Criminal Law

2nd District Court of Appeal, Civil Procedure, Collections & Creditor Rights, Criminal Law

People v. Bankers Insurance Co. — Bail exoneration could remain conditioned on later-calculated extradition costs

automatic / September 18, 2026

A court may exonerate a bail bond subject to later-calculated extradition costs, and the expiration of the appearance period does not erase that reimbursement condition.

1st District Court of Appeal, Civil Procedure, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

People v. Adam — Witness travel and unexplained courtroom unavailability did not justify missing the misdemeanor speedy-trial deadline

automatic / September 18, 2026

The court reversed a misdemeanor conviction because witness travel ending before the last day and unexplained courtroom unavailability did not establish good cause to exceed section 1382’s deadline.

5th District Court of Appeal, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

People v. Superior Court (Jackson) — Prosecutors cannot compel their own mental-health examination of a defendant seeking pretrial diversion

automatic / September 17, 2026

Prosecutors cannot compel their own mental-health examination of a defendant seeking pretrial diversion.

4th District Court of Appeal, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

People v. Williams — Broad sentencing statistics did not establish a prima facie Racial Justice Act claim

automatic / September 17, 2026

A broad racial disparity statistic covering multiple kinds of enhancements did not establish a prima facie California Racial Justice Act violation without controlled analysis or comparable cases.

1st District Court of Appeal, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

In re Haney — Racial Justice Act claim fails under Hazlett’s defendant-focused standard

automatic / September 16, 2026

The First District denied a Racial Justice Act jury-selection claim because the evidence did not meet Hazlett’s requirement of bias directed toward the defendant.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Ammons — Voluntary-intoxication instruction did not prejudice attempted-murder verdict

automatic / September 16, 2026

The Second District held that any omission from a voluntary-intoxication instruction was harmless because the jury found intent to kill and the record foreclosed a different premeditation finding.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Criminal Law

United States v. Mendonsa — Sentencing enhancement may use abuse outside the conviction offense

automatic / September 16, 2026

The Ninth Circuit upheld a child-pornography sentencing enhancement based on abuse outside the conviction offense and reliable state records.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Singh — Lost College Scholarship Was Proper Victim Restitution

automatic / September 14, 2026

A rape victim’s lost college scholarship was a compensable economic loss, and the defendant had no right to a jury determination of its amount.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Civil Procedure, Criminal Law

United States v. Tovar-Duran — Government Must Search for Requested Brady Material

automatic / September 14, 2026

The Ninth Circuit conditionally vacated an improper-entry conviction because the government failed to search for requested impeachment evidence and relied on layered hearsay.

1st District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Putallez — Probation Officer May Select Treatment Programs Within Court-Defined Limits

automatic / September 11, 2026

The Court of Appeal upheld a probation condition allowing an officer to select drug and mental-health programs because the sentencing court set the treatment categories and did not authorize residential confinement.

4th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Solis — Knife-use admission and circumstantial evidence supported actual-killer finding

automatic / September 8, 2026

The Court of Appeal held that a knife-use admission plus the surrounding evidence supported an actual-killer finding and denial of Penal Code section 1172.6 relief.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

United States v. Gessen — Murder-for-hire can be a continuing offense supporting California venue

automatic / September 8, 2026

The Ninth Circuit held that murder-for-hire can be charged as a continuing offense and that an undercover intermediary need not genuinely agree to the killing.

4th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

In re Moore — Changed medical science required vacating child-abuse conviction

automatic / September 8, 2026

The Court of Appeal vacated a child-abuse conviction because later medical science undermined categorical expert testimony that a short fall could not have caused the fatal injuries.

4th District Court of Appeal, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

In re N.S. — School police needed only reasonable suspicion to search student after gun remark

automatic / September 8, 2026

A school-assigned police officer could search a student on reasonable suspicion after a gun remark, and the student’s ten-minute physical obstruction supported a Penal Code section 148 finding.

4th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Litigation

People v. Hawthorn — Guilty Plea Does Not Preclude Resentencing Issues, but Error Was Harmless

automatic / September 4, 2026

A guilty plea does not preclude factual litigation at a Penal Code section 1172.6 hearing, though Hawthorn failed to show the error changed the result.

6th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Litigation

People v. Stammers — Inflammatory Messages Unrelated to Charged Conduct Denied Defendant a Fair Trial

automatic / September 4, 2026

The Sixth District reversed a sexual-assault conviction because inflammatory messages with little connection to the charge became improper propensity evidence and denied a fair trial.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, Litigation

In re J.C. — Juvenile transfer barred because 15-year-old was apprehended before jurisdiction ended

automatic / September 2, 2026

A person accused of murders committed at 15 could not be transferred to adult court because he was apprehended while juvenile jurisdiction remained available.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, Litigation

United States v. Nasri — Foreign forfeiture requires control over the property

automatic / September 2, 2026

Due process requires actual or constructive control over foreign property before a federal court may exercise in rem forfeiture jurisdiction.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Litigation

People v. Campbell — Murder Resentencing Denied Despite Claimed Instructional Ambiguity

automatic / September 1, 2026

The Second District held that Lopez removed a procedural bar to Campbell’s instructional theory but that his jury necessarily found a still-valid form of malice.

5th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Personal Injury & Tort

People v. Castillo — Crime Victims May Receive Noneconomic Restitution Without a Fixed Formula

automatic / September 1, 2026

The Fifth District held that noneconomic victim restitution needs no fixed formula, but each recipient must have evidence of individualized harm.

4th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Espinosa — Compassionate release may rely on practical medical evidence, but recall still requires resentencing

automatic / August 31, 2026

A California appellate court upheld compassionate release while clarifying that sentence recall must be followed by resentencing and that parole conditions belong to the parole board.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

United States v. Morgovsky — Arms-export statute authorizes conspiracy regulation, defeating ineffective-assistance claim

automatic / August 31, 2026

The Ninth Circuit held that federal arms-export authority supports the conspiracy regulation and rejected collateral attacks contradicted by the plea record.

4th District Court of Appeal, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

In re Pride — Specific racial-bias allegation entitled prisoner to counsel and discovery

automatic / August 28, 2026

A specific allegation that trial attorneys discussed conviction in racial terms cleared the low thresholds for appointed counsel and Racial Justice Act discovery.

California Supreme Court, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

People v. Hazlett — California Supreme Court Affirms Death Judgment in 1978 Cold-Case Murder

automatic / August 27, 2026

The California Supreme Court affirmed a death judgment in a reopened 1978 murder, rejecting jury-selection and prior-sexual-offense evidence challenges.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Santistevan — Great-Bodily-Injury Enhancement Cannot Attach to Serious-Bodily-Injury Battery

automatic / August 27, 2026

A great-bodily-injury enhancement must be stricken when imposed on battery causing serious bodily injury based on the same injury.