Reggie Jones-Sawyer

As the California Legislature reconvenes for the final five weeks of its session, the leader of the Assembly Public Safety Committee is under the spotlight. But Reggie Jones-Sawyer isn’t backing down.

California has a police problem. In some parts of the state, particularly rural areas, there aren’t enough of them. Tehama County, population 65,000, made national headlines last month when the sheriff announced he would be ending daytime patrols due to the agency’s “catastrophic staffing shortage.” But the two main challenges facing Tehama County are also […]

A CalMatters investigation found that at least 1,300 people have been locked in county jails for longer than three years awaiting a trial or sentencing. The findings are “surprising and embarrassing,” said State Sen. Tom Umberg, chair of the Judiciary Committee.

Una investigación de CalMatters encontró que al menos 1.300 personas han estado encerradas en cárceles del condado durante más de tres años esperando un juicio o sentencia. Los hallazgos son "sorprendentes y vergonzosos", dijo el senador estatal Tom Umberg, presidente del Comité Judicial.

Police executives and scholars assert the complexity of 21st century policing demands a college degree.

You can’t always get what you want, but for special interests in California politics, spending $34 million sure does help. That’s the amount of unrestricted political spending that industries and unions with regular business in the capitol pumped into Legislative races across the state this year. As CalMatters reported before Election Day, the oil industry, […]

Maybe you saw the video on Facebook before it was deleted: Glen Stailey, president of the state prison guards’ union, rails against “failed public safety policies” and “cheap political points” and announces that “it is time to bring accountability back to the state Capitol.” Cut to a shot of the union president, with a horseshoe […]

The nation's most populous state has become a case study in governing remotely as California legislators handle a shutdown, a pandemic and tanking economy.

California has some of the nation’s strongest gun control laws. But local police in California increasingly are turning to federal authorities for help prosecuting gun crimes. The reason: Felons in possession of firearms will serve far longer sentences under federal law.

Democrats who lead legislative committees are using a powerful new tool to kill bills before they even get a vote. The trick? Simply doing nothing.