Judge Orders Hearing on Charges of Bias
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A federal district court judge in Los Angeles said Monday that she would hold an evidentiary hearing with another federal judge on allegations that the U.S. attorney’s office has discriminated against blacks and Latinos while enforcing a law requiring stiff sentences for drug dealing within 1,000 feet of schoolyards, playgrounds and video arcades. The unusual joint hearing has been scheduled for June 17.
U.S. District Court Judge Mariana R. Pfaelzer made the ruling in a case concerning drug defendant Jose Bellido.
The controversy over the law surfaced nearly two years ago when a group of defense lawyers stated that 89 of the 93 people prosecuted in Los Angeles federal court were either black or Latino.
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