By Quintella Griffin, Legal Writer

Opinion and documentary analysis | Part 2 of 2

A tentative ruling found that Oakland property occupant Zakiya Jendayi had not received notice before a judge ordered its transfer into an estate.

The ruling was not final. Attention shifted to the assigned judge.

The estate’s special administrator, Phillip Campbell, invoked California Code of Civil Procedure Section 170.6 to disqualify Judge Stephanie Sato. The trial court granted the challenge Sept. 9, 2026.

Five days later, Campbell requested reassignment specifically to Judge Sandra Bean, who had signed the property order Jendayi sought to overturn.

The sequence raises questions about procedural fairness.

A Challenge After an Unfavorable Ruling

Sato’s Sept. 8 tentative ruling concluded that California’s notice requirement protected Jendayi as an occupant, regardless of whether Jendayi held a valid ownership interest.

Her proposed decision would have vacated Bean’s Oct. 8, 2025, order.

Section 170.6 permits challenges under certain circumstances. Whether Campbell’s challenge was timely was disputed.

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On Sept. 14, Campbell sought Bean’s reassignment, citing her familiarity with related trust litigation, judicial economy and consistency. Jendayi opposed the request the following day.

The timing invites serious public scrutiny but does not establish misconduct.

The Appellate Court Intervenes

In Kaiser Foundation Hospitals v. Superior Court (1987), a California appellate court examined the danger of allowing litigants to learn a judge’s likely decision before seeking disqualification.

The decision also recognized that changed assignments and insufficient notice can affect when a challenge is permissible.

On Sept. 17, 2026, the First District Court of Appeal stayed the order granting Campbell’s challenge and requested briefing addressing Kaiser.

That intervention did not vacate Bean’s property order, restore the invalidated trust or conclusively decide whether Campbell’s challenge was improper.

It did place the reassignment dispute under appellate review.

Questions in the Docket

Two versions of the court docket present another unresolved issue.

A printout preserved through Sept. 15 lacked reassignment entries that appeared in a later version. The later docket listed reassignment to Bean and a clerk’s notice under Sept. 9.

The difference warrants an explanation of when the entries were created, entered and made publicly accessible.

It does not establish deliberate backdating.

Accountability Beyond an Order

Judges generally enjoy immunity from damages claims arising from judicial acts, even when serious error is alleged. That protection does not make their decisions immune from review.

Appellate courts can correct legal errors; California’s Commission on Judicial Performance can investigate misconduct but cannot reverse judgments.

For Jendayi, the central concern remains practical: How much litigation must an occupant undertake to enforce a notice requirement intended to protect participation before property rights are adjudicated?

The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Mullane v. Central Hanover Bank & Trust Co. underscores the importance of meaningful notice and an opportunity to object.

The record establishes contested filings, a tentative ruling and appellate intervention, not anyone’s private motives.

The public deserves a transparent, documented explanation of this consequential judicial process.

A judge’s signature should resolve a lawful dispute, not silence legitimate questions about how the decision was reached.

The case is Estate of Laura Dean Head, Alameda County Superior Court case RP20066047. Records are available through the court’s eCourt Public Portal.

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By Bo Tefu,, California Black Media

California families are paying less for subsidized childcare under new fee schedules introduced since 2019, according to information from the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC).

The state has expanded subsidized childcare, introduced free transitional kindergarten for 4-year-olds, and increased access to before- and after-school programs as part of broader efforts to reduce the financial burden of raising children. However, childcare affordability remains a challenge for many families.

According to a PPIC chart cited by the administration, a family of three earning $60,000 annually would have paid approximately $7,000 a year in fees for full-time subsidized childcare under the 2019-20 schedule. Under the 2025-26 schedule, the annual fee is zero. The figures are adjusted for inflation.

“Raising a child shouldn’t break the bank,” Newsom said. He added that the state has lowered costs, expanded access to affordable care, and increased educational opportunities to help parents and children thrive.

Since 2019, California has added approximately 149,000 subsidized childcare slots and awarded 3,800 grants to providers to improve facilities and expand capacity. The state has also expanded before-and after-school care and summer programs for students in transitional kindergarten through sixth grade, offering activities such as homework assistance, arts, music, and science enrichment.

Universal transitional kindergarten is another major component of the state’s strategy. The free program is available to all 4-year-olds in California, providing early education while helping families avoid some childcare expenses. California enrolled 213,313 children in transitional kindergarten during the 2025-26 school year. The Newsom administration says the state has invested $12.5 billion since 2019 to implement the program statewide.

Other initiatives include expanding paid family leave from six weeks to eight weeks and increasing wage replacement for eligible workers. 

Those earning less than $65,000 annually can receive up to 90% of their regular wages while on leave.

California has also provided free meals to public school students and established the CalKIDS savings program, which provides eligible children with accounts to help cover future college and career training expenses.

The state has further supported childcare providers through collective bargaining, committing more than $800 million to health, retirement, and training benefits for members of Child Care Providers United.

While these initiatives have expanded support for families, the PPIC figures specifically illustrate changes in subsidized childcare fees, not the full cost of care for every household. Ensuring that affordable, accessible childcare is available to families across income levels remains an ongoing challenge for California.

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By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

California Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber criticized the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) for demanding that state election officials investigate voters suspected of being noncitizens just weeks before the Nov. 3 general election.

“The U.S. DOJ’s relentless efforts to unlawfully gain access to states’ protected voter data and purge voter rolls serve only to cause chaos and fuel public distrust in our elections,” Weber said in an Oct. 14 statement.

Weber said her office received a demand to investigate an unspecified number of individuals the federal government believes are “likely noncitizens.” However, the DOJ did not provide her office with the list and gave California just 48 hours to obtain it, investigate and take action.

The demand comes as the DOJ, working with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), seeks to block California from counting mail-in ballots from approximately 20,000 registered voters whose citizenship status the federal government has questioned.

“State-facilitated voter fraud is unacceptable in the United States of America,” said U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche. “If found responsible in a court of law, the State of California will have seriously undermined confidence in our electoral system and violated laws that protect our nation’s representative system of government.”

According to Weber’s office, the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk received the federal government’s list on a password-protected thumb drive, with the password written on a sticky note.

Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean C. Logan said his office declined to access the files because the device did not meet established security standards.

“We have not accessed the drive because doing so would conflict with established data privacy and information security protocols,” Logan said. “We do not consider the device a secure medium.”

Weber also challenged earlier federal allegations that California had 190,000 noncitizens on its voter rolls, saying the Trump administration had failed to provide evidence or explain its methodology despite requests from her office.

“California has robust state law requirements that only U.S. citizens can register to vote and that any non-eligible registrants are removed from the state’s voter rolls,” Weber said. “My office and California election officials remain committed – as always – to ensuring a fair and smooth 2026 general election.”

The DOJ’s letters to the California secretary of state and Los Angeles County election officials outline the federal government’s demands.

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