Appellate & Training Division
The Appellate Division provides support to the District Attorney's Office through its work in the areas of motions practice, appellate practice, policy, ethics, legislation and public records. Appellate prosecutors handle motions, appeals, and writs, they serve as the legal advisor to the District Attorney's Office providing on-demand legal assistance to trial attorneys. Deputy District Attorney Laura Tanney was the Division Chief; and Deputy District Attorney Bryn Kirvin continued in her position as the office-wide ethics coordinator, providing advice, assistance, and training to all staff in matters relating to ethics and professionalism in and out of the courtroom.
Last year, appellate attorneys assisted with numerous motions and briefs in the Superior Court and Court Of Appeal and responded to hundreds of inquiries from prosecutors and law enforcement officers seeking advice. Attorneys in the division provided support for many high profile cases and actively participated in the development of internal policies and procedures related to areas such as post-conviction discovery, public records requests, and the implementation of new legal precedents. The Appellate Division is also responsible for publishing tremendous resources for this office and prosecutors' offices across the state, including the Autobrief authored by Deputy District Attorney Craig Fisher.
Significant cases and proceedings that were handled by the division include:
Dumanis, et al. v. The State of California, et.al.
In a landmark case, the District Attorney continued its lawsuit against the State and Governor's office seeking to overturn Governor Schwarzenegger's 11th hour commutation of Esteban Nuñez just prior to his leaving office, for failure to comply with the notice requirements required by the California Constitution through Marsy's Law.
People v. Lofgren
Deputy District Attorney Linh Lam's outstanding work on this case resulted in a new jury instruction and an opinion by the Court of Appeal clarifying the proper interpretation of the identity theft statute, Penal Code section 530.5.(a).
People v. Rojas and Estrada
In our ongoing mission to support trial deputies, DDA Gary Schons assisted with several legal responses in this gang murder, which resolved in our favor.
The year was also noteworthy for the contributions made by our attorneys in drafting legislation to protect the victims of spousal sex offenses from court ordered spousal support in favor of those who assaulted them, legislation to protect the confidentiality of prosecutors' addresses, and legislation to protect victims and increase the transparency of public records. Deputy DA's in the division were also busy authoring articles and training materials in the area of professional responsibility, and successfully appealing improper trial court rulings, including those in the areas of discovery and sentencing. Attorneys in the division also participated in the California District Attorneys Association, serving on the appellate, legislation, legal issues and ethics committees, and by assisting with a response to a nationwide effort to undermine the integrity of prosecutors.
The Training Division launched an ambitious training calendar in 2012. New programs included live-stream lectures on topics such as, state Proposition 36, changes in the law, interstate compacts, investigative technology, authorized leave, job interview skills, and effective communication. Department-wide training events were offered in February and October and multi-day orientations were presented to new paralegals, legal interns, and graduate law clerks. Computer-based training programs helped enhance trial skills and additional training was provided for prosecutors on our case management system.
The final components of the training calendar include the integrated advocacy courses, such as new deputy training and advanced trial advocacy. Training Director Gary Schons, Assistant Training Director Jim Kelly, and members of the legal training advisory committee devoted countless hours to the success of over 30 in-house programs, which resulted in more than 3,600 total attendees.
