PJLC
Consults on Last Week Tonight Exposing the Dangers of Gang
Databases

The Peace and Justice Law Center (PJLC) served as a key consultant on the recent July 27th episode of HBO’s Last Week Tonight with John Oliver examining the growing dangers of law enforcement gang databases, particularly as they are being repurposed by the Trump administration as an excuse for the administration's unconstitutional and unpopular deportation program. The segment explained how these databases are unreliable, racially biased, and prone to error—yet continue to be used to justify surveillance, prosecution, and deportation.

Gang databases are lists maintained by law enforcement agencies that label people as gang members based on broad, often secret criteria. In California, years of litigation and advocacy have demonstrated that these systems routinely misidentify people, disproportionately target communities of color, and lack meaningful oversight. As a result, California enacted reforms limiting their use. The episode highlighted how federal officials are now relying on similar discredited practices, despite the documented harms.

PJLC worked closely with the episode’s lead writer to explain how gang databases operate in practice, why they are structurally unreliable, and how they have been used to justify racialized policing and deportation. Drawing on its direct experience developing California’s regulations governing shared gang databases and litigating some of the first successful gang database removal cases in the state, PJLC helped shape the episode’s legal critique and supporting analysis.

The episode concluded with a performance by singer Larry “LV” Sanders, whose story was central to the segment’s themes. LV was invited to participate because of his direct experience as a client of PJLC's lead attorney, Sean Garcia-Leys. LV was wrongly labeled a gang member and removed from the gang database as a result of Garcia-Leys' work. LV's appearance underscored how abstract data systems translate into real harm—and how targeted legal advocacy can undo that harm.

Following the broadcast, the episode generated significant public discussion online. Viewers and commentators focused on the ease with which people can be labeled as gang members, the lack of due process protections, and the broader implications for civil liberties. On social media and discussion forums, many viewers connected the segment to ongoing national debates about immigration enforcement, policing, and the erosion of constitutional safeguards. Entertainment and issue-focused websites also published summaries emphasizing the episode’s central conclusion: that gang databases function less as public safety tools and more as mechanisms for unchecked government power.

This national attention builds on PJLC’s broader body of work, including litigation challenging unlawful gang database practices, policy advocacy that led to California’s database reform laws, and recent public reporting warning that these systems are being revived at the federal level. Together, this work reflects a long-term strategy to pair courtroom advocacy with public education and accountability.

PJLC will continue to challenge the misuse of gang databases through litigation, policy advocacy, and public education, while working to ensure that hard-won reforms are enforced and expanded. Media visibility of this kind helps ensure that technical legal work translates into public understanding—and into pressure for lasting change.

Watch the episode:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlR8d9JVWtQ