"The charges against Fletcher were first brought by Price's predecessor, Nancy O'Malley. After Price took office as district attorney in January 2023, Fletcher's lawyer, Mike Rains, filed a motion asking that the case be turned over to Attorney General Rob Bonta's office. He argued that Fletcher didn't stand to have a fair trial under Price, who had worked as a progressive prosecutor before taking over the district attorney's office."
"Superior Court Judge Thomas Reardon rejected that motion, and a dueling motion from Price to bar Rains months later, but a second motion from Rains asking to remove Price was granted in March 2024. Rains' second motion alleged that Price had shown bias on multiple occasions, including on one instance when she posed for a photo in courthouse halls with people wearing "Justice for Steven Taylor" shirts, the same day that she filed a recusal motion against Rains."
Steven Taylor, who had schizophrenia and bipolar depression, was holding an aluminum bat and allegedly trying to shoplift when former officer Fletcher fatally shot him within 40 seconds of arriving on the scene. Charges against Fletcher were initially filed by Nancy O'Malley. After Pamela Price became district attorney in January 2023, Fletcher's attorney Mike Rains sought transfer of the case to the attorney general, citing concerns about a fair trial under Price. A judge granted Rains' second motion to remove Price in March 2024 due to alleged bias. Following Price's recall and appointment of Ursula Jones Dickson, the case was returned to Alameda County; Rains said he lacked a factual or legal basis to seek Dickson's recusal.
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