"A San Francisco County Superior Court judge ordered the city's public defender to pay $26,000 in fines after ruling that his refusals to accept new criminal cases constituted separate acts of contempt. The dispute began when the public defender's office declared itself unavailable one day a week due to excessive caseloads."
"Raju reported a 78% increase in active misdemeanor cases and a 56% increase in felony cases since 2019, emphasizing that each case now requires significantly more work than before."
"Deputy Public Defender Seth Meisels highlighted the challenges posed by the sheer volume of digital evidence, stating, 'It has become increasingly difficult to determine which cases will go to trial, but we still have to do the work.'"
A San Francisco judge imposed a $26,000 fine on Public Defender Mano Raju for contempt after he refused new criminal cases due to excessive workloads. The public defender's office had declared itself unavailable one day a week since May 2025, citing a 78% increase in misdemeanor cases and a 56% rise in felony cases since 2019. Judge Harry Dorfman noted that he received 45 letters from legal experts urging him to reverse the contempt finding but remained unconvinced. The volume of digital evidence in cases has made it challenging for attorneys to determine trial readiness.
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