DISCLAIMER FOR APPOINTED COUNSEL IN THE THIRD AND FIFTH DISTRICT COURTS OF APPEAL: If counsel appointed in a Third or Fifth District case believes that a pending appeal presents an SB 1437 issue that should be pursued in the trial court, counsel should first contact the trial attorney or the local public defender to see if they will file an SB 1437 petition. If trial counsel and the public defender decline to file the petition, and appellate counsel wishes to prepare the petition for the client, counsel will need to move to expand his or her appointment to seek compensation for the work. An expansion of appointment is required in Third and Fifth District cases for counsel to receive compensation for petition/application work such as this. For more information, see CCAP’s article Expanding Your Appointment for Extraordinary Writ Work.
Many people petitioning for SB 1437 relief (under Pen. Code, § 1170.95) initially used the resentencing petition created by Re:Store Justice, which has since closed. The Re:Store Justice petition is no longer available on their website.
After the passage of Senate Bill No. 775, the Office of the State Public Defender (OSPD), created a Revised Penal Code Section 1170.95 Resentencing Petition (based on recent changes in the law made by SB 775) and a FAQ sheet for pro per inmates. The materials are available on OSPD’s website here (external link). Click on the SB 775 Pro Per Packet link.
