News & Commentary

The United States Supreme Court unanimously acknowledged what common sense tells us and everyone who owns a cell phone (yes, that would be just about everyone) already knows: Our cell phones have a whole lot of private information about us. The Court therefore held that cops need a warrant to search a cell phone.

Today is Juneteenth and the United States just executed three black men from three southern states in 24 hours. This is outrageous.

While we await much-needed federal immigration reform, dozens of counties are refusing ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) requests to detain immigrants in local jails.

If you think "Orange Is the New Black" shows it all, you're about to find out a disgusting truth. While the women in OITNB face miserable conditions and abuse, it's nothing compared to what real people experience in the jail where they film as well as other jails in Suffolk County, New York.

The Oakland Unified School District last week took the latest in a series of steps aimed at reducing interaction between district students and school district police officers that too often leads to overly-harsh discipline that pushes kids out of school and into the criminal justice system.

You’ve seen police uniforms on TV. Some have medals, some have stripes, some are blue and some are tan, but they always have a badge, and a little nameplate on the chest bearing the officers name. In California, officers are required by state law to wear that nameplate identifying them. Why? Accountability.

Every county in California has one elected district attorney and one elected sheriff. Do you know who you're voting for on June 3?

By Judy Pendleton

If you’ve been reading the news at all this week, you’ve been inundated with some pretty gruesome news in the death penalty arena. News that has caused outrage and should give every person in this country pause.