Sacramento County Crime & Justice Articles

The California Supreme Court has kept the state at the forefront of legal issues surrounding abortion, the death penalty and same-sex marriage, starting in its earliest days in the Gold Rush era.

Fears that violent crime is out of control on the streets of California cities rose after the murder of a well-known tech exec. But what are the facts and do they back up the rising moral panic about crime?

Three mass shootings with at least six fatalities have already taken place in California in 2023, resulting in 25 deaths. Statistically however, California has been below average for the United States in rate of mass shooting deaths.

The task force members are discussing monetary and nonmonetary reparations ideas to compensate for slavery and racism. Some say they want policies to prevent future harms against Black Californians.

The U.S. Supreme Court Tuesday heard arguments in a potential landmark case that could roll back Section 230, the 27-year-old law that protects free speech on social media and other online platforms. Which way were the justices leaning?

Google may be forced to sell off its $200 billion online advertising service if a new lawsuit by the federal Department of Justice claiming that Google acts as a monopoly succeeds.

State and local officials are still asking law enforcement to prevent gun violence. Community leaders believe gun violence should be treated as a public health crisis, and incorporate prevention strategies that address the social factors in areas most at risk.

2022 was a year that needed a lot of explaining. And California Local was there. Here are our 10 most important explanatory journalism stories from the year gone by, from immigration to cryptocurrency to wealth inequality and more.

The 49ers PAC spent an unprecedented $3 million on Anthony Becker, Sudhanshu “Suds” Jain, and Kevin Park's campaigns. Now they and two of their peers must respond to lack of transparency and cover-up charges from the Civil Grand Jury, and …

California’s goal of zero traffic fatalities remains distant. Here are some common causes of deaths on the road that can be fixed, but haven’t been.

Homicide rates remain high in some of California's most Republican, Trump-voting counties. Are law-and-order policies against crime a bust? Here’s why political voting patterns are a strong indicator of violent crime in states and counties.

Steven Carrillo, an active-duty Air Force servicemember, fell down a rabbit hole of Facebook extremism and became convinced he could start a new civil war. Then he turned his online obsession into real-life murder.

New state laws on police accountability are testing the limits of several agencies, including the Department of Justice, which say they need more resources for these new duties.

County sheriffs have tended to be predominantly white, male and politically conservative. But in California, those trends may be moving in the other direction, as recent elections and legislation appear to show.

California's assault weapons ban, in place since 1989, may not stand up to a new Supreme Court decision that makes it much harder for states to impose gun control. A federal court brief filed June 30 aims to strike down …

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is turning his sights on one of the most important press freedom cases, 'New York Times v. Sullivan.' Thomas says he wants to make it easier to sue media companies.

If Clarence Thomas gets his way, the Supreme Court won't stop at revoking the right to abortion. Same sex marriage, contraception and gay sex are likely to be next on the SCOTUS hit list.

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas wrote that after overturning Roe v. Wade SCOTUS must now overturn decisions allowing same-sex marriage and contraception. Here's why.

The U.S. Supreme Court scaled back California's Private Attorney Generals Act, a 19-year-old law allowing workers to sue employers over labor code violations. But a new ballot initiate aims to repeal PAGA completely.

The links between homelessness and crime are complex, and the idea that unhoused individuals present a danger to their community seems to be exaggerated.