No Need to Police SF Prosecutors: A San Francisco prosecutor in a robbery case is accused of prosecutorial overreach for charging a defendant with kidnapping after she and two other men stole her supervisor's cell phone and accompanied him to an ATM to swap it for cash. Debra J. Saunders has this article in the SF Chronicle noting that LaSonya Wells, 40, could have spent the rest of her life behind bards if found guilty of the kidnapping charge; and while Saunders agreed that the kidnapping charge "goes too far," she says Wells,who has a lengthy criminal history that includes three stints in state prison, "is a great example of an offender who deserves to have the book thrown at her." CJLF President Michael Rushford concurs that the case doesn't amount to kidnapping but is troubled that prosecutors would be accused of being too tough on repeat offenders like Wells. The kidnapping charge against Wells was dropped, though she and her co-defendant son, Damian Wells, 20 still face charges for robbery, extortion and grand theft.
CA High Court Overturns Death Sentence: In a unanimous decision on Monday, the California Supreme Court overturned the death sentence of a man convicted of the 1993 murders of two former co-workers, who he ambushed and killed after being passed over for a promotion. Maura Dolan of the LA Times reports that Sergio Dujuan Nelson was 19-years-old and had no criminal history when he fatally shot Robin Shirley and Lee Thompson while they sat in a vehicle in the parking lot of the Target where he used to work. Nelson confessed to the killing but argued that they were brought on by depression. At his trial, two juries failed to reach a decision whether to sentence Nelson to life in prison without parole or death. After the second deadlocked jury, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Clarence Stromwall allowed the jurors to be questioned about their deliberations, and removed one of the holdouts. The state high court determined this week that the death verdict in Nelson's trial had been "tainted" by the "intrusive influence" of the trial court's questions and comments, and granted him a new trial on his sentence. Nelson's special circumstance conviction of lying in wait was also overturned in a 5-2 decision.
CA Lawsuit Leads to Reduced Cellphone Prison Penalties: A California lawsuit filed by an inmate over legislation passed five years ago imposing new penalties on inmates for using cellphones has prompted a reduction in some of the penalties under the legislation. Jim Miller of the Sac Bee reports that SB 26 was passed in 2011 following years of warnings that inmates were using contraband phones to commit crimes from prison, but a lawsuit arguing that lawmakers were unclear about who the maximum penalties applied to lead state prison officials to downgrade some of the law's rules. The measure initially called for the loss of 90 days of good time credit if an inmate was found in possession of cellphones and cellphone accessories such as SIM cards and charges, but now an inmate will only face the loss of 30 days of good time credit. Officials say the reduced penalties will not impede efforts to prevent inmates from obtaining cellphones. The changes will go into effect later this month. In 2010, a year before SB 26 was enacted, about 11,000 cellphones were confiscated in California prisons.
CA High Court Overturns Death Sentence: In a unanimous decision on Monday, the California Supreme Court overturned the death sentence of a man convicted of the 1993 murders of two former co-workers, who he ambushed and killed after being passed over for a promotion. Maura Dolan of the LA Times reports that Sergio Dujuan Nelson was 19-years-old and had no criminal history when he fatally shot Robin Shirley and Lee Thompson while they sat in a vehicle in the parking lot of the Target where he used to work. Nelson confessed to the killing but argued that they were brought on by depression. At his trial, two juries failed to reach a decision whether to sentence Nelson to life in prison without parole or death. After the second deadlocked jury, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Clarence Stromwall allowed the jurors to be questioned about their deliberations, and removed one of the holdouts. The state high court determined this week that the death verdict in Nelson's trial had been "tainted" by the "intrusive influence" of the trial court's questions and comments, and granted him a new trial on his sentence. Nelson's special circumstance conviction of lying in wait was also overturned in a 5-2 decision.
CA Lawsuit Leads to Reduced Cellphone Prison Penalties: A California lawsuit filed by an inmate over legislation passed five years ago imposing new penalties on inmates for using cellphones has prompted a reduction in some of the penalties under the legislation. Jim Miller of the Sac Bee reports that SB 26 was passed in 2011 following years of warnings that inmates were using contraband phones to commit crimes from prison, but a lawsuit arguing that lawmakers were unclear about who the maximum penalties applied to lead state prison officials to downgrade some of the law's rules. The measure initially called for the loss of 90 days of good time credit if an inmate was found in possession of cellphones and cellphone accessories such as SIM cards and charges, but now an inmate will only face the loss of 30 days of good time credit. Officials say the reduced penalties will not impede efforts to prevent inmates from obtaining cellphones. The changes will go into effect later this month. In 2010, a year before SB 26 was enacted, about 11,000 cellphones were confiscated in California prisons.
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