(Subscription required) San Diego Judge Katherine A. Bacal ordered Huntington Beach to pay $160,000 in civil penalties for violating California's Housing Element Law, marking the first major enforcement action under a 2024 statute empowering the state to financially penalize cities that defy housing mandates.

A lawsuit against Bay Area Rapid Transit by an officer who was fired after refusing to be vaccinated against COVID-19 faced possible dismissal this spring because the officer’s lawyer had fallen ill and missed numerous deadlines. When the lawyer resurfaced, she filed arguments explaining her absence and why it shouldn’t be used against her client — but three of the four cases she cited as precedent, a federal magistrate found, were nonexistent.

On May 11-15, courts shined a spotlight on the citizens that help bolster our democracy by making the cherished right of trial by jury a reality.

Stanislaus County could proceed with a $6.75 million project to upgrade Juvenile Justice courtroom space. A staff report for Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting says the county’s two Juvenile Justice courtrooms are antiquated and no longer meet standards of the Judicial Council of California.