In 2020, a law passed the California legislature without any really meaningful review or public comment. ‘The Racial Justice Act‘ was authored by a state rep named Ash Kalra.
…The law prohibits bias based on race, ethnicity, or national origin in charges, convictions, and sentences issued in court. It permits a challenge to a criminal conviction if a judge, attorney, law enforcement officer, expert witness, or juror exhibited bias or animus towards the defendant because of their race, ethnicity, or national origin — or used racially discriminatory language during the trial.
Applicable to cases sentenced after Jan. 1, 2021, the law runs counter to the 1987 Supreme Court decision in McClesky v. Kemp, which rejected the use of statistical disparities in applying the death penalty to prove intentional discrimination required for a constitutional violation.
“Racism affects…
