Courts

Featured

Lawsuit over developmentally disabled woman’s death in jail can proceed, judge rules

A deputy helps a medical staff member check on a woman incarcerated at the Las Colinas Detention and Reentry Facility on Jan. 28, 2026. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Roselee Bartolacci, 32, died in jail after what her mother says were weeks of neglect and violations of federal law.
A deputy helps a medical staff member check on a woman incarcerated at the Las Colinas Detention and Reentry Facility on Jan. 28, 2026. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
(Stock photo)

Member of Mexican drug-trafficking organization sentenced to 20 years

The U.S. Attorney's Office said a Tijuana storefront operated 24 hours a day, moving hundreds...
A San Diego Police Department officer patrols along El Cajon Boulevard near Hoover High School on Jan. 6, 2022. (Sam Hodgson / U-T file)

Ex-Hoover High administrator sentenced to 8 years for possessing child sexual abuse material

Charles DeFreitas was also sentenced to 12 years of supervised release upon exiting prison.
Police tape on March 27, 2024, blocks the scene of a shooting on Santa Carolina Road in the Otay Ranch section of Chula Vista. (Phillip Molnar / U-T file)

Three more charged in 2024 cartel-linked attempted hits in Chula Vista

The Sinaloa cartel hired two 15-year-old boys to carry out a hit on a rival....
The San Diego Central Jail in downtown San Diego.  (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

San Diego County settles long-running lawsuit’s claims over mental health care in jail

The agreement calls for enhanced screening and treatment, with an independent monitor to oversee implementation.
A photo shows the shooting scene where two deputies opened fire on a theft suspect in 2022 in El Cajon. The deputies were near the law enforcement SUV, the suspect was near the middle of the street and a National City detective struck by the gunfire was near the silver vehicle circled in blue ink. (courtesy of U.S. District Court filing)

Records show San Diego deputies in friendly-fire case saw fellow officers before shooting at suspect

San Diego County asking judge to dismiss National City officer's case.
The San Diego Central Courthouse in downtown San Diego is shown. (U-T file)

Some San Diego Superior Court online services to be limited for several days

Some new filings will wait to be processed and others services will be unavailable as...
Cal Fire Capt. Rebecca Marodi. (Courtesy of Cal Fire San Diego Benevolent Fund)

Wife headed to trial on murder charge in slaying of Cal Fire captain at Ramona home

A judge determined Tuesday that enough evidence was presented to send Yolanda Marodi to trial...
District Attorney Summer Stephan, backed by prosecutors and police officials, announced on Monday the results of an undercover operation targeting open-air drug dealing in the East Village. (Courtesy of San Diego County District Attorney’s Office)

Undercover operation in San Diego’s East Village results in drug, weapons indictments for 37

The operation targeted street-level dealers in attempt to make downtown more safe.
Andy Williams, left, seen as a 15-year-old in court, and later in a 2024 prison mugshot at age 38. (U-T file and California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation)

The Santana High shooter may win release. Other young offenders know what he faces.

Charles "Andy" Williams' controversial resentencing spotlights California’s bet on youth and rehabilitation.
People in immigration detention after being separated at the border under a policy in 2018. (

San Diego judge orders 3 deported families returned, finds ICE used ‘lies, deception, coercion’

The families were legally paroled into U.S. and protected by a settlement agreement in the...
A 2003 cold case was recently solved, identifying the victim, Laurie Diane Potter, and resulting in the arrest of her husband, Jack Dennis Potter, for murder. (San Diego Sheriff’s Deparment)

Man sentenced for inflicting injuries on girlfriend before her Mission Valley motel death

Victor Cruz, 20, admitted to inflicting injuries upon 24-year-old Vivian Avila at a Hotel Circle...
A still image taken from a surveillance video during a January 2021 hearing in San Diego Superior Court shows then-San Diego County sheriff’s Deputy Aaron Russell fatally shooting Nicholas Bils in May 2020 outside the San Diego Central Jail in downtown. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Judge denies trial delay for ex-San Diego deputy who cited ‘political climate’ after Minnesota shootings

Aaron Russell argued tensions around shootings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti would not allow...
A still image taken from a surveillance video during a January 2021 hearing in San Diego Superior Court shows then-San Diego County sheriff’s Deputy Aaron Russell fatally shooting Nicholas Bils in May 2020 outside the San Diego Central Jail in downtown. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Ex-San Diego deputy who shot fleeing man seeks trial delay, citing shootings by feds in Minnesota

Aaron Russell argues he can't get fair trial after the shootings of Renée Good and...
The San Diego County Administration Center on Jan. 26, 2026, in San Diego. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

San Diego County will pay $6.5M to man beaten by deputy and bitten by dog, ending decade of litigation

Mickail Myles won a jury verdict, but a federal appeals court reversed its $5 million...
President Donald Trump walks on the South Lawn upon his arrival to the White House, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

San Diego anti-child exploitation grant at risk due to Trump conditions, lawsuit says

The city filed a lawsuit alleging the Trump administration is using Internet Crimes Against Children...
Automatic knives are on display at Bonds House of Cutlery/Knives & More on Jan. 27, 2017, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)

9th Circuit upholds California ban on switchblades in San Diego lawsuit

The opinion upholds a San Diego judge's prior ruling that the switchblade ban is constitutional.
0530-bus-l-gavel-1-42

Male actor in GirlsDoPorn videos sentenced on conspiracy charge in long-running San Diego case

Douglas Wiederhold falsely assured at least two women that their videos wouldn't be posted online...
James M. Carter & Judith N. Keep UnitedStates Courthouse seen on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024 in San Diego, CA. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

ACLU: Trump administration still detaining, deporting families protected by separation settlement

A San Diego judge will rule whether the Trump administration continues to violate a historic...
0530-bus-l-gavel-1-42

Trial begins for parents charged in newborn baby’s starvation death

Brandon Copeland, 25, and Elizabeth Reneedawn Ucman, 26, are accused of murder in the death...
The federal court in Los Angeles.  (Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)

Man sentenced in scheme that ripped off $1 million from surfers in San Diego and across SoCal

Moundir Kamil and accomplices stole wallets and phones from surfers, then drained their accounts, prosecutors...
Nick Pelke competes in the bareback riding event during the third annual San Diego Rodeo at Petco Park on Jan. 16 in San Diego. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Judge adds protections for San Diego Rodeo animals at Petco Park

The ruling bars pregnant mares from performing and calls for comprehensive medical equipment to be...
The federal court in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025.  (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)

OC man sentenced to nearly 4 years for role in scheme that ripped off $1 million from local surfers

The crime ring targeted surfers in Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties, prosecutors say
generic-arrest-crime-scene-08_e6f923

La Costa Canyon High math teacher arrested on suspicion of possessing child sexual abuse material

Joseph Zyburt, who also has taught at MiraCosta College, was booked into jail Wednesday morning.
Getty Images

Woman charged in hit and run that killed boy in Pacific Beach was unlicensed, prosecutors say

Tiffany Sanchez pleaded not guilty to gross vehicular manslaughter and other charges in the death...
The Edward J. Schwartz United States Courthouse seen on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024 in San Diego, CA. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Ex-Navy detective convicted of choking sailor is sentenced in child sex-exploitation case

Jonathan LaRoche was sentenced to 20 years, plus 15 years of supervised release.
San Diego police car. (U-T file)

Former San Diego police officer sentenced in fraudulent appropriations case

Curtis Doll took around $4,000 from the police department's School Safety Patrol Program to pay...
0530-bus-l-gavel-1-42

Man pleads guilty in attempted kidnappings of young girls at Mission Valley mall

Rene Arturo Lujan, 43, admitted to grabbing two girls just days apart in 2024 at...
0530-bus-l-gavel-1-42

Man pleads not guilty to murder in shooting deaths of couple in Grant Hill

The suspect's girlfriend pleaded not guilty to being an accessory in the deaths of Ruben...
The US Securities and Exchange Commission seal. (Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images/TNS)

La Jolla couple facing criminal charges, SEC suit over alleged $100 million pump-and-dump scheme

Brett and Deborah Rosen, through RB Capital Partners, allegedly ran complicated pump-and-dump scheme involving penny-stock...
The Mexican Air Force on Tuesday flew 37 alleged cartel figures to the U.S. and turned them over to U.S. Marshals. Five of the 37 appeared Wednesday in federal court in San Diego. (Courtesy of U.S. Department of Justice)

Alleged leader in Mexican ‘narco-terror’ case, others expelled by Mexico appear in San Diego court

The five suspected drug traffickers were among 37 expelled from Mexico on Tuesday.
At her home in Santee, Anna Sandoval holds a photograph of her late husband Ronnie Sandoval. Ronnie died in a San Diego jail in 2014 from a meth overdose after Anna says staff ignored his need for medical attention. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

‘I wasn’t going to give up’: How one woman’s legal fight for her late husband is helping other survivors

'I feel like Ronnie got a little bit of justice, and other people don’t have...
0530-bus-l-gavel-1-42

Defense contractor sentenced to 4 years in prison in Navy bribery scheme

Philip Flores admitted to providing gifts like expensive meals and tickets to major sporting events...
President Donald Trump boards Air Force One Friday at Joint Base Andrews, Md. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Trump pardons South Bay businesswoman convicted of fraud after he granted her clemency once before

Trump granted full pardons to Adriana Camberos and her brother Thursday, as well as a...
DMT-L-legal-01

Retired Orange County fire official accused of child molestation in San Diego County

Phil Johnson, 60, is accused of abusing two girls during family gatherings in Rancho Santa...
0530-bus-l-gavel-1-42

5 women allege Chula Vista staffer used their photos to create sexually explicit AI images

Their lawsuit alleges the now-former employee encountered the women through his work at a law...
Lincoln High cheerleaders wear bracelets in honor of classmate Brianna Wallace during the CIF San Diego Section Open Division championship game against Granite Hills at Snapdragon Stadium on Nov. 18, 2023 in San Diego. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Man sentenced to prison for shooting that left high school cheerleader paralyzed

Juan Diaz Velazco, 21, pleaded guilty to the shooting that wounded Brianna Wallace at a...
Sixteen vehicles were seized by police agencies in San Diego County in connection with an investigation into illegal street racing last March. (San Diego County District Attorney’s Office)

21 people indicted on charges of conspiracy to engage in illegal street racing in San Diego County

Police seized 16 vehicle as part of the investigation into a string of racing incidents...
Attorney Ken Fitzgerald shows a video of news anchors Allen Denton and Sandra Maas during opening statements on Feb. 14, 2023, of a San Diego Superior Court trial in which Maas sued her former employer, McKinnon Broadcasting Co. (K.C. Alfred / U-T file)

Court upholds verdict for former news anchor Sandra Maas in KUSI’s appeal of equal pay lawsuit

Maas had sued McKinnon Broadcasting, alleging it violated equal pay laws by paying her significantly...
Leonard Glenn Francis, aka “Fat Leonard,” poses for a mugshot after being caught on Sept. 20, 2022, by Interpol in Venezuela. (Interpol Caracas)

Appeals court rules ‘Fat Leonard’ must serve full sentence in Navy corruption scandal

Leonard Francis has lost appeal to overturn the 15-year sentence handed down by a San...
Former U.S. Navy SEAL Gregory Vandenberg is seen in this surveillance video at a New Mexico travel center speaking with a clerk. (U.S. Attorney’s Office)

Former Navy SEAL convicted of trying to bring explosives to San Diego ‘No Kings’ protests

Gregory Vandenberg is accused of driving from Texas with the intent to use explosives against...
The amphibious assault ship USS Essex returns to sea Feb. 17, 2006 shortly after arriving in Subic Bay, Philippines.  (Photo by Michael D. Kennedy/U.S. Navy via Getty Images)

Chinese-born U.S. sailor convicted of espionage in San Diego sentenced to more than 16 years

Jinchao Wei was convicted last year by San Diego federal jury
Former Poway City Councilman Tony Blain, R, appears in court with his attorneys for an arraignment hearing on Monday, January 12, 2026 at the Central Courthouse in Downtown San Diego.  (Photo by Sandy Huffaker for The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Former Poway city council member pleads not guilty to bribery, perjury charges

The charges, filed in October, followed a monthslong District Attorney’s Office investigation
San Diego police gather on Zola Street as they investigate a fatal shooting in the area on Aug. 21, 2024. Two people died and a third was injured in the incident. (Caleb Lunetta/The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Trial begins for man accused of killing sister, nephew in Point Loma

William Bushey is also accused of shooting his then-86-year-old mother in the chest. She survived.
The San Diego Central Jail in downtown San Diego.  (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Judge refuses to limit San Diego County jails’ use of isolation cells

The plaintiffs in a class-action lawsuit had asked for an injunction after two men with...
Santana High School freshman Charles "Andy" Williams is shown in a sheriff's car in San Diego March 5, 2001, after opening fire at school, killing two people and wounding 13. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / U-T file)

Santana High shooter ruling follows evolving approach to juvenile offenders

Andy Williams, now 39, is set to be resentenced as a juvenile for the deadly...
Rapper Boosie Badazz is shown leaving during the second half of an NBA basketball game between Atlanta Hawks and the Oklahoma City Thunder Dec. 5, 2022, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Hakim Wright Sr.)

Rapper Boosie Badazz sentenced in San Diego gun possession case

Torence Ivy Hatch Jr. was arrested in Chollas View after police found two guns inside...
Body-worn camera footage shows the moment Acting Sgt. Bryan Shields and Sgt. Richard Curtis shoot and kill Enrique Cortez Jr., 37, after the allegedly armed man threatened a bicyclist, led police on a freeway pursuit and crashed into a home on 26th Street in Golden Hill on April 14, 2025. (San Diego Police Department)

Family of man fatally shot by San Diego police in Golden Hill files wrongful death lawsuit

The lawsuit alleges officers fired upon Enrique Cortez Jr. on April 14 while he was...
A mourner kneels in front of Santana High School after placing flowers on top of the entrance sign in Santee on March 5, 2001. (AP Photo/Nick Ut, File)

Victims react with disappointment, frustration at possible release of Santana High shooter

A new ruling could set Andy Williams free, 25 years after mass shooting killed two...
Jesse Wagner, right, consults with his attorney Jill Cremeans during his sentencing hearing in Chula Vista Superior Court Jan. 7. (Denis Poroy / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Alleged bounty hunter gets prison for kidnapping fugitive’s girlfriend in National City

Jesse Wagner, 50, was sentenced to eight years in prison for four incidents, including ones...
Charles “Andy” Williams, shown on a video monitor, weeps during a court hearing at the San Diego Central Courthouse downtown on Tuesday. (Sandy Huffaker / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Santana High shooter’s life sentence erased. District attorney files immediate appeal.

The move sends Charles "Andy" Williams' case back to Juvenile Court. He was 15 when...
The city of San Diego alleges that federal personnel illegally built this razor wire barrier on city-owned land near the U.S.-Mexico border. (Image from lawsuit via U.S. District Court)

San Diego sues federal government over razor wire border barrier on city-owned property

The city says U.S. Marines illegally built the barrier in the Marron Valley wilderness despite...
Two men and a woman were arrested after investigators served search warrants at two brothels in Walnut last month, a detective confirmed Wednesday. File photo

Mexico detains alleged trafficker wanted in novel San Diego narco-terrorism case

Pedro Inzunza Noriega was the first suspected trafficker charged with narco-terrorism under a new designation.
Judge Michael Groch (Courtesy of San Diego Superior Court)

New presiding judge steps into role at San Diego Superior Court

Judge Michael Groch, a former longtime prosecutor, will guide the state's second-largest trial court system.
The 1,324-acre Midway District has been subject to a 1972 referendum on buildings over 30 feet in the city’s Coastal Height Limit Overlay Zone. The aerial photo shows Rosecrans Street, which runs through the Midway District.  (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Midway District’s 30-foot height limit will be restored following California Supreme Court ruling

The state's highest court denied San Diego's petition for review, exhausting the city's legal options...
0530-bus-l-gavel-1-42

Two men sentenced to life without parole in case of body found off Chollas Creek trail

Anthony Padilla and Joseph Bartolome were convicted of first-degree murder for the slaying of Alfred...
Carlos Enriquez in an undated photo  (Courtesy of the Enriquez family)

Family of man fatally shot during standoff sues Chula Vista police

The family of Iraq war veteran Carlos Enriquez, 56, has said he was in the...
Judge Roger T. Benitez in his chambers in 2004. (Nelvin Cepeda / U-T FILE)

Appeals court pauses, for now, ruling that said teachers can tell parents their child may be transgender

Critics of the ruling said it appeared to conflict with state law that says public...
0530-bus-l-gavel-1-42

Owner of Rancho San Diego daycare center charged in toddler’s death

The child's family filed a wrongful death lawsuit this week against the owner.
San Diego, CA – December 21: Mark-Robert Bluemel is a lawyer and a surfer who has written a series of young adult books based on a trio of kids he calls the Grommets, shown here in Sunset Cliffs on December 21, 2025 in San Diego, CA. Bluemel, who copyrighted his creation in 2008 is involved in a lawsuit with another publisher using the same name. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Who owns ‘grommets’? San Diego author says comics giant infringed his 2008 trademark

Dueling federal lawsuits over the slang term for young rookie surfers are being waged in...
The San Diego Central Jail in downtown San Diego. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

San Diego jail wrongly held 82-year-old with dementia in solitary confinement, where he died, new lawsuit says

Karim Talib's children say their father was gravely disabled and should have been under medical...
Teacher’s aide Amelia Mester, wrapped in a Pride flag, urges Escondido Union High School District not to have employees notify parents if they believe a student may be transgender. A policy on the issue in the city’s elementary school district is the subject of a federal class-action lawsuit in which a judge just sided against the district. (Charlie Neuman / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Schools can’t bar teachers from telling parents if children are transgender, San Diego federal judge rules

Judge Roger Benitez's ruling, which the state has appealed, comes in a lawsuit filed by...
A 2003 cold case was recently solved, identifying the victim, Laurie Diane Potter, and resulting in the arrest of her husband, Jack Dennis Potter, for murder. (San Diego Sheriff’s Deparment)

Man accused in mother’s death in Vista ordered to stand trial

Tad Christopher Johnson, 55, is accused of killing Linda Johnson, 80, in October.
The two-lane road in and out of Harmony Grove South. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

‘Today you could not pass that project’: Controversial Harmony Grove project hit with new legal challenge

The latest lawsuit over the 450-home proposal follows a November filing by the Sierra Club...
4846 Pacifica Drive and 2596 Chalcedony Street are seen on Thursday, June 12, 2025 in San Diego, CA. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Judge blocks massive Chalcifica ADU development in Pacific Beach

The injunction, issued Friday, requires city officials to stop processing permits for the controversial project...
Body-worn camera image of a San Diego Police Department shooting that killed a 16-year-old boy.

Why did San Diego pay a record $30M to settle a police-killing lawsuit? This document offers clues

Konoa Wilson, 16, was shot dead this year. A lawyer for his family spelled out...
Getty Images

45-year-old man sentenced to 40 years for sexually abusing multiple girls he met online

Ivan Matias-Montes is also accused of contacting several more girls through social media between 2016...
Police tape on March 27, 2024, blocks the scene of a shooting on Santa Carolina Road in the Otay Ranch section of Chula Vista. (Phillip Molnar / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

2 teen gang members plead guilty in cartel-linked Chula Vista shootings

The Sinaloa cartel hired two 15-year-old boys from a Los Angeles street gang to carry...
A 2003 cold case was recently solved, identifying the victim, Laurie Diane Potter, and resulting in the arrest of her husband, Jack Dennis Potter, for murder. (San Diego Sheriff’s Deparment)

San Diego man who posed as doctor in teen sex exploitation case sentenced in Florida

Eric Jacob Layton is also facing charges in San Diego related to multiple alleged underage...
Triston Sanderson, seen here, joined 17 other student pilots on Tuesday in filing a $36 million lawsuit in San Diego federal court alleging fraud and other claims against American Airlines and San Diego-based Coast Flight Training. (Courtesy of Triston Sanderson via Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight law firm)

$36 million suit alleges unmet promises, discrimination at American Airlines academy in San Diego

Plaintiffs say American Airlines Cadet Academy was not as advertised
The San Diego Police Department’s Police Plaza in San Diego on Aug. 20, 2024. (Hayne Palmour IV / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Former San Diego police officer pleads guilty in embezzlement case

Curtis Doll took around $4,000 from the police department's School Safety Patrol Program.
James M. Carter & Judith N. Keep UnitedStates Courthouse seen on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024 in San Diego, CA. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

After second trial, jury convicts San Diego County deputy who seriously injured restrained inmate

Jeremiah Flores was found guilty on both counts Friday after just a couple hours of...
0530-bus-l-gavel-1-42

San Diego judge sentences GirlsDoPorn bookkeeper who offered ‘false assurances’ to victims

Valorie Moser, who was meant to be a comforting presence to victims, was sentenced to...
Children play before a youth soccer match at Surf Sports Park on Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Sierra Club sues city of San Diego over revised Surf Cup lease

An October vote by the City Council violated state environmental laws, the advocacy group alleges.
Arabella McCormack, 11, died Aug 30, 2022, in what authorities say was a child abuse case. (San Diego County Sheriff’s Office)

$31.5M settlement reached in child’s starvation death suit against city and county of San Diego, others

The beneficiaries are the younger sisters of Arabella McCormack, who died at age 11.
A 2003 cold case was recently solved, identifying the victim, Laurie Diane Potter, and resulting in the arrest of her husband, Jack Dennis Potter, for murder. (San Diego Sheriff’s Deparment)

Former Mar Vista campus aide sentenced in sex abuse case against student

Lisette Veles Ortega, 32, pleaded guilty to sex acts with the 17-year-old boy.
James M. Carter & Judith N. Keep UnitedStates Courthouse seen on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024 in San Diego, CA. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

‘You executed him’: Tijuana man sentenced to life for hostage-taking killing of San Diego teen

Brian Patron Lopez was the fifth and final defendant to face sentencing in the teen's...
People take aim with a Jaycor SA200 Pepperball Launcher in a law enforcement demonstration in a file photo. (Rodrigo Pena / The Press-Enterprise)

San Diego lawsuit challenges California’s ban on less-lethal pepperball weapons

The lawsuit filed in federal court argues pepper projectile launchers are protected by the Second...
Victor Korol, left, and Viktoriia Bulavina pose in front of the County Administration Center in San Diego on their wedding day in November 2024. (Victor Korol)

Ukrainian woman fleeing war arrested at green card interview in front of her U.S. citizen husband

What should have been a routine appointment ended with her being taken away in handcuffs.
The Edward J. Schwartz United States Courthouse seen on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024 in San Diego, CA. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Judge rules against 2 Navy captains seeking reduced charges in ‘Fat Leonard’ corruption case

David Haas and Jesús Cantú wanted their felonies reduced to misdemeanors, citing prosecutorial misconduct.
A 2003 cold case was recently solved, identifying the victim, Laurie Diane Potter, and resulting in the arrest of her husband, Jack Dennis Potter, for murder. (San Diego Sheriff’s Deparment)

Man convicted in Chula Vista hatchet slaying sentenced to prison

Angel Padilla, 42, was convicted for the 2020 killing of Abraham Raymond Alvarez.
A 2003 cold case was recently solved, identifying the victim, Laurie Diane Potter, and resulting in the arrest of her husband, Jack Dennis Potter, for murder. (San Diego Sheriff’s Deparment)

Jury deadlocks in murder trial of man accused in death of girlfriend’s toddler son

A San Diego Superior Court jury was unable to reach a verdict in the case...
The San Diego Central Courthouse in downtown San Diego is shown. (U-T file)

Attorneys balance use of powerful AI tools with risks — including legal hallucinations

Judges recently found that attorneys in two San Diego cases filed motions containing fake citations...
Body-worn camera image of a San Diego Police Department shooting that killed a 16-year-old boy.

San Diego poised to pay $30M settlement to family of teen fatally shot by police

Konoa Wilson, 16, was running from gunfire at Santa Fe Depot when he encountered an...
A 2003 cold case was recently solved, identifying the victim, Laurie Diane Potter, and resulting in the arrest of her husband, Jack Dennis Potter, for murder. (San Diego Sheriff’s Deparment)

DUI driver sentenced in deadly Interstate 805 crash

Markus Eugene Turner pleaded guilty for the May 3 crash that killed Grasiela Gomez.
A Porsche logo on a 1980s 911 model. (Billy Schuerman / The Virginian-Pilot)

Fallbrook vintage Porsche dealer pleads guilty to consignment sales fraud

Andrea Nicole Doherty admitted to fraudulently selling clients' sports cars through CPR Classic.
Nicholas Hoskins poses for a photo in downtown San Diego on July 11, 2024. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

San Diego settles lawsuit with man who recorded officer smashing car window

Nick Hoskins had refused to exit his car on Fourth Amendment grounds during a traffic...
A flower memorial for 11-year-old Adrian Torres, who was killed by a hit-and-run driver last month, is set up on East Washington Avenue in Escondido on Wednesday. (Hayne Palmour IV / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Man accused in hit and run that killed Escondido boy had been removed from U.S. four times

Hector Amador Balderas pleaded not guilty Wednesday in the death of Adrian Antonio Torres de...
A 2003 cold case was recently solved, identifying the victim, Laurie Diane Potter, and resulting in the arrest of her husband, Jack Dennis Potter, for murder. (San Diego Sheriff’s Deparment)

A man was sentenced for murdering his ex-girlfriend. Her body remains missing.

Alexis Guadarrama Orozco disappeared after she met Eduardo Magana at an Otay Mesa motel.
At the Vista Superior Courthouse on Tuesday, Deputy Public Defender Janisa Gonzalez, left, and Deputy District Attorney Jaimie Thomas listen to Judge Valerie Summers during what had been expected to arraignment for Blake Turner, an Oceanside man accused of killing his neighbor. The arraignment did not happen; instead, the judge ordered that Turner's mental competency to face proceedings be evaluated. (Charlie Neuman / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Competency of Oceanside man accused of killing 83-year-old neighbor questioned

Blake Turner's arraignment was postponed Tuesday to evaluate his mental competency to face legal proceedings.
Grossmont Union High School District board trustees Chris Fite, Jim Kelly, Scott Eckert, Robert Shield and Gary Woods during a board meeting at Grossmont High School on Thursday, July 17, 2025, in El Cajon. The district has settled a lawsuit brought by a former administrator who alleged she was fired as part of an anti-LGBTQ+ campaign by a majority of the school board. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Grossmont school district to pay more than $700K to former official who says she was demoted for being gay

Rose Tagnesi blamed her demotion from the district’s top special-education job on what she called...
People sit outside at Swami’s Cafe on South Coast Highway 101 in Encinitas on Tuesday, December 02, 2025. (Hayne Palmour IV / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Swami’s Café to pay $650K to settle sexual harassment suit brought by U.S. employment agency

The EEOC sued Swami's Café in 2023 after female employees complained
Chris Puehse, owner of Foothill Ammo, displays .45-caliber ammunition for sale at his store in Shingle Springs, Calif.  (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File)

Larger 9th Circuit panel to hear San Diego challenge to California’s ammunition background check law

A three-judge panel previously sided with a San Diego judge in ruling that California can't...
Encinitas City Councilmember Luke Shaffer attends his arraignment in Vista Superior Court on Sept. 9 in Vista. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Encinitas council member’s misdemeanor case suspended

Luke Shaffer agreed to anger management classes and volunteer work under diversion deal granted by...
Retired Judge Janet Kintner, 81, poses for a photo on Nov. 20 in San Diego. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

One of San Diego’s first female judges reflects in new memoir

Retired Judge Janet Kintner's new book is a look back at her early career
The jury lounge at the San Diego Central Courthouse on Oct. 2. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Summoned to jury duty in downtown San Diego? Here’s a survival guide.

All your questions answered, from what to bring to where to eat lunch to where...
Outside the San Diego Central Courthouse downtown. (Alejandro Tamayo / U-T file)

Reporter’s Notebook: What happens when you put a journalist on a jury?

After spending two weeks on a civil trial, a reporter has some thoughts on American...
A view of San Diego’s neighboring federal courthouses downtown in 2021. (Kristina Davis / U-T file)

El Cajon company pleads guilty to hiring undocumented workers

Plea follows March immigration raid at San Diego Powder & Protective Coatings' facility near Gillespie...
Load More

Events