California Legal Brief

The Rule of Garner v. California Victim Compensation Board is that a murder conviction that was valid under the law in effect at the time of trial is not "erroneous" within the meaning of Penal Code section 4900, under circumstances where the Legislature subsequently changed the definition of murder and the conviction was vacated under Penal Code section 1172.6 based on the new definition.

The Rule of Myers v. Department of Motor Vehicles is that body-worn camera video evidence showing an officer failed to continuously observe a DUI suspect for 15 minutes before administering a chemical breath test successfully rebuts the Evidence Code section 664 presumption of compliance with Title 17 regulations, under circumstances where the video objectively demonstrates the officer left the suspect alone in a patrol car with doors closed during the observation period.

The Rule of The Retail Property Trust is that Revenue and Taxation Code section 170(a)(1) requires physical damage to property (whether direct or indirect) to qualify for reassessment relief, under circumstances where a property owner seeks disaster relief based on diminished property value from access restrictions alone without any physical harm to property.

The Rule of West Contra Costa Unified School District is that a school district cannot claim impossibility as a defense to statutory teacher certification requirements until it has exhausted all statutory alternatives, including seeking waivers from the Commission on Teaching Credentialing or the State Board of Education, under circumstances where the district uses rolling substitutes instead of qualified permanent teachers in violation of statutory mandates.

The Rule of John Doe v. Regents of the University of California is that students accused of sexual misconduct in university disciplinary proceedings have no absolute right to cross-examine accusers at a hearing when they have already had a meaningful opportunity to cross-examine those accusers under oath in related criminal proceedings, under circumstances where the university follows its own procedures and the decision-maker has access to sworn testimony transcripts from the criminal case.

The Rule of Fix the City, Inc. v. City of Los Angeles is that a charter city may enact an ordinance establishing a local housing and/or homelessness emergency that confers mayoral powers to address conditions within the city's territory, under circumstances where the ordinance defines different types of emergencies and powers than those provided in the California Emergency Services Act and does not conflict with CESA's coordination and mutual aid framework.

The Rule of Voice of San Diego is that an agency's compliance with the CPRA's duty to make records "promptly available" under Government Code section 7922.530(a) must be determined case-by-case considering the scope and burden imposed on the particular agency by the particular request, under circumstances where the CPRA does not impose a fixed timeframe for actual production of requested records.

The Rule of Dummer v. City and County of San Francisco is that a public agency owning a reservoir has discretionary authority to evaluate and determine terms and conditions for a fishing program before submitting a water supply permit application, and is not subject to mandamus for immediate permit application submission, under circumstances where the agency has made the required water purity determination and is actively taking steps to comply with applicable permitting requirements including CEQA review.