Residency requirements for public employees is a long-standing concept that has been experiencing a resurgence. In the 1970s, numerous legal challenges were brought against municipalities that required employees to reside in the city or county where they were employed. In 1972, the California Supreme Court found the City of Torrance residency requirement was unconstitutional. In
California Supreme Court Holds that Law Enforcement Agency May Disclose “Brady List” to Prosecutors Notwithstanding Pitchess Statutes
In a unanimous decision published today, the California Supreme Court held that the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) could share with prosecutors the names of deputies on its “Brady list” in particular cases without seeking a court order after a Pitchess motion. The Court held that the LASD would not violate Pitchess “by
Governor Newsom Signs Police Use-of-Force Bill AB 392
On Monday morning, August 19, 2019, Governor Newsom signed California Assembly Bill 392, a police use-of-force bill that redefines the circumstances under which the use of lethal force by a peace officer is considered justifiable. The law is intended to encourage law enforcement to increasingly rely on alternative methods such as less-lethal force or de-escalation
Three is Company: Police Departments Usage of Drones and Robots and What it Means for Employer-Employee Relations
This post was authored by Alysha Stein-Manes and Daniel Seitz
Remote surveillance is an area of expanding interest for law enforcement agencies. Police departments continue to equip their sworn officers with body-mounted video cameras (“body cams”), and, in California, the Legislature has begun to regulate discoverability of body cam footage. Agencies in California and across
Budget Trailer Bill SB 94 Clears Up Ambiguity Regarding Public Access to Body Camera Videos, Amending AB 748
This blog post was authored by J. Scott Tiedemann & Lars T. Reed
On Thursday, June 27, 2019, Governor Newsom signed into law the new State Budget as well as accompanying budget trailer bills. One of the budget trailer bills, Senate Bill 94, contains clean-up language for provisions added to
Heroic Acts by California Peace Officers During the 2017 Las Vegas Shooting Inspire New California Law Allowing Employers to Extend Workers’ Compensation Protections to Peace Officers for Out-of-State Off-Duty Conduct
This blog was authored by Alysha Stein-Manes.
On October 1, 2017, several peace officers from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department were in attendance at the 91 Harvest Music Festival when a gunman opened fire on the crowd. Fifty-eight people were killed and over 800 injured. Several of these peace officers brought other festivalgoers to
Courts Begin To Weigh In On Senate Bill 1421 and the Release of Police Records
This post was authored by Geoffrey S. Sheldon & Lars T. Reed.
Immediately after California Senate Bill 1421 went into effect on January 1, 2019, public agencies across California began receiving requests for public records relating to certain high-profile categories of peace officer misconduct. As we described in a previous Special Bulletin, SB
Tips for Responding to SB 1421 Requests
This post was authored by J. Scott Tiedemann & Lars T. Reed.
On January 1, 2019, California Senate Bill 1421 went into effect. The new law allows members of the public to obtain certain peace officer personnel records that were previously available only through the Pitchess procedure by making a request under the California
Governor Signs SB 1421 and AB 748, Dramatically Increasing Public Access to Peace Officer Personnel Records
On September 30, 2018, Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr. signed two significant pieces of legislation, Senate Bill 1421 and Assembly Bill 748, that will require major changes in how law enforcement agencies respond to requests for peace officer personnel records. We described this legislation in detail in a previous Special Bulletin.
In short, these
Questions and Answers Regarding Responding Quickly to Disasters
This post was authored by Laura Schulkind, Jenny Denny and Eileen O’Hare-Anderson
Many of you are facing tremendous challenges with the current fires in both ends of the state. We wish we could stand next to you and be of practical help. Since we can’t do that, we offer these legal answers to the