📚 Guerrero & Navarro joins Lashon, Singh, Quintero & Wagstaff:
➡️ RJA claims not raised at trial are forfeited.
➡️ Allegations of bias require concrete proof — not inference.
See how the court applied §745(a)(1)-(2) in undercover contexts.
Full write-up → CA RJA Resource Hub
#PC745 #RJA #CrimLaw
“The goal of the Racial Justice Act is to root out racism in all its forms — including systemic racism.” – Prof. Jody Armour, USC
18 new filings may finally push California courts to apply that promise to sentencing
Read below ⬇️ and stay updated at the CA RJA Resource Hub (link in bio)
#RJA #PC745
One petitioner, John Crawford, is serving 45 years to life for attempted second-degree robbery.
His RJA filing argues Black defendants in L.A. County face sentences 36% longer than similarly charged white defendants.
Read more ⬇️
#RJA #SentencingDisparities #CaliforniaRacialJusticeAct #PC745
💡 Five years after the #RacialJusticeAct was passed, not one California judge has yet found disparate sentencing under PC 745(a)(4).
Now 18 new petitions aim to test the statute’s reach — and its promise to correct systemic bias.
Read more below ⬇️
#CARJA #CAcourts #JusticeReform #PC745 #RIA
🔎☝️Systemic Perspective
“The race-blind charging study showed no difference,” says the DA.
Yet the ACLU’s data reveal deep disparities in who faces felony charges.
The fight over access to records will shape how California enforces its #RacialJusticeAct.
Full story below ⬇️
#CARJA #CAcourts #PC745
🧾 The ACLU suit frames data transparency as essential to enforcing Penal Code § 745.
‼️ By denying disclosure, the complaint argues, the DA “weakens the public’s ability to monitor prosecutorial practices.”
⬇️ Full story below ⬇️
#CARJA #RJA #PublicRecords #PC745 #CaliforniaRacialJusticeAct #AB256
🕵️♀️ The #ACLU lawsuit against Santa Clara DA Jeff Rosen tests a core principle of the #RacialJusticeAct: public access to prosecutorial data.
Without transparency, “the law is just words on paper.” – Abdi Soltani
Read more linked below ⬇️
#CARJA #OpenData #CAcourts #PC745 #AB256 #Transparency #Equity
📌 Practice Tips for RJA Litigators
✅ Challenge racialized use of music/creative works under § 745(a)
✅ Highlight prosecutorial framing in closing arguments
✅ Build appellate records challenging bias, even in older cases
More info & full text ⬇️
#CARJA #RacialJusticeAct #RJA #PC745 #SystemicBias
🗣️ Chavez:
“I was attacked for where I grew up. The justice system is not fair. I would not have been here if it were.”
He continues advocating for RJA enforcement in Santa Clara County.
Stay updated at CA RJA Hub (link in account bio)
Full Text ⬇️
#CARJA #RacialJusticeAct #PC745 #SystemicBias
🕊️ Chavez was released July 23, 2025.
He met his daughter for the first time.
He is now advocating for reforms and credit organizing by Silicon Valley De-Bug and support from grassroots communities.
More info & full text ⬇️
#CARJA #RacialJusticeAct #RJA #PC745 #SystemicBias #CaliforniaRJA
Cultural Context ≠ Criminal Guilt
New laws (Evidence Code § 352.1) now limit the use of creative expression in criminal cases.
However, Chavez’s case highlights the legacy harm of such tactics before reforms were implemented.
More info & full text ⬇️
#CARJA #RacialJusticeAct #PC745 #SystemicBias
🧑🏽💼 Public Defender Damon Silver:
“Labels like ‘gangs’ tap into deep fears & histories. They risk injustice.”
He commended the DA’s choice to dismiss the charges rather than retry.
More info & full text: sanjosespotlight.com/santa-clara-...
#RacialJusticeAct #RJA #PC745 #SystemicBias #CaRJA #CARJA
🧑🏽⚖️ Appellate Court Ruling
The 6th District ruled the conviction prejudicial:
“It is reasonably probable the outcome… would have been more favorable to Chavez in the absence of the error.”
More info & full text below and at the CA RJA Hub (Link in Bio)
#RacialJusticeAct #RJA #PC745 #SystemicBias
🎤 Rap Lyrics as Evidence
The DA’s Office relied on a 2004 gang-themed rap Chavez helped record, but did not write or perform.
Lyrics were used in closing arguments to paint him as a gang member—even though the offenses occurred years later.
More info & full text below ⬇️
#RJA #PC745 #SystemicBias
📍Case Overview
Chavez spent 13 years in prison after being convicted of gang-related crimes in a case the DA retried multiple times.
However, in 2024, the 6th DCA reversed its decision, finding that the “extremely inflammatory” use of lyrics had biased the jury.
#RJA #PC745 #SystemicBias #CARJA
Santa Clara County Conviction Overturned Over Use of Rap Lyrics & Racial Bias Concerns
Hugo Chavez, sentenced to 105 years, is now free.
A CA appellate court reversed his conviction—citing prosecutorial prejudice and racialized use of rap lyrics.
More info & full text ⬇️
#RJA #PC745 #SystemicBias
📌 Practice Note for RJA Litigators
This case highlights:
✅ Importance of cultural stereotyping claims under § 745(a)(1) & (2)
✅ Juror exclusion scrutiny
✅ Potential RJA retroactivity in capital habeas contexts
More info & full text ⬇️
#DueProcess #DeathRow #RacialJusticeAct #DeathPenalty #PC745
Defense Rebuttal
Stankewitz’s team pushes back:
➡️ RJA was designed precisely to revisit these injustices
➡️ Cultural context ≠ license to stereotype
➡️ RJA does not require race to be the sole factor
More info & full text below
#DueProcess #DeathRow #RacialJusticeAct #CARJA #DeathPenalty #PC745
⚖️ Prosecutorial Reply
Fresno County DA’s office opposes the RJA motion:
🔹 Argues no evidence of bias
🔹 Claims defense “opened the door” to cultural testimony
🔹 Asserts motion is untimely
More info & full text below
Visit the CA RJA Hub in bio
#DeathRow #RacialJusticeAct #RJA #DeathPenalty #PC745
“The prosecution elicited racially charged testimony… and urged jurors to impose death because of Mr. Stankewitz’s background,” the motion states.
Prosecutors linked cultural identity with future dangerousness.
More info below ⬇️
#RJA #EqualProtection #SystemicRacism #CARJA #DeathPenalty #PC745
Case Background
Stankewitz, of Native American heritage, was sentenced to death after a 1978 Fresno County trial. In his recent § 745 motion, he alleges the prosecution relied on racial stereotypes and removed the only Native juror.
#DeathRow #RJA #CARJA #DeathPenalty #PC745
More info & full text⬇️
California’s Longest-Serving Death Row Prisoner Brings RJA Challenge
Douglas “Chief” Stankewitz, incarcerated since 1978, has filed for relief under California’s Racial Justice Act—arguing that racial bias shaped his capital conviction and sentence.
#RacialJusticeAct #CARJA #DeathPenalty #PC745
📌Practice Tip for RJA Litigators:
If a former DA hears your RJA motion, consider:
✅ Asking for on-record disclosure of any prior involvement with your client
✅ Citing CJEO 2025-028 to frame your disqualification motion
More info & full text ⬇️
#RJA #PC745 #RacialJusticeAct #CARJA #JudicialEthics
👥 About CJEO
CJEO is an independent ethics advisory committee appointed by the CA Supreme Court.
Its formal opinions are nonbinding but widely respected and followed.
More info & full text ⬇️
#CJEO2025_028 #PC745 #RacialJusticeAct #CARJA #JudicialEthics
🗣️ Judge Samantha Jessner (CJEO):
“This opinion provides timely and practical guidance for judges navigating the complexities of RJA claims.”
The goal is to protect public confidence in the judiciary without blanket exclusions.
More info below ⬇️
#JudicialImpartiality #PC745 #CARJA #JudicialEthics
📢 Disclosure is Key
CJEO: Judges who choose not to disqualify must disclose on the record any facts “reasonably relevant” to that determination.
That includes the judge’s own reasoning for staying on the case.
More info & full text ⬇️
#Transparency #RacialJusticeAct #PC745 #CARJA #JudicialEthics
⚖️ When Must a Judge Recuse?
➡️ If the judge prosecuted the defendant in the same or related case
➡️ If the judge’s former role creates a reasonable doubt about impartiality
➡️ Even if not disqualified, mandatory disclosure applies
More info & full text ⬇️
#CAJudiciary #RJA #PC745 #RacialJusticeAct
🧑⚖️ Core Holding:
A judge is not automatically disqualified from hearing an RJA discovery motion just because they previously served as a prosecutor in other cases that may now be subject to RJA claims.
👇 Learn more below 👇
#CARJA #JudicialEthics #PC745 #CaliforniaRacialJusticeAct #RJA
Important ethics update for RJA practitioners, judges, & advocates:
The CA Supreme Court’s Committee on Judicial Ethics Opinions just issued CJEO Formal Opinion 2025-028, clarifying disqualification & disclosure rules under the Racial Justice Act (PC § 745).
👇 Learn More Below
#PC745 #CARJA #RJA
📌 Lashon answers:
❓ Can defendants raise § 745(a)(2) claims for the first time on appeal?
✅ Only if forfeiture exceptions apply.
❓ Does AB 1118 eliminate preservation?
❌ No.
Full case breakdown: californiarja.wordpress.com/2025/08/24/p...
#RJA #PC745 #AB1118 #CaliforniaRacialJusticeAct #CARJA
