The Cunningham fix bill, SB 40, passed out of the California Assembly Public Safety Committee 5-2, reports Andy Furillo of the Sacramento Bee. The bill previously passed the Senate 36-1, with only conservative Republican Tom McClintock dissenting. In yesterday's vote, the opposition was from San Francisco Democrats Mark Leno and Fiona Ma. The bill would eliminate the requirement that a judge find an aggravating or mitigating fact to depart from the "middle term" sentence for a felony and impose the upper or lower term instead, thereby eliminating the problem the U.S. Supreme Court found in Cunningham v. California. The fix sunsets in 2009, however. The state's public defenders are divided on the bill, and their association has taken no position.

Scandal: Whoever said "everything is new to those who don't know history", must be amused by the shock and surprise surrounding the dismissal of eight U.S. Attorneys by the Bush Administration. A piece in today's Opinion Journal reminds those whose memories have failed them that, shortly after assuming office, President Clinton dismissed all 93 of them with ten days notice.

A Washington Appeals Court has reversed the conviction of Terese A. Hedlund, ruling that she was a victim and not an accomplice to the fatal drunk driving accident. According to an AP article the prosecutor in the case argued that Hedlund encouraged her fiance to drive erratically by videotaping the incident. The tape also revealed that she was furnishing alcohol to a minor and allowing her 4-year-old daughter to smoke a cigarette.

A Death Penalty bill that would abolish capital punishment in Montana has died in a House committee as reported in an AP story. The bill proposes life in prison without the possibility of parole and abolishing the death penalty. Sen. Dan Harrington sponsored the bill and feels that the House was "in a hurry" to get rid of the bill and claims that he will continue to try to get the issue before the House floor for open debate.

The state Supreme Court in Olympia, Washington will hear argument on defense access to evidence in child-sex cases. The AP reports that the prosecution contends that to release child pornography evidence, to the defense, victimizes the victim once again, and the defense states that they have a right to any evidence that can be used against them.