Vol. 36 No. 7 PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICERS PROCEDURAL BILL OF RIGHTS SECTION 3303(G) DOES NOT REQUIRE AUTOMATIC DISCLOSURE OF REPORTS AND COMPLAINTS PRIOR TO ANY FURTHER INTERROGATION OF AN OFFICER UNDER INVESTIGATION
In Oakland Police Officers’ Ass’n v. City of Oakland, the California First District Court of Appeal concluded that the Public Safety Officers Procedural Bill of Rights, Government Code Section 3303(g) does not require automatic disclosure of reports and complaints prior to any further interrogation of an officer under investigation. Instead, the investigating agency’s disclosure obligations […]
Vol. 36 No. 8 DETECTIVES WERE ENTITLED TO QUALIFIED IMMUNITY BECAUSE IT WAS NOT CLEARLY ESTABLISHED THAT THEIR INTERROGATION TACTICS ‘SHOCKED THE CONSCIENCE’ WHEN USED OVER A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME
In Tobias v. Arteaga, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the denial of qualified immunity for officers with regards to a plaintiff’s Fourteenth Amendment substantive due process claim. The Court held that detectives interrogating a minor suspect in a murder investigation were entitled to qualified immunity because it was not clearly established that their […]
Vol. 36 No. 12 KILLGORE DECISION RE MASSAGE ESTABLISHMENTS AND CLOSELY REGULATED INSPECTIONS
Background The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has recently reaffirmed a decades old California state appellate court decision that held that the massage industry is closely regulated and a warrantless administrative inspection of massage parlors under ordinances that meet certain factors do not violate the Fourth Amendment. This Ninth Circuit case, Killgore v. City of […]
Vol. 36 No. 11 NINTH CIRCUIT STAYS DISTRICT COURT RULING HOLDING THAT CALIFORNIA ASSAULT WEAPONS LAWS ARE UNCONSTITUTIONAL
In the June 2021 case of Miller v. Bonta, the United States District Court for the Southern District of California held that California statutes which restrict the use of assault weapons violate the Second Amendment. However, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals subsequently stayed the lower court’s ruling pending appeal proceedings. Thus, the State’s assault […]
Vol. 36 No. 10 UNDER THE FOURTH AMENDMENT, PURSUIT OF A FLEEING MISDEMEANOR SUSPECT DOES NOT ALWAYS JUSTIFY A WARRANTLESS ENTRY INTO A HOME
In Lange v. California, the United States Supreme Court held that an officer’s pursuit of a fleeing misdemeanor suspect does not categorically justify a warrantless entry into a home. Instead, as per Supreme Court precedent, a case-by-case assessment of exigency is required when deciding whether a suspected misdemeanant’s flight justifies a warrantless home entry. Background […]
Vol. 36 No. 9 SUPREME COURT REJECTS BROAD APPLICATION EXTENDING COMMUNITY CARETAKING EXCEPTION TO WARRANTLESS SEARCHES AND SEIZURES IN HOME IN CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES
In a unanimous 9-0 decision, the United States Supreme Court in Caniglia v. Strom rejected a lower court’s broad interpretation of the “community caretaking exception,” which erroneously extrapolated a previous Supreme Court case’s statement regarding the exception to warrantless search and seizure in a home context under the specific facts of this case. Background During […]
Vol. 34 No. 6 COLLECTION OF DEFENDANT’S DNA SAMPLE WAS UNLAWFUL UNDER THE FOURTH AMENDMENT BECAUSE PROSECUTION FAILED TO PROVE THAT HIS DNA WAS COLLECTED AS PART OF A ROUTINE BOOKING PROCEDURE
In the case of People v. Marquez, 2019 Cal. App. LEXIS 48 (4th Dist. Jan. 15, 2019), the California Fourth District Court of Appeal held that the 2006 collection of Daniel Joseph Marquez’s DNA sample was unlawful under the Fourth Amendment, but also concluded that the trial court properly admitted 2008 DNA evidence from a […]
Vol. 33 No. 34 POLICE OFFICER BODY CAMERA VIDEO AND AUDIO RECORDINGS OF “CRITICAL INCIDENTS” ARE DISCLOSABLE UNDER THE PUBLIC RECORDS ACT
On September 30, 2018 Governor Brown signed into law Assembly Bill 748 (“AB 748”) which added language to the Public Records Act that relates to police investigation records. Beginning July 1, 2019, video or audio recordings of “critical incidents” may only be withheld from the public for a period of longer than 45 days if […]
Vol. 33 No. 33 RECORDS OF OFFICER INVOLVED SHOOTINGS, USES OF FORCE RESULTING IN GREAT BODILY INJURY OR DEATH, AND SUSTAINED INCIDENTS OF SEXUAL ASSAULT AND DISHONESTY ARE SUBJECT TO DISCLOSURE UNDER THE PUBLIC RECORDS ACT
Governor Brown recently signed into law Senate Bill 1421 (“SB 1421”) which changed the confidential status of certain records contained in peace officer personnel files. SB 1421 effects a significant change with respect to the disclosure of certain categories of peace officer personnel files by way of the California Public Records Act. Beginning January 1, […]
Vol. 33 No. 32 DISTRICT COURT ORDER IN IMMIGRATION CASE GRANTS CITY’S APPLICATION FOR PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION WHERE ATTORNEY GENERAL SEEKS TO IMPOSE IMMIGRATION CONDITIONS ON FEDERAL GRANTS FOR CITY
On September 13, 2018 in the case of City of Los Angeles v. Jefferson B. Sessions, 293 F. Supp. 3d 1087 (C.D. Cal. 2018), the United States District Court for the Central District of California granted the application by the City of Los Angeles (“City”) for a preliminary injunction to enjoin the imposition of new […]