Years before Dick Magney was admitted to St. Joseph Hospital suffering from a series of life-threatening conditions, he had spent time at a local nursing home while recovering from leg surgery. That experience left the former truck driver who for decades battled constant pain and chronic illness determined to never again find himself in the […]
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Seeking Settlement
After squaring off against the county of Humboldt in court to defend a Carlotta man’s right to die on his own terms, Eureka attorney Allison Jackson is turning to the Board of Supervisors to bring closure to the case. Jackson successfully contested maneuvers by Adult Protective Services and the Public Guardian’s Office to override Dick […]
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County’s Attempt to Depublish Scathing Legal Rebuke Denied
The California Supreme Court has rejected without comment Humboldt County Counsel Jeffrey Blanck’s bid to have a scathing appellate opinion about his office’s conduct depublished. The case centers on the county’s legal fight against Carlotta couple Judy and Dick Magney, who successfully challenged attempts by Adult Protective Services and the Public Guardian’s Office to override […]
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‘Profoundly Disturbing’
Dick and Judy Magney knew his life was drawing to a close when he was admitted to St. Joseph Hospital in February of 2015. The 73-year-old former truck driver was suffering from a series of incurable long-term ailments. His quality of life was waning. Pain had become a constant companion. The couple had prepared for […]
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Supreme Court Denies Eureka’s Request in Police Video Case
The California Supreme Court has decided not to reconsider a recent appellate ruling establishing a statewide precedent that police arrest videos cannot be considered confidential officer personnel records and shielded from public view. The court’s decision may put an end to a more than two-year battle between the city of Eureka and the North Coast Journal […]
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Eureka Takes Police Video Fight to the Supreme Court
The city of Eureka is trying to keep its recent appellate court loss from setting a statewide precedent. In July, the First District Court of Appeals rebuffed the city’s effort to block release of a video depicting the arrest of a 14-year-old suspect, ruling that the video — and others like it — could not […]
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UPDATE: Eureka to Discuss Police Video Case Tonight, has Already Spent Thousands on Appeal
UPDATE: The Eureka City Council made no report out of closed session Tuesday night, indicating it has not yet made a final decision on whether to petition the California Supreme Court to review an appellate court ruling ordering the release of a police video of officers arresting a juvenile in 2012. The city has until […]
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Eureka ‘Evaluating Options’ After Court Ruling
The city of Eureka is “evaluating its options” with regard to this week’s appellate court ruling that it must release a police dash camera video capturing the controversial arrest of a 14-year-old suspect. In its published opinion released late Tuesday, the California First District Court of Appeals ruled that the video in question cannot be […]
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Arrest Video Can’t be Kept Confidential, Appellate Court Rules
A Eureka police video depicting the arrest of a 14-year-old suspect can’t be considered a confidential personnel record and must be released to the public, an appellate court has ruled. The court’s unanimous decision upholds a May 21, 2015 ruling by Humboldt County Superior Court Judge Christopher Wilson, who granted a Journal petition seeking release […]
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Appellate Court Hears Police Video Arguments
Can police videos recorded on body-worn and patrol car dash cameras by considered confidential police officer personnel records and hidden from public view? That’s the question three justices with the California First Appellate District spent about a half an hour wrestling with in a San Francisco courtroom Thursday. It was clear from their questions that […]
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Appellate Court Wants to See EPD Video, Sets Oral Argument Date
Justices in California’s First Appellate District have decided they want to look at the police dash camera video Eureka is trying to keep the public from seeing. In an unusual order, the justices asked the Humboldt County Superior Court file a copy of the video under seal with the appellate court. But the superior court […]
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City Files Final Brief in Dash Cam Case
The police dash camera video depicting Eureka police officers’ Dec. 6, 2012 arrest of a juvenile suspect is a confidential personnel record and can only be disclosed through a strict process that governs such records, the city of Eureka argued in a brief submitted to the California court of appeals last week. The city is […]