A chronicle of the intersection of state politics and legal policy by Cheryl Miller of The Recorder and https://xitter.cf/t.co/ViwWygqeo8. cmiller(at)https://xitter.cf/t.co/RhCavwlfCz
Sacramento
Joined April 2009
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Capital Accounts retweeted
Stephen Miller is the new White House chief of staff, President Trump announces on Truth Social. NYT story coming shortly.
The high court has no binding mechanism for considering a single request to convert 548 death penalty sentences to life without parole. It's also missing a seventh justice.
law.com/therecorder/2026/11/…
Gov. Gavin Newsom's commutation of 548 death sentences is going to have major potential workload and political ramifications for the California Supreme Court.
Capital Accounts retweeted
BREAKING: Harmeet Dhillon resigns as DOJ assistant attorney general for civil rights, sources tell @davidspunt
Gov. Newsom has appointed Michele Beckwith, who the Trump administration ousted as the top-ranking federal prosecutor in CA’s Eastern District, to a judgeship on the Sacramento County Superior Court.
Is "The Pitt" a spinoff of "ER"? The Second District Court of Appeal, guest starring Ret. SF Judge Curtis Karnow, weighs in. And Warner Bros. won't like the ending. www4.courts.ca.gov/opinions/…
SEIU has asked the 9th Circuit for a full court "super" en banc review of an en banc order blocking a TRO to stop the USDOJ from threatening election workers processing what DOJ says are suspect ballots. The 9th has given the DOJ until 5 PST to respond to the uber-rare request.
To be clear, a request for a super en banc isn't necessarily rare, but the whole 29-judge court convening en banc is. In fact, it's never happened, 2 appellate lawyers tell me. Here's the order: storage.courtlistener.com/re…
Capital Accounts retweeted
No dissents as Supreme Court shoots down President Trump's effort to contest 20K mail ballots in California it claims were sent to noncitizens. Justice Kagan referred the matter to the full court, which denied it hours later. #SCOTUS
Capital Accounts retweeted
BREAKING: The Supreme Court denied the Trump administration's emergency request to force California to set aside mail-in ballots from roughly 20,000 suspected noncitizens until their citizenship could be verified, one day before the midterm elections.
Just talked to a (non-chief) judge who said this letter is clearly meant for public consumption because it would be “boneheaded” for a governor to think judges want to be advised about the law from a non-lawyer leader of the executive branch.
NEW: @CAGovernor Gavin Newsom, in a letter to the top federal judges within California, warned that the Trump administration may try to seize midterm election ballots.
“I have grave concerns federal agents will seek search warrants to seize ballots and ballot materials before the election results are certified,” the governor wrote in an extraordinary “alert” to the four U.S. District Courts that cover California.
Read the full letter here:
gov.ca.gov/wp-content/upload…
The 9th Circuit, split again 2-1, upholds Judge David Carter's order denying the fed government a TRO in the 20,000 "likely noncitizen" voters case. oag.ca.gov/system/files/atta…
Capital Accounts retweeted
JUST IN: Judge Boasberg has ordered the Justice Department to turn over to advoccy groups by 5pm today the list of 20,000 purported noncitizens on California's voter rolls.
As expected, Judge Dave Carter declined to order CA to sequester any ballots cast by 20,000 people the federal government says may be ineligible to vote.
Carter: “Eroded trust in our democracy is irreparable. Once a vote is segregated, lasting harm has
occurred. If the Executive can discount votes and threaten an ongoing election due to unproven
allegations, then our democracy is in danger …..