David Ettinger
@dettinger.bsky.social
Of Counsel at Horvitz & Levy. Primary writer for AtTheLectern.com, a blog about the California Supreme Court.
California Supreme Court sets up possible trials on systemic racism in California’s criminal justice system
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www.horvitzlevy.com/supreme-cour...
Supreme Court sets up possible trials on systemic racism in California's criminal justice system | Home - Horvitz & Levy LLP
At its Wednesday conferences, the Supreme Court has been routinely issuing orders that could lead to evidentiary hearings around the state about whether there...
www.horvitzlevy.com
November 17, 2025 at 10:54 PM
California Supreme Court sets up possible trials on systemic racism in California’s criminal justice system
www.horvitzlevy.com/supreme-cour...
www.horvitzlevy.com/supreme-cour...
Opinion on LGBT rights legislation — opinion for which anti-death-penalty writ petition is holding — is filing tomorrow
www.horvitzlevy.com/opinion-on-l...
www.horvitzlevy.com/opinion-on-l...
Opinion on LGBT rights legislation --- opinion for which anti-death-penalty writ petition is holding --- is filing tomorrow | Home - Horvitz & Levy LLP
Tomorrow morning, the Supreme Court will file its opinion in Taking Offense v. State of California. (Briefs here; oral argument video here.) When the court...
www.horvitzlevy.com
November 5, 2025 at 7:11 PM
Opinion on LGBT rights legislation — opinion for which anti-death-penalty writ petition is holding — is filing tomorrow
www.horvitzlevy.com/opinion-on-l...
www.horvitzlevy.com/opinion-on-l...
Voter protection” in recent decades has not meant protection from government-led violence and intimidation, but it may come down to that.
Would You Trust This Man With Your Elections? www.nytimes.com/2025/08/20/o...
Would You Trust This Man With Your Elections? www.nytimes.com/2025/08/20/o...
Opinion | Would You Trust This Man With Your Elections?
www.nytimes.com
August 20, 2025 at 9:34 PM
Voter protection” in recent decades has not meant protection from government-led violence and intimidation, but it may come down to that.
Would You Trust This Man With Your Elections? www.nytimes.com/2025/08/20/o...
Would You Trust This Man With Your Elections? www.nytimes.com/2025/08/20/o...
Republican legislators ask Supreme Court to stop redistricting bills
www.atthelectern.com/2025/08/19/r...
www.atthelectern.com/2025/08/19/r...
Republican legislators ask Supreme Court to stop redistricting bills – At The Lectern
www.atthelectern.com
August 19, 2025 at 8:43 PM
Republican legislators ask Supreme Court to stop redistricting bills
www.atthelectern.com/2025/08/19/r...
www.atthelectern.com/2025/08/19/r...
Death penalty affirmed for child murderer; concurrence calls out trial judge’s racial slur
www.atthelectern.com/2025/08/18/d...
www.atthelectern.com/2025/08/18/d...
Death penalty affirmed for child murderer; concurrence calls out trial judge’s racial slur – At The Lectern
www.atthelectern.com
August 18, 2025 at 10:53 PM
Death penalty affirmed for child murderer; concurrence calls out trial judge’s racial slur
www.atthelectern.com/2025/08/18/d...
www.atthelectern.com/2025/08/18/d...
Thought for the Fourth of July:
Among the reasons stated in the Declaration of Independence for breaking with England was that the king was “obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners” and was “refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither.”
Among the reasons stated in the Declaration of Independence for breaking with England was that the king was “obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners” and was “refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither.”
July 3, 2025 at 8:51 PM
Thought for the Fourth of July:
Among the reasons stated in the Declaration of Independence for breaking with England was that the king was “obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners” and was “refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither.”
Among the reasons stated in the Declaration of Independence for breaking with England was that the king was “obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners” and was “refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither.”
Eastman disbarment recommended by State Bar Court’s Review Department; California Supreme Court is next
www.atthelectern.com/2025/06/16/e...
www.atthelectern.com/2025/06/16/e...
Eastman disbarment recommended by State Bar Court’s Review Department; California Supreme Court is next – At The Lectern
In the unlikely event Eastman himself doesn’t ask for further review, the matter would end up in the Supreme Court anyway. All recommendations for disbarment automatically go to the court, which can choose what to do regardless of what Eastman does.
www.atthelectern.com
June 16, 2025 at 7:24 PM
Eastman disbarment recommended by State Bar Court’s Review Department; California Supreme Court is next
www.atthelectern.com/2025/06/16/e...
www.atthelectern.com/2025/06/16/e...
Hong Yen Chang gets his law license, 125 years late, after Supreme Court acknowledges a “grievous wrong” [Updated]
10-year-old post is updated with a NY Times obituary, part of the paper's "Overlooked" series
www.atthelectern.com/2015/03/16/h...
10-year-old post is updated with a NY Times obituary, part of the paper's "Overlooked" series
www.atthelectern.com/2015/03/16/h...
Hong Yen Chang gets his law license, 125 years late, after Supreme Court acknowledges a “grievous wrong” [Updated] – At The Lectern
www.atthelectern.com
June 6, 2025 at 11:57 PM
Hong Yen Chang gets his law license, 125 years late, after Supreme Court acknowledges a “grievous wrong” [Updated]
10-year-old post is updated with a NY Times obituary, part of the paper's "Overlooked" series
www.atthelectern.com/2015/03/16/h...
10-year-old post is updated with a NY Times obituary, part of the paper's "Overlooked" series
www.atthelectern.com/2015/03/16/h...
Former California Supreme Court attorney calls for abolishing the death penalty
www.atthelectern.com/2025/06/01/f...
www.atthelectern.com/2025/06/01/f...
Former Supreme Court attorney calls for abolishing the death penalty – At The Lectern
www.atthelectern.com
June 1, 2025 at 6:41 PM
Former California Supreme Court attorney calls for abolishing the death penalty
www.atthelectern.com/2025/06/01/f...
www.atthelectern.com/2025/06/01/f...
Supreme Court won’t hear same-sex wedding cake case – At The Lectern
www.atthelectern.com
May 28, 2025 at 10:45 PM
Justice Liu graduation speech gets national and international attention
“should the executive branch of Canada get so out of line that democracy in this country is threatened, hopefully our judges and lawyers will be the first to speak up.”
www.atthelectern.com/2025/05/23/j...
“should the executive branch of Canada get so out of line that democracy in this country is threatened, hopefully our judges and lawyers will be the first to speak up.”
www.atthelectern.com/2025/05/23/j...
Justice Liu graduation speech gets national and international attention – At The Lectern
www.atthelectern.com
May 23, 2025 at 8:16 PM
Justice Liu graduation speech gets national and international attention
“should the executive branch of Canada get so out of line that democracy in this country is threatened, hopefully our judges and lawyers will be the first to speak up.”
www.atthelectern.com/2025/05/23/j...
“should the executive branch of Canada get so out of line that democracy in this country is threatened, hopefully our judges and lawyers will be the first to speak up.”
www.atthelectern.com/2025/05/23/j...
A third vote for review, and another separate statement, on youth offender parole
www.atthelectern.com/2025/05/15/a...
www.atthelectern.com/2025/05/15/a...
A third vote for review, and another separate statement, on youth offender parole – At The Lectern
www.atthelectern.com
May 15, 2025 at 7:58 PM
A third vote for review, and another separate statement, on youth offender parole
www.atthelectern.com/2025/05/15/a...
www.atthelectern.com/2025/05/15/a...
Man Who Fell Asleep at Pope’s Funeral was Already Going to Hell, Says God
open.substack.com/pub/borowitz...
open.substack.com/pub/borowitz...
Man Who Fell Asleep at Pope’s Funeral was Already Going to Hell, Says God
Although snoozing during the pontiff’s funeral was “beyond rude,” the Almighty said that the man clinched his place in the netherworld “decades ago.”
open.substack.com
April 27, 2025 at 10:20 PM
Man Who Fell Asleep at Pope’s Funeral was Already Going to Hell, Says God
open.substack.com/pub/borowitz...
open.substack.com/pub/borowitz...
“The children died one after the other.”
There’s a special place in hell for those in this administration — high, low, and in the middle — responsible for this.
www.nytimes.com/2025/04/19/w...
There’s a special place in hell for those in this administration — high, low, and in the middle — responsible for this.
www.nytimes.com/2025/04/19/w...
As Famine Rages in Sudan, U.S. Aid Remains Scarce
The stark consequences of the rollback are evident in few places as clearly as in Sudan, where a brutal civil war has combined with a staggering humanitarian catastrophe.
www.nytimes.com
April 20, 2025 at 5:55 PM
“The children died one after the other.”
There’s a special place in hell for those in this administration — high, low, and in the middle — responsible for this.
www.nytimes.com/2025/04/19/w...
There’s a special place in hell for those in this administration — high, low, and in the middle — responsible for this.
www.nytimes.com/2025/04/19/w...
Former California Supreme Court Justice Cuéllar on how to respond to “a relentlessly power-hungry administration”
www.atthelectern.com/2025/04/18/f...
www.atthelectern.com/2025/04/18/f...
Former Justice Cuéllar on how to respond to “a relentlessly power-hungry administration” – At The Lectern
www.atthelectern.com
April 18, 2025 at 10:04 PM
Former California Supreme Court Justice Cuéllar on how to respond to “a relentlessly power-hungry administration”
www.atthelectern.com/2025/04/18/f...
www.atthelectern.com/2025/04/18/f...
Big early-May calendar includes case that might address “culture war” issue
California Supreme Court might or might not decide transgender rights issue
www.atthelectern.com/2025/04/17/b...
California Supreme Court might or might not decide transgender rights issue
www.atthelectern.com/2025/04/17/b...
Big early-May calendar includes case that might address “culture war” issue – At The Lectern
www.atthelectern.com
April 17, 2025 at 7:31 PM
Big early-May calendar includes case that might address “culture war” issue
California Supreme Court might or might not decide transgender rights issue
www.atthelectern.com/2025/04/17/b...
California Supreme Court might or might not decide transgender rights issue
www.atthelectern.com/2025/04/17/b...
Historical Society’s latest Review focuses on restrictive covenants
"This Review might not be welcomed by the federal government or in Florida."
www.atthelectern.com/2025/04/15/h...
"This Review might not be welcomed by the federal government or in Florida."
www.atthelectern.com/2025/04/15/h...
Historical Society’s latest Review focuses on restrictive covenants – At The Lectern
www.atthelectern.com
April 17, 2025 at 12:08 AM
Historical Society’s latest Review focuses on restrictive covenants
"This Review might not be welcomed by the federal government or in Florida."
www.atthelectern.com/2025/04/15/h...
"This Review might not be welcomed by the federal government or in Florida."
www.atthelectern.com/2025/04/15/h...
April 7, 2025 at 6:17 AM
Chief Justice has signed slavery apology, we think – At The Lectern
www.atthelectern.com
April 3, 2025 at 12:33 AM
“I’ll tell him to his face. No problem,” he said. “I’ll tell him, ‘You’re a racist,’ and see what he has to say about that.”
apnews.com/article/surv...
apnews.com/article/surv...
One of the last surviving Tuskegee Airmen remembers struggle for recognition amid Trump's DEI purge
James H. Harvey III is 101 years old and one of the last surviving Tuskegee Airmen. The Black U.S. Air Force pilots and crew based at the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama fought in North Africa and Europ...
apnews.com
March 24, 2025 at 7:19 PM
“I’ll tell him to his face. No problem,” he said. “I’ll tell him, ‘You’re a racist,’ and see what he has to say about that.”
apnews.com/article/surv...
apnews.com/article/surv...
Chief Justice: “no one is above the law, no one is outside of the law”
This is the second year in a row that California's CJ has taken an implicit swipe at the U.S. Supreme Court
www.atthelectern.com/2025/03/18/c...
This is the second year in a row that California's CJ has taken an implicit swipe at the U.S. Supreme Court
www.atthelectern.com/2025/03/18/c...
Chief Justice: “no one is above the law, no one is outside of the law” – At The Lectern
www.atthelectern.com
March 18, 2025 at 11:54 PM
Chief Justice: “no one is above the law, no one is outside of the law”
This is the second year in a row that California's CJ has taken an implicit swipe at the U.S. Supreme Court
www.atthelectern.com/2025/03/18/c...
This is the second year in a row that California's CJ has taken an implicit swipe at the U.S. Supreme Court
www.atthelectern.com/2025/03/18/c...