New California Bill Requires Recording for Homicide Interrogations

On Sept 28th, 2016 Gov. Jerry Brown signed a new law that makes it mandatory for California law enforcement to record manslaughter interrogations. This is to improve on getting rightful convictions of guilty criminals and protecting those falsely accused. Before, the law stated that a recording was only necessary for juvenile murder investigations.

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The bill is one of three bills sponsored by the Northern California Innocent Project, whose mission is to protect the rights of the innocent and to promote a fair criminal justice system.

Lucy Salcido Carter, the policy director of this non-profit, commented on how this will improve catching the guilty and  protect the wrongfully convicted, “This bill helps prevent wrongful convictions by reducing the likelihood of a false confession, a common cause of wrongful conviction”. The law hopes to use the recorded interviews to provide evidence on falsely committed individuals and for the true confessions of guilty criminals. 

The bill's objective is one of many steps to create a more sound judicial structure for criminal law in California . 


​To learn more about this law click here
To read more about the newly signed bills, click here​

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