News
PJDC Condemns Santa Clara District Attorney Rosen’s Attack on Public Defender’s Free Speech Rights
On June 3, 2020, in the midst of national outrage over racial disparities and mistreatment of Black people in the justice system, Santa Clara County Alternate Public Defender Sajid Khan published a piece on his personal blog entitled, “be mad at the police, but be even madder at the DA’s offices that perpetuate and …
PJDC Stands in Solidarity Against Police Brutality and Anti-Blackness
“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” Martin Luther King, Jr.
The Pacific Juvenile Defender Center will not be silent. PJDC members are juvenile defense attorneys and …
Información Para Familias Con Jóvenes Confinados En Juvenile Hall O En Campamentos Del Condado Durante La Pandemia COVID-19
Los expertos en salud advierten que los lugares congregados colocan a todas las personas en un riesgo sustancial de enfermedad y muerte, y declaran que reducir inmediatamente la cantidad de personas alojadas en los centros de detención es críticamente necesario para la salud y la seguridad de estos lugares y de nuestras comunidades. Los jóvenes …
Information For Families With Children Confined in Juvenile Hall or County Camps During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Health experts warn that congregate settings place all people at substantial risk of illness and death, and declare that reducing the number of people housed in detention facilities immediately is critically necessary for the health and safety of those facilities and our communities. Children confined in juvenile halls and camps in California are also at
Available to Lawyers Defending Children: PJDC’s Post-Disposition Petitions/Writ of Habeas Corpus for Release of Children in Congregate Facilities Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic
…Health experts warn that congregate settings place all people at substantial risk of illness and death, and declare that reducing the number of people housed in detention facilities immediately is critically necessary for the health and safety of those facilities and our communities. Children confined in juvenile halls and camps in California are also at
PJDC Calls on California Supreme Court to Provide Guidance to Lower Courts on Releasing Children From Confinement During COVID-19
On April 4, 2020, PJDC sent an open letter to California Supreme Court Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye, calling on the court and the Judicial Council to issue COVID-19 guidance to juvenile delinquency courts across the State that have not addressed the crisis facing incarcerated children. The letter describes the confusion and failure in Los Angeles …
PJDC’s Transfer Litigation Intensive Forum Has Been Postponed.
The PJDC Governing Board and the Transfer Litigation Intensive Forum Planning Committee have decided to postpone the livestreamed Forum that had been scheduled for Friday, March 20. While last week we were thrilled to find a way to livestream the event, the court closures and issues surfacing about detained youth in response to the COVID-19 …
PJDC Statement on COVID-19 and Youth in the Juvenile Justice System
We, the Pacific Juvenile Defender Center (PJDC), call upon our state, county, and municipal governments to take immediate action against COVID-19 to protect one of California’s most vulnerable group of children—young people in the juvenile delinquency system. PJDC is California’s largest organization of juvenile justice advocates, comprised of over 1,600 juvenile defenders, policy professionals, and …
SF Chronicle “Vanishing Violence” Series Features Core PJDC Issues
Over the past year, the San Francisco Chronicle has published more than 15 stories as part of its “Vanishing Violence” series examining the fall of juvenile crime, and the often inadequate responses by public officials. Articles have focused on continued use of incarceration for youth who commit minor offenses or who need of mental health …
California Supreme Court Strikes Down Juvenile Electronic Search Condition
By a 4-3 decision released August 15, 2019, the California Supreme Court struck down the electronic search condition in a closely watched juvenile case. The case, In re Ricardo P., involved a young person who was placed on probation in Alameda County after admitting two counts of felony burglary. As a condition of his probation, …