Restoration and Justice Clinic Secures Case Dismissal for Client

Pepperdine Caruso Law second-year students Hirni Shah, Katlyn Kenney, Nikita Patel, and Parmida Davoudi helped secure a dismissal of a criminal case in San Jose, California, for their Restoration and Justice Clinic client. The client was a victim of human trafficking.

In the fall of 2025, Patel and Davoudi worked to seek a dismissal of the client’s case, coordinating with the District Attorney’s and Public Defender’s Offices in San Jose. They appeared remotely with her at her arraignment and after her case was continued, they worked with the San Jose Public Defender’s Office to assign her a public defender.

Shah and Kenney took over the client’s case in the spring of 2026, where they worked with a new public defender to explain that their client’s case was a result of her forced criminalization through her trafficking. The public defender provided this information and letters from the clinic to the district attorney, which the public defender shared was the reason for dismissal.