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State public defender asks Legislature to make Racial Justice Act positions permanent as workload spikes
Summary
Galit Lipa, California state public defender, told the Senate Budget Subcommittee the Office of the State Public Defender needs permanent staff to handle retroactive Racial Justice Act (RJA) claims, citing tens of thousands of pages of records and an estimated 11,000 additional staff hours per year.
Galit Lipa, the state public defender, told the Senate Budget Subcommittee No. 5 that recent changes implementing the Racial Justice Act require permanent staffing to meet ongoing capital appellate work.
"OSPD is requesting to make permanent positions necessary to implement the Racial Justice Act," Lipa said, adding that the temporary funding provided in 2023 expires this June. She said the work is not new but "ongoing," and without attorneys to bring RJA claims "no relief can be had."
Lipa described the magnitude of the work: after the California Supreme Court began ordering…
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