 and 115, and as a violation of the separation of powers. Polarized rulings from the state’s trial courts suggest a dispositive California Supreme Court decision is forthcoming to address the divide. Social policy considerations weigh heavily on the controversial issues engendered by this bill and will likely influence adjudication of the legislature’s authority to …

Sudden, Forced, And Unwanted Kisses In The #Metoo Era: Why A Kiss Is Not “Just A Kiss” Under Italian Sexual Violence Law, Rachel A. Van Cleave

Publications

#MeToo reports have revealed a significant number of forced kisses typically by men in positions of authority. Previous scholarship in the US has viewed such instances as to rare or too minor to be worthy of criminal sanctions. Indeed, there are no such reported criminal cases involving adults. However, in Italy, the Supreme Court of Cassazione has upheld sexual violence convictions for such forced kisses. This article analyzes these cases and investigates the types of considerations the Italian Supreme Court includes in its evaluation of these situations. This article also suggests specific aspects of US laws that could benefit from …

William Barr, Letter To The House And Senate Judiciary Committees, Dated March 29, 2019, William P. Barr

Federal Documents

"I write in response to Chairman Nadler's March 25, 2019 letter and Chairman Graham's March 27, 2019 letter, which addressed the investigation of Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller, III and the "confidential report" he has submitted to me pursuant to 28 C.F.R. § 600.8(c)."

William Barr, Letter To The House And Senate Judiciary Committees, Dated March 24, 2019, William P. Barr

Federal Documents

"As a supplement to the notification provided on Friday, March 22, 2019, I am writing today to advise you of the principal conclusions reached by Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller III and to inform you about the status of my initial review of the report he has prepared."

Police Highspeed Pursuits: Giving Police The Authority To Intervene Before The Public Is Harmed, Kevin Ballard

GGU Law Review Blog

Police Pursuits. The idea brings to mind thoughts of bank robbers fleeing from the police after committing a daring heist, only to be pursued by inept cops that wind up crashing into each other as the robbers drive away in perfect Hollywood fashion. However, police pursuits are rarely as glamorous and thrilling. In reality, they are terrifying and dangerous. In fact, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) more than 5,000 bystanders or passengers have been killed in police pursuits since 1979.

End The Death Penalty, Rachel A. Van Cleave

Publications

No abstract provided.

De-Categorizing Child Abuse - Equally Devastating Acts Require Equally Solicitous Statutes Of Limitations, Rosemary La Puma

Publications

News reports of childhood sexual abuse by Catholic priests initially shocked and subsequently angered the public. Emboldened by the public's reaction toward sexual abusers, survivors attempted to confront their abusers in civil court. Jurisdictions adjudicated these claims if they were brought within two years of reaching the age of majority. Yet, survivors often did not recognize the damage done to them until several years after they reached the age of majority. And by the time they did, the two-year statute of limitations had passed. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, survivors lobbied state legislatures to extend. the time within …

The Best Public Defenders Are Anarchists, Rachel A. Van Cleave, Peter Keane

Publications

After decades in criminal defense and in legal education, Golden Gate University School of Law Dean Emeritus Peter Keane is retiring. In addition to serving as dean and leading the San Francisco Public Defender's Office, Keane has also taken on leadership roles with the State Bar and with numerous tasks forces and commissions. He sat down recently with Rachel Van Cleave, the current dean of GGU Law, to reflect on his career.

Threaten Sentencing Enhancement, Coerce Plea, (Wash, Rinse,) Repeat: A Cause Of Wrongful Conviction By Guilty Plea, Wes R. Porter

Publications

Our American criminal justice system is too often described as broken. It was not a clean break in a single, isolated location. Instead, our criminal justice system suffers from many, many little nicks, bumps, and bruises at the hands of its keepers. The evolution of sentencing enhancements within our criminal justice system represents the latest nagging, reoccurring injury. In the ultimate Trojan horse to criminal defendants, the Supreme Court sought to protect the individual rights of the accused with its recent decisions on sentencing enhancements. But at the hands of lawmakers, the judiciary, and prosecutors, criminal defendants suffer more. Our …

“Yes Means Yes” Bill Fails To Adequately Address Link Between Alcohol And Sexual Assault, Danielle Cearley

GGU Law Review Blog

Much talk has surrounded California’s “Yes Means Yes” bill. SB 967 has been hailed a major shift in the way colleges will approach sexual assault by instituting an affirmative consent standard. Authored by Senator Kevin de Leon, SB 967 was signed by Governor Jerry Brown on September 28, 2014. While the “Yes Means Yes” bill did not go unchallenged by Republicans, it was unanimously put forward. Despite the unanimity, many have criticized the bill. Critiques have questioned a number of aspects of the bill, first and foremost it has been labeled as ambiguous, and many critics have alluded to possible …

Beyond Ferguson: The Uncertain Future Of The Grand Jury, Golden Gate University School Of Law

Press Releases

San Francisco, CA (March 24, 2015) – Golden Gate University School of Law (GGU Law) will host an expert panel to explore the use of the criminal grand jury, the legal mechanism generating much controversy following the decision not to indict a Ferguson, MO police officer in November, 2014. This free lecture will briefly explain the history of the criminal grand jury, followed by a panel of legal powerhouses who will offer their in-depth analyses of the criminal grand jury’s use and its future.

Book Review: Carol Haber, The Trials Of Laura Fair: Sex, Murder, And Insanity In The Victorian West, Benedetta Faedi Duramy

Publications

During the nineteenth century, the inquisitorial justice system, in which the investigation was typically overseen by a prosecutor or an examining magistrate, and the conduct of the trial was largely in the hands of the court, was replaced by the adversarial justice system. In the adversarial model, both the prosecutor and the defense were responsible for gathering evidence and presenting a narrative of the crime during the trial. Therefore, the courtroom became a sentimental theater in which opposing counsels recreated for the jury the story of the defendant and the events leading to the crime. The trial, therefore, represented the …