Over 100 State Bar Complaints Filed This Week Against Torture Lawyer William Haynes
Hundreds More Expected Demanding Accountability From Cal Bar
San Francisco - The National Lawyers Guild San Francisco Bay Area Chapter (NLGSF) delivered over 100 complaints against former Department of Defense General Counsel William Haynes to the California State Bar offices Thursday in San Francisco. The complaints came from ordinary Americans demanding that the state bar “conduct a thorough investigation of Mr. Haynes’ actions and omissions while General Counsel at the Department of Defense. The complaints further demand a written formal decision on the outcome of the investigation.
NLGSF Urges the Senate to Confirm Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the U.S. Supreme Court
Exemplary Qualifications and the Compelling Need for Diversity on the High Court Militate toward her Speedy Confirmation
San Francisco - The Bay Area Chapter of the National Lawyers Guild urges the Senate to confirm Judge Sonia Sotomayor as Associate Justice of the US Supreme Court, replacing retiring Justice David Souter. Judge Sotomayor’s exemplary qualifications and the compelling need for diversity on the high court militate toward her speedy confirmation. Additionally, as the largest chapter of the oldest racially integrated bar association in the US, the NLGSF calls for all progressive bar associations to support this historic nomination.
NLGSF Urges Against Cuts to SF Public Defender’s Office
In a letter faxed to members of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors Budget and Finance Committee the NLGSF urged supervisors “to preserve the right to indigent defense by refusing to cut the Public Defender’s Office budget in the 2009-2010 fiscal year.”
The Public Defender’s Office is critical to ensuring everyone is treated fairly in the criminal justice system. It is an institution central to the ideals we hold dear as legal professionals who care deeply about human rights. Indeed, the Public Defenders office is already sorely underfunded. Public defenders earn less than private attorneys and are not paid by the hour. Most public defenders work between 50 and 70 hours per week and, unlike police or firefighters, do not receive overtime.
NLGSF Community Mourns the Loss of Susan Jordan
Many members of the National Lawyers Guild knew Bay Area attorney Susan Jordan well. She was a member, honored at our chapter’s 1996 Testimonial Dinner, and recently an instructor at our chapter’s Meditation for Lawyers seminar. As national president Marjorie Cohn wrote: “Susan B. Jordan, a long-time Guild member and noted criminal defense lawyer, was killed in a plane crash in Utah [on May 29]. Those of us who knew and loved Susan are in shock. She represented many high-profile political clients including Judi Bari and Emily Harris and she is credited with pioneering the battered women’s defense. Susan, an expert yoga instructor, was writing a memoir about her experiences as a political woman lawyer. Many of us visited with her at the San Francisco Guild dinner last month. Susan will be sorely missed.”
Tell State Bar: Torture Lawyers Should Not Be Practicing Law in California
William Haynes was attorney for Donald Rumsfeld and the Department of Defense (DoD). His legal work is directly linked to the torture abuses that occurred at Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib. He is now certified to practice law in California, and is working for the Chevron Corporation. You can tell the state bar of California that they should take immediate action against Mr. Haynes.