Bay Area

State Attorney General Creates Unit to Ensure Proper Convictions

Fewer people may be wrongfully convicted in California following the launch Friday of a post-conviction justice unit in the state Department of Justice. The unit will in part work in concert with district attorneys’ offices around the state to resolve wrongful or improper convictions as well as identify people who could have their sentences reduced.

Published

4 years ago

February 26, 2023

Oakland Post

California Attorney General Rob Bonta. Bonta was sworn in as the 34th Attorney General of the State of California on April 23, 2021. (Office of the California Attorney General via Bay City News)

By Keith Burbank
Bay City News

Fewer people may be wrongfully convicted in California following the launch Friday of a post-conviction justice unit in the state Department of Justice.

The unit will in part work in concert with district attorneys’ offices around the state to resolve wrongful or improper convictions as well as identify people who could have their sentences reduced.

The unit also plans to promote the best practices for post-conviction justice work across the state. Some jurisdictions already have post-conviction or exoneration units.

“Our criminal legal system is not infallible,” Attorney General Rob Bonta said at a news conference Friday morning in Oakland. “It is not perfect.”

The new effort is about seeking the public’s trust, Bonta said.

The California Department of Justice has never had such a unit and it has been something Bonta has been working on since he was appointed to the office in 2021. The unit will start its work by reviewing cases in which state prosecutors won convictions.

Since 1989 more than 3,000 exonerations have occurred nationwide, Bonta said, citing The National Registry of Exonerations.

More than 280 exonerations have occurred in California since 1989, according to the registry. The people exonerated lost a total of more than 2,000 years behind bars.

Tens of thousands of people nationwide have been falsely convicted and are wrongfully incarcerated, according to estimates, Bonta said.

People wrongfully convicted often come from racially and economically disadvantaged or marginalized communities and “do not have the resources to mount a meaningful defense,” Bonta said.

Two people from the criminal law division in the California Department of Justice currently make up the post-conviction unit. Bonta is hiring for the unit.

It is not taking any cases now until more staff members are in place, Bonta said.

New evidence may come to light, mistakes may surface and sentencing rules may change, leading to the need to reevaluate a case, state prosecutors said.

“Nobody should serve time for a crime they didn’t commit,” Bonta said.

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Oakland Post: Week of September 2 – 8, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of September 2 – 8, 2026

Published

5 days ago

September 7, 2026

Oakland Post

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Youth-Led Black August Event Brings Past to Present at East Oakland Boxing Association

The mission of Youth Alive! Is to “break the cycle of violence, heal trauma, and uplift a thriving community of leaders, to save lives in Oakland and beyond” by serving “as mentors, youth leaders, counselors, case managers, intervention specialists and violence interrupters,” working “to help violently wounded people heal themselves and their community.”

Published

2 weeks ago

August 29, 2026

Post News Group

Dawna Williams, EOBA executive director speaks to attendees at the Black August Eperience on Aug. 21. Photo courtesy of Carolyn Flynn of EOBA.

By Jana Lang Propel Youth Reporter

Youth-Led Black August Event Brings Past to Present at East Oakland Boxing Association

The East Oakland Boxing Association (EOBA) and Youth Alive! came together on Aug. 21 to share with their community all that Black August means to them.

Held on EOBA’s patio at 816 98th Ave. in Deep East Oakland, the two organizations hosted their second annual Black August Experience, featuring a food tasting, financial literacy and mindfulness workshops, and voter registration with the League of Women Voters Oakland (LWV).

Black August is known as a time to uphold the legacy of prisoners who protested their conditions by fasting, fighting, and educating themselves on the economic and political circumstances that contributed to their incarceration.

According to its website, “EOBA is a multi-service youth and community development hub that goes far beyond the ring. While rooted in the discipline of boxing, for nearly 40 years EOBA has also integrated robust programs in workforce development, food justice, afterschool enrichment, financial literacy, mentorship, and wellness.”.

The mission of Youth Alive! Is to “break the cycle of violence, heal trauma, and uplift a thriving community of leaders, to save lives in Oakland and beyond” by serving “as mentors, youth leaders, counselors, case managers, intervention specialists and violence interrupters,” working “to help violently wounded people heal themselves and their community.”

Through Coro California, another leadership organization serving young people across the state for 80 years, they gained a broader understanding of Black August.

EOBA Executive Director Dawna Williams spoke about how much she learned about Black August from the youth who created it. “I let them educate me,” she said. Instead of talking about prison reform and mass incarceration, Williams and youth interns found that Black August meant so much more. “We would have done a disservice if we had just focused on who the people were and what their situation was…We tried to take their message from back in the day and make it relevant to the young people today. What do they need to know?”

Youth interns created and placed posters around the patio to help participants understand how traditional Black foodways, civic engagement, financial literacy, and the power of education are relevant to Black resistance today.

An EOBA member described Black August with Youth ALIVE! as “a whole vibe. “This year we added the Fun Zone for the kids, because you really cannot go wrong with a Fun Zone. I also loved seeing everyone chillin’ in the outdoor lounge, catching some Vitamin D and just enjoying a Friday evening together.”

The food tasting, a popular event from last year, featured traditional Black foods such as black-eyed peas, johnny cakes, and fried chicken. Led by Williams, the tasting included a talk about how these traditional foods were made and why they are forms of Black resilience.

The “‘Plate of History’ was a favorite of the online writers. “Fun, educational, and did I mention delicious? Our Taste of History cook, Angela Southall, served up some good eats while connecting food to history and culture.”

The writer also commended the “League of Women Voters Oakland for their civic leadership and for getting our young people informed, ready, and registered to vote.”

Overall, it was a “good Friday event in East Oakland,” the writer said.

Upcoming Black August events: Building Opportunities for Self-Sufficiency (BOSS), will host “Black August: The Arc of Liberation” at Oakland City Hall on Sat. Aug. 29, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The websites for East Oakland Boxing Association, Youth Alive! and CORO are sources for this report.

Jana Lang is an Oakland resident, teacher, gardener and poet participating in the Propel News Initiative.