In August 2022, Deputy Public Defender Crystal Carpino learned that the nascent Restorative Justice court program was being halted under the administration of appointed interim District Attorney Brooke Jenkins, meaning that no one else is being allowed into the small program which has been steadily growing with much early success. The reasons given for this “temporary” halt have been inconsistent, and the move itself is inconsistent with the DA’s stated intention to focus on helping victims of crime. Indeed, the Restorative Justice program is based on the premise that injured parties choose to enter this process to find healing and be made whole — offering much more satisfaction than the traditional punitive approach. Defendants also must be willing to face the harm they’ve caused and learn from it to do better in the future.
SF Gate broke the story about the halt to the Restorative Justice program. Subsequently, Ms. Carpino went on KGO’s Morning Show to discuss the benefits of the Restorative Justice program, and the promise it holds even when applied to serious or violent offenses.
Restorative Justice has been found to be more effective at repairing harms done than the carceral system. Whether halting this program is an attempt to rebrand or to possibly water it down, @BrookeJenkinsSF decision is harmful and counterproductive. https://t.co/5awPysVl5h”
Listen to @kgo810@NikkiMedoro interview @sfdefender Crystal Carpino about SF's Restorative Justice Program that DA Jenkins recently halted. Crystal expertly explains how RJ is more effective than the traditional punitive criminal system. 1/https://t.co/V4mBYTXKdj
Public Defender Raju Opposes DA Jenkins’s Bail Policies
SAN FRANCISCO — Today, San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins released her policy around pre-trial detention and money bail. In response, San Francisco Public Defender Mano Raju issues the following statement:
“Even before District Attorney Jenkins issued this policy, we’ve seen her office expand the use of money bail to detain people accused of misdemeanors, and we are concerned that more of our clients will be harmed in light of this announcement.
To be clear, we’re talking about the District Attorney’s Office intentionally setting money bail to lock a poor person in jail where a wealthy person could simply pay the money and be released. By definition, this is not about furthering public safety because we know that jailing a community member destabilizes that person’s life and makes it more likely that they will be charged with another crime later. They may lose their home, their job, their kids; they endure trauma in the jail, and they are stigmatized.
DA Jenkins’s characterization of this new policy as limited is disingenuous as the stated policy is both broad and vague. Already we have a number of misdemeanor attorneys who each have a handful of cases where the prosecutor has sought pre-trial detention.
Most concerning, DA Jenkins’s policy will increase the number of people caged prior to trial. Pre-trial detention is a coercive tactic used to pressure people who can not afford to pay bail to take a plea deal for a crime they did not commit. Increasing pre-trial detention also will exacerbate the backlog of cases where the accused waits in jail in violation of their speedy trial rights. And it will make even worse the human rights crisis happening within our jails —while hundreds of people are waiting days, weeks, or months without sunlight or fresh air; little or no programming; some subjected to conditions of solitary confinement.
I urge District Attorney Jenkins to reconsider her policy on expanding use of money bail to incarcerate indigent community members. Nationally and throughout California, we are moving away from punishing people for being poor and toward ending the use of money bail. Let’s not regress on the progress we have made as a city and county that values equality and fairness.”
Journalist Albert Samaha, the Inequality Editor at BuzzFeed News, interviewed our client Jordan Smith, who has long worked in the restaurant industry around the Bay Area and found himself living on the economic margins. In the article – The Only Way For Some People To Stay In San Francisco Is To Steal: As San Francisco’s wealthy residents panic over property crime, some of the city’s less privileged can’t find ways to make ends meet – the author connects Jordan’s attempts to narrowly hang onto his life in San Francisco to his own love of the City where so many, including his own immigrant family with SF roots, are being priced out. In a media landscape that largely amplifies the fears of property crime and demonizes and dehumanizes the people who commit them, we need more stories of the people whose economic circumstances and unmet basic needs explain some of their choices. Then, perhaps, we can start to better direct public resources to address the root causes of crime rather than continue to rely on policing and the carceral system which cannot solve nor prevent these problems.
“I’m sorry I took the wire, times are tough right now,” Smith remembers saying to the two officers. “I’m not getting unemployment money, I’m hungry, I’m cold, I’m just trying to make ends meet.”
Much of the media coverage of property crimes ignores the economic desperation driving it. This thoughtful article features @sfdefender client Jordan & highlights the reality shared by many who are being priced out of the City they love.https://t.co/8so2wDft4T via @albertsamaha
MEDIA CONTACT: SF Public Defender’s Office | PubDef-MediaRelations@sfgov.org
**PRESS STATEMENT**
SF Public Defender Says Police Escalated a Biased Stop to Shootout on City Street
SAN FRANCISCO – Today, the San Francisco Police Department held a virtual town hall about an incident in which four police officers fired shots at Jose Corvera on the residential 300 block of Shotwell Street in the Mission District on the morning of Saturday, August 6, 2022. Mr. Corvera is now in jail and facing several charges, including resisting arrest and brandishing an imitation gun. Deputy Public Defender Alexa Horner, who is representing Mr. Corvera, is issuing the following statement in response to the SFPD shooting and the town hall:
“This unnecessary police stop instigated and escalated a situation which endangered the public, Mr. Corvera, and members of the SFPD.
The officers who stopped Mr. Corvera did not observe him committing any crime, and during today’s police town hall, representatives of the SFPD only gave vague explanations for the stop without providing any evidence of an alleged crime. This appears to be an example of police relying on their own bias to initiate a stop of a man who was riding a bicycle and pushing another. Notably, Mr. Corvera is not being charged with any theft.
Mr. Corvera is Latino, Limited English Proficient, and suffers from mental health challenges. A police interaction can be frightening precisely because an unnecessary stop of a person with mental health challenges and language needs can quickly escalate. When an officer exited a police car, Mr. Corvera tried to walk away. He then hid behind a parked car while holding onto a prop gun he carries for protection. It remains unclear whether he fired any of the blank rounds before police responded with gunshots.
What ensued was a disorganized scene in which numerous officers were called to surround the block, including a large police tactical vehicle. At one point, shots can be heard in the body worn camera footage followed by officers questioning who fired the shots. At least four officers discharged their firearms before Mr. Corvera threw his prop gun into the street, where it went off on its own.
Thankfully, Mr. Corvera came away with his life. However, he remains traumatized, detained, and is unfairly facing charges. Too often prosecutors and judges use mental health conditions to justify jailing people even when they pose no threat to themselves or others and may otherwise benefit from medical support, housing, and other necessary services. We ask for his immediate release as the victim of a biased police stop and officer involved shooting by SFPD.”
Public Defender Mano Raju Warns DA Jenkins’s Drug Policies Will Lead to Worse Community Health Outcomes
District Attorney Brooke Jenkins today announced policies with regard to drug cases. Mano Raju, the elected Public Defender of San Francisco, issues the following statement in response:
“The District Attorney’s newly announced policies around drug cases are exactly the type of regressive and carceral practices that have exacerbated the public health crisis of substance abuse, and have only fueled the mass incarceration of impoverished people and disproportionately harmed BIPOC communities for decades.
Seeking pretrial detention for more people will only intensify the public health crisis in our jails which are in the midst of a record COVID outbreak, and the constitutional crisis in our courts where hundreds of people are waiting for trials past their speedy trial deadline. Judges still must adhere to the California Supreme Court’s Humphrey decision that prevents jailing people simply because they are too poor to post cash bail.
We know that jailing people who are suffering from addiction can lead to worse health outcomes, such as overdoses. We also know that many of the people who get arrested for drug sales also use drugs and have been set up by police in ‘buy-bust’ operations to sell small subsistence amounts to undercover officers.
To use an arbitrary amount of drugs to exclude people from participating in Community Justice Court will prevent meaningful intervention and support for people trying to get out of drug sales and overcome substance abuse.
With the number and proximity of schools in San Francisco, the DA is using a broad stroke to threaten people with sentence enhancements, which will not address the public health crisis of drug addiction. Enhancements for any offense have never been shown to be effective at prevention or intervention, and have never been applied in a race neutral way.
If District Attorney Jenkins truly wants to address the issues facing our city, she should not be relying on outdated and politically expedient soundbites about harsher enforcement. Fifty years of evidence from the war on drugs have shown that these punitive practices have not prevented recidivism nor improved community health and safety. San Francisco can and must do better than this. We should instead invest our city’s resources in funding more effective solutions, such as housing, jobs, and treatment.”
SF Public Defender Announces Leadership Advancement of M.A.G.I.C. Directors
M.A.G.I.C. Programs Continue to Serve Local Youth & Families with Year-Round Resources & Annual Backpack Giveaways in August
SAN FRANCISCO – San Francisco Public Defender Mano Raju is announcing leadership changes at the Public Defender’s Office M.A.G.I.C. programs, which serve as a community connector and convener for those empowering the advancement of the education, health, and economic mobility for children, youth and their families in Bayview Hunters Point and Fillmore Western Addition. Longtime Executive Director of the B’MAGIC program, Lyslynn Lacoste, will be the new Chief of Staff for the Public Defender’s Office. Executive Director of Mo’MAGIC, Brittany Ford, will now lead both M.A.G.I.C. programs.
“Ms. Lacoste and Ms. Ford have become anchors in the community and I am proud and grateful to have them advance their leadership and further integrate the resources and opportunities for the neighborhoods we serve,” said Mano Raju. “Ms. Lacoste is a world-class administrator and champion for the community who is beloved throughout the city, and I am thrilled for her to take on her new role as Chief of Staff at the Public Defender’s Office. It has been amazing to witness Ms. Ford’s growth over the past three years and I am inspired by her ability to facilitate organizational connections while maintaining beautiful connections with our youth.”
M.A.G.I.C. – which stands for Mobilization for Adolescent Growth in our Communities – serves thousands of youth with year-round activities and community-building events. The San Francisco Public Defender’s Office established its first MAGIC program (B’MAGIC) in 2004 in collaboration with community-based organizations in the Bayview to connect youth and their families to neighborhood resources and opportunities with the goal of helping to keep local youth out of the criminal legal system. The program expanded to the Fillmore (Mo’MAGIC) in 2006.
“This integration will allow us to further build on and coordinate the MAGIC services we provide to the Western Addition and Bayview communities,” said Lyslynn Lacoste, who has led the award-winning B’MAGIC program for the past decade. “It’s an honor to transition into Chief of Staff for the Public Defender’s Office and to bring with me the spirit of community collaboration to our entire staff.”
“After three years leading the MAGIC program in the Fillmore Western Addition, I am thoroughly excited and overwhelmed with extreme gratitude to also serve the Bayview Hunters Point neighborhood. I look forward to carrying on the legacy of my predecessor through the MAGIC of collaboration and advocacy for children, youth and their families in the Bayview Hunters Point community,” said Brittany Ford.
This month, Mo’MAGIC and B’MAGIC will host their annual back-to-school events, which also serve as health and resource fairs, with free backpacks and school supplies for neighborhood K-12 students, music, food, prizes, and more – Mo’MAGIC on Saturday, August 6th at the Ella Hill Hutch Community Center at 1050 McAllister Street from 10am-2pm; and B’MAGIC on Saturday, August 13th at NOW Hunters Point at 155 Jennings Street from 11am-2pm.
“Community is at the center of our work as public defenders, and the ongoing work of our M.A.G.I.C. programs is designed to build community power for youth and their families and to end the school to prison pipeline,” said Mano Raju.
Background on Lyslynn Lacoste
Lyslynn Lacoste’s new role is the Chief of Staff for the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office. As the Executive Director of B’MAGIC for the last 11 years, Ms. Lacoste brings her experience supporting a collaborative network of more than 75 community-based organizations, schools, faith-based organizations, and city departments. Much of her work has centered on Black youth and community, who represent a disproportionately large percentage of the Public Defender’s clients.
Ms. Lacoste is a first generation American, whose family is originally from Haiti. For 25 years, she has diligently served youth through engaging in leadership development, mentoring and advocating for juvenile justice reform. Ms. Lacoste entered Suffolk University Law School to focus on juvenile justice reform and prevention. There, she honed her skills through meaningful internships at Suffolk University’s Juvenile Justice Clinic and New York’s Legal Aid Society Criminal Defense Practice and Juvenile Rights Practice, eventually gaining her attorney license in New York.
Ms. Lacoste was nominated in 2012 and 2018 by the late Public Defender Jeff Adachi for the City’s Public Managerial Excellence Award, and developed and implemented three research and strategic reports (i.e. B’MAGIC’s Landscape Analysis 2013, 2017, 2021).
Background on Brittany Ford
Brittany Ford is the new Executive Director overseeing both MAGIC programs. Ms. Ford was named Director of the Mo’MAGIC community collaborative in February 2019, and is passionate about making the Fillmore and Bayview Districts a safe place with excellent opportunities for everyone. She has been part of the Collective Impact staff team since 2014, and previously served as Magic Zone Middle School Lead, where she managed all aspects of programming for grades 6 to 8; she also took on the role of Finance & Operations Assistant, providing administrative support for the organization.
Ms. Ford was born and raised in Oakland, and graduated from California State University, Northridge in 2012 with a B.A. in Journalism, with an emphasis in Public Relations. She has served as a Community Advocate for the Community Youth Center of San Francisco, instructing earthquake preparedness workshops in the Western Addition, and as an Educational Advisor for PACT Inc.
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Brittany Ford (left) is the new Executive Director overseeing both of the Public Defender’s M.A.G.I.C. programs in the Bayview Hunters Point and Fillmore Western Addition. Lyslynn Lacoste (right) is the new Chief of Staff for the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office.
Mo’MAGIC’s Summer Learning Day at the African American Arts & Culture Complex, 2022. Public Defender Mano Raju (center) and MAGIC Director Brittany Ford (2nd from right).Public Defender Mano Raju and Chief of Staff Lyslynn Lacoste at San Francisco City Hall, 2022.
San Francisco Public Defender Mano Raju gave this exclusive interview to Haaziq Madyun of KRON4 News to discuss how a carceral response to drugs has not and will not solve the tragic opioid and overdose epidemic that has impacted every community in the country. In terms of San Francisco, he cautioned against interim District Attorney Brooke Jenkins’s stated intentions to push for harsher prosecution of drug cases as reminiscent of the disastrous Nixon-era War-on-Drugs, which was designed in part to criminalize the Black community and contributed to mass incarceration.
“public health issues require public health solutions.”
Furthermore, San Francisco is experiencing a Constitutional and humanitarian crisis with hundreds of people being jailed under 23-hour lockdown conditions or chained to an ankle monitor while the San Francisco Superior Court continues to deny legally-innocent people their right to a speedy trial.
SF Public Defender Mano Raju’s Statement Denouncing DA Jenkins’ Attempts to Bring Back Regressive War on Drugs
SAN FRANCISCO – District Attorney Brooke Jenkins recently filed charges in over a dozen cases where the sole charge is possession of drug paraphernalia, such as having a pipe. Mano Raju, the elected Public Defender of San Francisco, issues the following statement in response:
“I denounce these charging decisions by District Attorney Jenkins. San Francisco must not regress to the inhumane, cruel, and costly war on drugs. Let’s remember that the war on drugs, which began under Richard Nixon in the 1970s, did nothing to reduce drug use or sales. Nor was that its intended purpose. Rather, the drug war was designed as an attack on the poor and people of color that fueled criminalization and mass incarceration of vulnerable communities for decades. At that, it was enormously successful and harmful.
By charging community members for allegedly possessing drug paraphernalia, the District Attorney will exacerbate the existing humanitarian crisis caused by the ongoing trial backlogs. Hundreds of people are already languishing in San Francisco’s jails awaiting their day in court past their constitutionally mandated speedy trial due dates. The filing of drug cases will add to this growing backlog.
We cannot arrest, prosecute, and cage our way out of a public health crisis. Every dollar spent on this misguided strategy is a dollar lost. We must instead invest in public health solutions that have proven to be effective, including housing, jobs, healthcare, and education – all of which have been drastically underfunded for decades. Community members also can be connected to services without being subjected to a criminal record that will make it difficult for them to get a job or housing in the future. This is not who we are. In San Francisco, we are a compassionate community, and one that values evidence-based, effective responses to the problems our city faces. We must do better than a return to the destructive and devastating war on drugs.”
San Francisco Public Defender’s Office Files Complaint with the Commission on Judicial Performance Regarding Superior Court Judge Harry Dorfman
On July 14, 2022, the Public Defender’s Office filed a complaint with the Commission on Judicial Performance against San Francisco Superior Court Judge Harry Dorfman for repeatedly and gratuitously using the N-word in full in open court. Claiming he needed a complete record, Judge Dorfman repeated this word without showing awareness of the trauma its utterance inflicts and without consideration of alternatives that could ensure a sufficient record. The court has an obligation to conduct proceedings in a dignified and respectful manner to both litigants and the public. The judge’s conduct has harmed litigants we represent, many of whom are Black, as well as staff in our office. We urge the Commission on Judicial Performance to take action to prevent this harmful conduct from taking place again.
SF Supervisors Urge Governor Newsom to Pardon LGBTQ Man in ICE Custody
SAN FRANCISCO – Yesterday, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously passed a resolution urging Governor Newsom to pardon Salesh (“Sal”) Prasad who is being represented in his deportation case by the Immigration Unit of the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office. In August 2021, California state prison officials unnecessarily transferred Mr. Prasad directly into ICE custody on the day he should have been released from prison after transforming his life and earning parole. A pardon would prevent his deportation to Fiji, a country he left at age six, where he stands to face discrimination and persecution as a queer man and an Indo-Fijian minority.
“I am proud to have authored this resolution urging Governor Newsom, a former Mayor of San Francisco, to pardon Salesh Prasad. Sal is a beloved LGBTQ community member who has served almost three decades in prison. He demonstrated his rehabilitation and earned release, and should not be subjected to the inhumane double punishment of deportation,” said Supervisor Hillary Ronen, who introduced the resolution which was co-sponsored by Supervisors Dean Preston and Rafael Mandelman.
“I’m honored to represent Sal, a beloved brother, uncle, nephew, and artist who has dedicated himself to rehabilitation and helping others,” said Maddie Boyd, Mr. Prasad’s attorney in the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office.
Mr. Prasad, now 50 years old, experienced domestic violence and sexual abuse as a child, and the trauma pushed him to numb himself with alcohol and narcotics and seek protection from gang members. At age 22, he took another person’s life during an argument, a crime for which he served 27 years in prison and is incredibly remorseful. While in prison, Mr. Prasad found healing through therapy, art, and helping others. He led Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous groups, and practiced non-violence and de-escalation among his peers. He has also spoken out about work conditions and safety to CalOSHA on behalf of detained workers, and fought to ensure COVID-19 boosters for fellow ICE detainees. He has become an activist and advocate for California legislation such as the Mandela Act, to further limit the use of solitary confinement in prisons, and the VISION Act (AB 937) to prevent transfers from jails and prisons to ICE.
Several organizations have pledged their support for Mr. Prasad, including faith groups and reentry agencies who are poised to help him transition back into the community where he hopes to counsel others who have survived the traumas of childhood abuse.
“Sal is a freedom fighter and an artist, who generously shares his gifts with others around him. His spiritual path of redemption is a model for all of us,” said Reverend Deborah Lee, Executive Director of the Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity. “Sal has the support and love of his community, including the faith community here in San Francisco, and should be released.”
“Sal has taken some of the darkest moments of his life and has turned them into positive gifts to the community,” said Edwin Carmona-Cruz, Community Engagement Director at the California Collaborative for Immigrant Justice. “When his mother passed due to COVID-19, Sal fiercely advocated for individuals in ICE custody to have vaccine access. His efforts, quite literally, saved so many lives. I am in awe of his leadership and I hope he can continue to share his light with so many people.”
“I would not be where I am today if it weren’t for the positive influence of my uncle Sal,” said Amitesh Diyal, Mr. Prasad’s nephew. “Sal was the only real father figure I had growing up. Sal draws beautiful custom cards, and he would send me them all the time from prison. I can’t count the times I heard the words ‘I love you’ and ‘I’m proud of you’ from my uncle. My children speak to him regularly—he adores them and they adore him. I want Sal to be released so they can finally get to meet their beloved great-uncle.”
“I am humbled and speechless from this overwhelming support,” said Sal Prasad, learning of the passage of the resolution. “Thank you to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors from the bottom of my heart for their faith in me. I only hope to have the chance to show that healing and rehabilitation are always possible, and to continue giving back with love.”
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Courtesy photo of Salesh “Sal” Prasad who is seeking a pardon from Governor Gavin Newsom to prevent his deportation to a country he left at age six.
