The state already pays some legal bills in immigration court – but not for those with serious or violent felony records. If they can’t afford a lawyer, they face deportation alone. Assembly member Reggie Jones-Sawyer says that’s not due process.
From CalMatters politics reporter Alexei Koseff: At long last, a resolution to the fall standoff between Gov. Gavin Newsom and local officials over their plans to decrease street homelessness. That’s the first takeaway from Newsom’s four-day statewide tour to launch his 2023 policy agenda, which kicks off this afternoon in Sacramento, before heading to the […]
He couldn’t find a parking spot for his specialized van at a San Diego lobster shop. The lawsuit that followed is a test of how California upholds disabled rights.
California spends more than $15 billion a year on its prison system. Now, with the number of people behind bars plummeting, the Newsom administration is moving to shut down more institutions.
The recent reappointment of Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore focused the attention on his work as a reformer rather than a crime-fighter. As L.A. history shows, law enforcement can do both. The more recent stumbles are less about the false choice between the two approaches, and more about the effectiveness of management.
Between 2014 and 2020, California's elderly parole program had a 19% release rate. Many of these incarcerated seniors are dying or will die in prison, despite extremely low recidivism rates for their age group.
Incarceration shortens the life expectancy of inmates and correctional officers alike. Many California leaders view prison closures as a cost-saving measure, but the health benefits may be more impactful for the people who live or work inside.
Seven years after the Safe and Responsible Drivers Act gave undocumented residents a license to drive, the state is ready to expand its impact, but the law still has detractors.
Lorenzo Mays, who is intellectually disabled, spent years lost in a criminal justice system in California that too often fails people with developmental disabilities and mental illness.
For almost nine years, Lorenzo Mays disappeared inside Sacramento County jail, charged with a murder he insists he didn’t commit. During that time, Mays was never brought to trial. He wasn’t allowed to leave. Instead, he remained in a kind of legal limbo, with most of his years spent in solitary confinement. The reason? Judges […]