- “The violation of a single defendant’s constitutional rights calls into question the fairness of the entire criminal justice system.” – District Attorney Todd Spitzer
SANTA ANA, Calif. — More than a decade after a jailhouse informant scandal rocked the Orange County District Attorney’s Office and nearly derailed the prosecution of the deadliest mass shooting in county history, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Tuesday, Dec. 23, that it has ended federal oversight of the office’s informant practices, citing reforms implemented under District Attorney Todd Spitzer.
The decision ends a yearlong agreement between the Justice Department and local prosecutors that required the office to reform how it uses jailhouse informants in criminal cases. Federal officials said the agreement was satisfied after concluding the changes had been implemented and sustained.
“The Orange County District Attorney’s Office has implemented and sustained extensive reforms that demonstrate an enduring commitment to protecting the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendment rights of those in its jurisdiction,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said in a statement…