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Time Saved Celebration: Santa Clara and San Mateo County Families Win 1,443 Years from Incarceration
VIDEO: Every year, participatory defense hubs across the country hold gatherings to celebrate family members they brought home from, or prevented from going into, prison and jails through their organizing. Santa Clara County and San Mateo County families won 1,443 years of Time Saved from incarceration and brought together the loved ones who made up that remarkable number, as well as their families and public defenders to honor the collective freedom struggle.
Featured Story
De-Bug’s story-telling highlights those closest to the issues who can share the most powerful, captivating, and insightful story.
Confronting Bias in Yolo County: Racial Justice Act Violation Declared Due to Prosecutor Depicting Black Man with Animal Imagery
Editor's Note: Through the California Participatory Defense Network, Cecilia Chavez has been supporting individuals and famiies who are fighting for freedom through the Racial Justice Act. The RJA is a newer law that says a conviction or sentence can be overturned (or otherwise remedied) if there is an exhibition of racial bias. She joined the family of Mr. Cook, who brought a historic RJA motion in Yolo County. Mr. Cook’s family and his supporters sat through multiple hearin
Cecilia Chavez
Jul 224 min read
The Common Racism of the Special Circumstance: Mr. William’s Fight Against Racial Bias and Life Without the Possibility of Parole
De-Bug organizers, Yolanda and Cynthia, joined Pillars of the Community Participatory Defense Hub in San Diego in support of Anthony Williams and his family. Anthony had a Racial Justice Act (RJA) evidentiary hearing challenging the racial disparities of Special Circumstance and Life Without the Possibility of Parole sentences. Below is Yolanda and Cynthia's court reporting from the 3 day RJA hearing.
Yolanda Gomez & Cynthia Dalcourt
Apr 245 min read
AB 1958 is Vital to Make the RJA as Consistent as Possible Throughout California
The Racial Justice Act prohibits bias or discrimination in charging, conviction, and sentencing based on a defendant's race, ethnicity, or national origin, but its implementation has been slow going. Many District Attorneys are refusing to hand over the data necessary to file statistical claims. Judges are interpreting the RJA according to their own understanding of race, the law, and what they think the proper remedy is. AB 1958 (Kalra) seeks to clarify the RJA.
Cecilia Chavez
Apr 102 min read
Straight Outta The Gang Database: Challenging Gang Allegations through the RJA
San Mateo County Participatory Defense Organizer Jamilah Rosales-Webb writes about a major prima facie win in her hometown of East Palo Alto and East Menlo Park. A breakthrough for CRJA claims, Chris Echols, through his attorney Roscoe Elliot, won a major hurdle to challenge the entire infrastructure of the Menlo Park Police gang database that has criminalized Black and Brown individuals in the community for years.
Jamilah Rosales-Webb
Feb 254 min read
RJA Violation Found Against a Prosecutor’s Expert Witness
Xavier España detail a recent RJA violation found against a District Attorney Office expert witness who tried to associate the Latinx community with domestic violence to prove the defendant was guilty.
Xavier España
Feb 25 min read
Protect Your People Public Safety & Justice Committee Community Report: A Sharing of Direct Experience, Analysis, and Critique of the Santa Clara County Criminal Legal System from January-August 2025
Editor's Note: The Protect Your People Public Safety & Justice Committee Community Report was assembled by De-Bug families and organizers...
SV De-Bug staff
Sep 18, 20251 min read
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