Opening Thoughts

Call For Nominations!

In October, the Vanguard will host our annual Awards Gala in Sacramento, CA. At the Vanguard Awards, we will honor the work of individuals and groups on behalf of criminal justice reform, decarceration, anti-racism, and other social justice efforts. 

Awards will be presented on Thursday October 19, 2023 during the Awards Gala at The Bank: 629 J St Sacramento, CA 95814.

Submit Your Nominations!

If you know an individual or organization who you believe should be honored at the event, please submit this form to nominate them. Here are the categories that we are recognizing.

Award Categories:

Youth Social Justice - Honors a youth (college or high school age) whose work on behalf of criminal and/or social justice reform is worthy of commendation.

Civil Rights Award - Honors an individual's overall achievement in the area of criminal and/or social justice reform.

Organization Award - Honors a group or organization's work on criminal and/or social justice issues.

Elected Official Award- Honors an elected official who sponsors policies or legislation that benefit the cause of justice reform.

Law School Award - Honors the work of law schools in the above fields. Examples include: programs like the UC Davis Immigration Clinic, Law School organizations, or Innocence Projects.

Distinguished Attorney Award - Honors the work of an attorney who goes above and beyond the call of duty in the area of criminal justice reform.

Formerly Incarcerated Leadership Award - Honors the work of a formerly incarcerated individual who has turned their life around and is giving back to their community.

Wrongful Conviction Award - Honors a wrongfully convicted individual who has been freed and is now paying it forward with their furthering of the cause of justice.

Lifetime Achievement Award- Honors the body of work of someone who has dedicated their life to criminal justice reform.

To nominate someone - hit the link.



Be sure to follow us on Twitter, SoundCloud, YouTube, and Become a Monthly Donor.

In an unusual turn of events, Yolo County Judicial Officer Catherine Hohenwarter issued a warrant to West Village UCD, LLC after the company failed to respond to a default judgment and failed to appear

Read More

It is a pleasure to share with you the Village Farms Davis’ completed version of the draft rubric introduced in Item 8 of the June 6, 2023 Council meeting. We went through a number of iterations

Read More

On October 19, 2023 at 6 pm at the Bank in Sacramento, the Vanguard News Group will be hosting its annual Gala and Justice Awards Ceremony.

Read More

In an order to show cause hearing in the Yolo County Superior Court Thursday, Judge Sonia Cortés granted the Department of State Hospitals (DSH) a motion asking for 30 more days to transfer the accused

Read More

In an order to show cause hearing in the Yolo County Superior Court Thursday, Judge Sonia Cortés granted the Department of State Hospitals (DSH) a motion asking for 30 more days to transfer the accused

Read More

Though more often aligned with Republican politicians and their goals, my position as a proud Californian who believes in true justice transcends politics. So, now, I’m amongst the millions of citizens who disapprove

Read More

The East Block Condemned Unit at San Quentin lost all functioning water usage inside the building at around 6 AM. It was announced over the unit’s public address system that “this is throughout the entire institution due

Read More

This week on Everyday Injustice, we are joined by Yusuf Dahl, formerly incarcerated for the distribution of drugs, now a successful entrepreneur.

Read More

This week on Everyday Injustice features Jon B. Gould, the Dean of UC Irvine school of Social Ecology. Gould is a distinguished scholar in justice policy, social change and government reform, has held key positions in the U.S.

Read More

THE RECALL: REFRAMED examines the 2018 recall election of California Judge Aaron Persky, who lost his judgeship after handing down a six month jail sentence to Stanford swimmer Brock Turner

Read More

California’s Supreme Court has approved a new rule, commonly known as the “Snitch Rule,” that requires attorneys to report any lawyer who engages in criminal acts, fraud, misappropriation

Read More

Felony charges were filed Wednesday by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office against Atlas Metals, a metal recycling plant allegedly responsible for decades of toxic pollution in the Watts community.

Read More

The Florida Supreme Court has ruled against State Attorney Andrew Warren – suspended by Gov. Ron DeSantis because of Warren’s opposition to abortion restrictions – and denied his appeal for reinstatement.

Read More

There are many reasons for attorneys to advertise on the Vanguard but the biggest are – affordability, large audience and key targets read the site.

Read More

Netflix has gradually implemented its new password policy in certain countries like Canada, New Zealand, Spain, and Portugal. The United States is now the next country to experience the password crackdown.

Read More

On May 22nd, California, Nevada, and Arizona, and the Mohave, Chemehuevi, Hopi, and Navajo tribes reached an agreement to use less water from the Colorado River. These lower-basin states and tribes have agreed to collectively

Read More

Berkeley Law Professor Nazune Menka develops a course unpacking the history of UC Berkeley through a critical settler colonialism lens: “Decolonizing UC Berkeley.”

Read More