PJLC Petitions the CA Supreme Court to Hear OC Gang Injunction Case

The Peace and Justice Law Center (PJLC) has petitioned the California Supreme Court to review a case that could determine the future of gang injunctions across California. The petition challenges the legal process prosecutors use to impose sweeping civil restrictions on people who were never named as defendants in court.

The case arises from Orange County’s use of a gang injunction covering a Santa Ana neighborhood. Prosecutors obtained the injunction by suing an alleged gang as an “unincorporated association,” a strategy that virtually guarantees a default judgment because a criminal organization cannot appear in court to defend itself. Once the injunction was entered, prosecutors sought to enforce it against individuals years later, even though those individuals had no opportunity to challenge the injunction before it took effect.

PJLC argues this process violates both state law and basic due process. California law defines an unincorporated association as a group formed for a lawful purpose, which criminal street gangs are not. Treating gangs as legal entities allows prosecutors to sidestep individualized court proceedings while imposing restrictions that function like permanent criminal probation.

The real-world impact is severe. People subject to gang injunctions face arrest for ordinary, lawful activities, such as walking to neighborhood food vendors, being out at night, or being seen in public with neighbors. These restrictions disrupt daily life, increase the risk of jail, and undermine social integration—an outcome that research consistently shows makes communities less safe, not more.

PJLC’s petition also asks the Supreme Court to resolve conflicting appellate decisions that have allowed this practice to continue. If the Court reverses the lower court, the ruling would provide grounds to invalidate gang injunctions statewide and require prosecutors to bring cases against individuals directly, with full constitutional protections.

PJLC will continue to pursue this case as part of its broader effort to end gang injunctions and replace them with approaches that respect constitutional rights and promote real community safety.

Update: The California Supreme Court decided not to hear the case but also denied the DA's request to publish the case. The decision not to publish the case means that the lower court's decision is not binding against anyone else. PJLC continues to represent our client in the case and continues to fight not just for his civil rights, but for an end to all gang injunctions.