California Municipal Law Blog
category:
Law Enforcement
by Toni A. Otokunrin on April 27, 2026
posted in
Law Enforcement, Municipal Law, Public Records Act, Recent Court Decisions,
Agencies are increasingly adopting law enforcement technology that increases the efficiency, transparency and safety of investigations. However, these technologies also create time consuming and costly burdens. Police departments have begun using tools like body-worn cameras, license plate peaders (LPRs) and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or drones), which provide important advantages. These tools allow distanced assessments to ensure the appropriate resources are dispatched and increase investigation efficiency. These tools also create records which implicate the California Public Records Act ... Continue Reading
tags:
Body Worn Cameras, CPRA, Government Code Section 7923.600(a), Law Enforcement Technology, New laws, Public Records Act,
by Jason M. Ewert on December 8, 2025
posted in
Law Enforcement, Public Records Act,
In recent years, the California Legislature has taken significant steps to provide the public with greater access to peace officer personnel files, which were previously only accessible through formal law and motion proceedings, generally referred to as Pitchess motions. First, in 2018 Senate Bill 1421 (Skinner) amended section 832.7 of the California Penal code to require disclosure of certain categories of information from peace officer personnel files in response to California Public Records Act (CPRA) requests for information. Those categories include incidents involving discharge of a firearm ... Continue Reading
tags:
New laws, Pitchess, Police,
by Czarmaine C. Majan on September 3, 2025
posted in
Law Enforcement, Pitchess Motions,
A Pitchess Motion is a procedural tool used in both criminal and civil cases to seek the discovery of specific information contained in confidential personnel files of peace officers. Pitchess is used typically in criminal cases in an effort to support the defense’s case and/or to impeach an officer who may testify as a material witness.
Although California Penal Code Section 832.7 has opened specific categories of peace officer records to public disclosure, Pitchess Motions remain highly relevant. This is because many forms of officer misconduct still fall outside the statute’s automatic ... Continue Reading
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by Tyler J. Sherman on August 14, 2025
posted in
Law Enforcement, Police Pursuits,
Tens of thousands of police pursuits occur every year in California according to data from the California Highway Patrol. Hundreds can result in serious crashes causing death or injury to officers, civilians or suspects. Seeing a need to stem the number of pursuit-related crashes, the Legislature adopted Vehicle Code section 17004.7 in 1987. (Alcala v. City of Corcoran, 147 Cal.App.4th 666, 672 (2007).)
Vehicle Code section 17001 makes public entities liable for employees’ negligent driving: “A public entity is liable for death or injury to person or property proximately caused by a negligent ... Continue Reading
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by Steven G. Pacifico on January 21, 2020
posted in
Law Enforcement, Legislative Updates,
Several new laws took effect this year that affect public safety. The key legislation is summarized in this post.
... Continue Reading
tags:
Gun Violence Restraining Order, Pitchess Motions, Public Records Act, Standards and Policies, Subpoenas, Use of Force, Websites,
