Two years after the Supreme Court denied a request to have the Court of Appeal opinion in the In re Humphrey bail case remain binding precedent pending review, the defendant has renewed the request and California’s Attorney General today submitted a letter in partial support.
The Attorney General wants to remain binding that part of the appellate opinion interpreting federal constitutional principles to preclude a trial court from detaining a defendant by, as the letter puts it, “the setting of bail in an unnecessarily high amount that the defendant cannot pay.” However, the Attorney General doesn’t want to be binding the part of the opinion that discusses state constitutional law.
The Attorney General’s letter says reconsideration of the court’s order is necessary due to “the unexpected change in circumstances caused by the unprecedented impacts of the novel coronavirus pandemic.”
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