More than 70 misdemeanor cases had to be dismissed in San Francisco Thursday after a state appeals court ruled that superior courts can no longer delay cases due to disruptions from the COVID-19 crisis.
The backlog of criminal cases in superior courts is something the public defender's office has been raising concerns about since last summer.
The office has organized a series of demonstrations. At issue is a defendant's constitutional right to a speedy trial.
"Many of these individuals had plenty of consequences," Andrea Lindsey with the public defender's office said. "Some people lost their jobs. Many people were subjected to pre-trial release conditions, meaning restrictions on their freedom, for far more than the law allows."
All of the dismissed cases are misdemeanors, but they include defendants who were accused of crimes ranging from DUI to domestic violence and sexual assault.
Each of the 74 defendants involved was first charged between early 2022 and April 2024.
"For these individuals, they just got a get out of jail free card," legal analyst Steven Clark said.
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Clark said all California courts had a backlog of cases because of the pandemic, but other counties managed to sort through the backlog.
"They utilized an all-hands-on-deck approach," he said. "Civil cases were now being put on hold because criminal cases take priority. That's what should have happened here, particularly when you have cases involving domestic violence, sexual assault, drunk driving."
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In the legal order, the appellate court said San Francisco Superior Court could have used a number of methods to get through the backlog.
The appellate court decision suggested using the civil courts at Civic Center to help get through the backlog.
Some of those judges did start presiding over criminal cases earlier this year in non-violent misdemeanor cases.
In a prepared statement, the superior court presiding judge acknowledged the appellate court's ruling, but she did not mention adopting strategies other counties have used to get through the backlog, including scheduling night court and enlisting judges from other jurisdictions to help beat the backlog.
District Attorney Brooke Jenkins released a statement Thursday morning:
"As District Attorney, I am duty bound to follow the law and fight for justice on behalf of victims of crime, fairly, and ethically. The court’s decisions to continue cases past statutory deadlines for trial deprived defendants of their rights and also robbed victims of theirs.
"Because the court previously continued cases without proper findings of good cause and the court’s subsequent abuse of discretion, the court is now required to dismiss those cases. Regrettably, the system has now failed countless victims of crime who will not see justice done.
"As of today, we identified 4 cases in the court’s Order to Show Clause that do not fall under Mendoza vs. Superior Court and seventy cases that fall under the Court of Appeal decision. For those cases that do not fall under Mendoza and for every case that we bring forward, we will do everything we can to ensure that justice is done."
