SACRAMENTO — The California Supreme Court refused Wednesday to block death penalty cases from proceeding during Gov. Gavin Newsom's moratorium on executions. The justices rejected defense attorneys' arguments that jurors can't realistically gauge the seriousness of imposing a death sentence if they think it's never actually going to be carried...
Change on Bench: Judge Petrucelli Retires, Jones Is Replacement
James Petrucelli is concluding 20 years on the bench a few months earlier than expected. The judge, who first won election to the Fresno County bench in 1998, is retiring. On Wednesday (Jan. 2), Gov. Jerry Brown announced Petrucelli's successor, current court commissioner Heather Mardel Jones. She officially takes the...