Error and/or relief
The trial court applied improper legal standards in denying the defendant’s renewed new trial motion under the Racial Justice Act (RJA) and his request for RJA discovery.
First Holding:
In enacting Penal Code section 745, effective 1/1/2021, the Legislature sought to eliminate racial bias from California’s criminal justice system, declaring that racism—whether intentional or implicit—at any stage of a criminal case undermines fairness and constitutes a miscarriage of justice under the state Constitution. The statute is designed not to punish bias but to remedy its impact on defendants and the judicial process, ensuring that race plays no role in obtaining convictions or imposing sentences and rejecting the premise that racial disparities in the system are unavoidable. The following year, the Legislature amended subdivision (j) to provide the RJA applies to all cases where the judgment is not final.
Authority:
PEN 745
Second Holding:
The RJA identifies four categories of conduct, any one of which, if proved, is sufficient to establish a violation of Penal Code section 745, subdivision (a). In the renewed motion, the defendant relied on section 745(a)(1) and (2), which permit a defendant to establish a RJA violation by a preponderance of the evidence where:
(1) The judge, an attorney in the case, a law enforcement officer involved in the case, an expert witness, or juror exhibited bias or animus towards the defendant because of the defendant’s race, ethnicity, or national origin; or
(2) During the defendant’s trial, in court and during the proceedings, the judge, an attorney in the case, a law enforcement officer involved in the case, an expert witness, or juror, used racially discriminatory language about the defendant’s race, ethnicity, or national origin, or otherwise exhibited bias or animus towards the defendant because of the defendant’s race, ethnicity, or national origin, whether or not purposeful.
(Paragraph (2) does not apply if the person speaking is relating language used by another that is relevant to the case or if the person speaking is giving a racially neutral and unbiased physical description of the suspect.)
Section 745 defines racially discriminatory language.
Authority:
PEN 745
Young v. Superior Court (2022) 79 Cal.App.5th 138, 147
Third Holding:
A defendant alleging an RJA violation must first make a prima facie showing in the trial court—i.e., present facts that, if true, demonstrate a substantial likelihood of a violation. This standard falls between a mere possibility and a preponderance of the evidence. At this stage, the court must accept the defendant’s factual allegations as true, including expert and statistical evidence, unless they are conclusory, unsupported, or contradicted by the record.
The trial court may not weigh competing evidence or make credibility determinations, except in the rare circumstances where the record irrefutably establishes the allegations are false. If the trial court determines a defendant has made a prima facie showing, it must conduct an evidentiary hearing where it may consider evidence and arguments submitted by the People, make credibility determinations, and weigh the evidence.
Authority:
Finley v. Superior Court (2023) 95 Cal.App.5th 12, 22-23, 25
Fourth Holding:
We review de novo the trial court’s legal conclusion that appellants failed to make a prima facie showing.
Authority:
People v. Howard (2024) 104 Cal.App.5th 625, 650
Fifth Holding:
The trial court concluded that the defendant failed to make a prima facie showing. The court did not find the defendant’s testimony conclusory, irrelevant, or unsupported; rather, it discounted the testimony as uncorroborated and not credible. This was error. At the prima facie stage, the defendant was not required to prove the truth of his account; he was required only to show that, if true, the facts alleged would establish a violation.
The court further erred by proceeding with a prejudice analysis—reasoning that, even if the jury heard the introduction of the rap lyrics, the verdicts would not have changed and no miscarriage of justice occurred. But prejudice is not part of the prima facie inquiry. The question is solely whether the defendant satisfied his initial minimal burden to produce facts that, if true, establish that there is more than a mere possibility of an RJA violation. Applying de novo review, we conclude that the defendant met his minimal burden to allege facts that, if true, establish more than a mere possibility of an RJA violation.
Authority:
People v. Howard (2024) 104 Cal.App.5th 625, 656
Sixth Holding:
The court erred in denying the defendant’s motion for RJA discovery. He provided some data in support of his motion. The showing required to establish a plausible factual foundation for discovery under the RJA is minimal. At the request for discovery stage a court need not determine whether a violation under Penal Code section 745(a) may ultimately be established or ruled out. The dispositive question is whether a defendant demonstrated a plausible factual foundation for any potential RJA violation sufficient to show good cause.
Authority:
Gonzales v. Superior Court (2024) 108 Cal.App.5th Supp. 36
McDaniel v. Superior Court (2025) 111 Cal.App.5th 228, 244
Young v. Superior Court (2022) 79 Cal.App.5th 138
Seventh Holding:
We review the trial court’s discovery order for abuse of discretion, because management of discovery lies within the sound discretion of the trial court. The RJA was designed to facilitate the exposure and evaluation of potential racial bias, not to erect insurmountable barriers at the discovery stage. By requiring more than a plausible factual showing and prematurely invoking additional discovery constraints, the trial court applied a framework that unduly restricted access to potentially probative evidence. Because the trial court’s ruling rested on erroneous legal premises, its denial of discovery constitutes an abuse of discretion.
Authority:
Young v. Superior Court (2022) 79 Cal.App.5th 138, 156