Walnut Creek Superior Court

Contra Costa County Superior Court

The Supreme Court of Contra Costa County, formerly known as the Superior Court of California, County of Contra Costa, is the branch of the Superior Court of California located in county Contra Costa. It has four courthouses: Martinez, Pittsburg, Walnut Creek and Richmond.

Judges

From 1968 until 1970, when he was appointed to the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, Samuel Conti was a Superior Court judge in Contra Costa County.

California Governor Gray Davis named Barry Goode to serve on the Contra Costa County Superior Court on November 11, 2003, just days before he left office following an unprecedented recall vote.

In June 2019, a three-person jury appointed by the California Commission on Judicial Performance found Judge John Laettner guilty of intentional misconduct, on finding that he had “engaged in misconduct on multiple occasions during the past decade, making improper statements to women and raising the bail of a defendant without a trial …”

Deputy public defender Rebecca Brackman of the Contra Costa Public Defenders Association, was quoted by San Francisco Chronicle as stating that the outcome is an “overwhelming rebuke of Judge Laettner’s actions” and that “This sends a clear signal that judges need to uphold our community values of fairness, equity, and basic dignity and respect, regardless of gender, race, and background”. Laettner’s attorney, Laettner’s attorney, James Murphy maintained that the outcome was a product of a “smear campaign”, having stated, on April 26, during the hearing, that “the public defender’s office from Contra Costa County was out to get Judge Laettner”.

CONTRA COSTA COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT UPDATED COURT CLOSURE AND ACCEPTANCE OF FILINGS

The Court has sought permission from the Chief Justice to continue its closure until April 30th, 2020, and will issue a further release with details of what will be resumed by the Court during any prolonged closure time. Although offices and premises of the Court remain locked, the Court will begin to accept such urgent filings as follows:

Emergency Criminal and Juvenile Matters. The Court will accept filings for emergency criminal and juvenile matters only beginning March 30, 2020.

• Crime files will be accepted via a dropbox located at the Wakefield Taylor Courthouse’s Main Street entrance in Martinez.
• The Walnut Creek Courthouse will accept juvenile files through a drop box.
• “Emergency matters” will be clearly specified in the Local Emergency Rules which will be posted as soon as possible on the Court’s website.

All other matters EXCEPT Traffic and Unlawful Detainer matters.  On April 6, 2020, the Court will start accepting such applications for these matters. Local emergency rules regulating such applications will be posted on the Court’s website by April 1 , 2020.

• Civil and family filings will be accepted at a dropbox located at the Wakefield Taylor Courthouse entrance on Martinez’s Main Street.
• Also family filings will only be accepted through a dropbox at the front of the Martinez Family Law building.

• Unlawful Detainer matters may not be filed at this time.

• Traffic matters will not be handled at this time. The Court remains closed if you seek to pay or challenge a traffic ticket. When reopening please contact the Court. No penalties or fines accrue to the Court during the closure.
• Additional drop boxes available at branch courts. Drop boxes will also be made available at the Pittsburgh and Richmond branch courts starting on April 6 only for filings in case types heard at those locations.
• Acceptance of filings by mail/delivery. The Court may consider approved submissions by mail or any other delivery such as FedEx, as specified by the case-type Emergency Local Rules. Couriers will have no access to the facilities of the Court, only to the drop boxes.

The Court will not schedule hearings or reset hearings held during the closing time before the Court reopened, except for the urgent matters mentioned above and those to be set out in Emergency Local Laws. The Tribunal will remind you of the date of the rescheduled hearing. Please do not call demanding a date from the Appeal.

On 31 March 2020, in compliance with the Cesar Chavez holiday, the Court will be closed completely.

As with its initial closure, the Court’s request for a continued emergency order and restricted closure is not in response to a particular warning of disclosure at any court facility or at any court personnel.