Board of Directors
John L. Burris
John L. Burris is a San Francisco Bay Area civil rights attorney
specializing in police misconduct, employment related discrimination
and criminal cases. Burris began his legal career as
a general litigator at Jenner and Block in Chicago and later became
a prosecutor at the Cook County State's Attorney Office.
Burris represented 119 plaintiffs against the City of Oakland in
a case known as the “Riders.” The “Riders” were
four rogue Oakland Police Department (OPD) officers who engaged in
a wide range of police misconduct. The "Riders" case
settled for $10.9 million. The case resulted in an important
Consent Decree that places the OPD under a court monitor for five
years.
Burris' notable clients have included Rodney King, Tupac Shakur,
D’Wayne Wiggins, NBA Basketball stars Gary Payton and Jason
Kidd, actor Delroy Lindo and many public officials and employees. He
has also litigated numerous police cases that have influenced policy
regarding the use of canines, deadly force, treatment of the mentally
impaired, hog-tying, pepper spray, etc. Additionally,
Burris is the author of BLUE VS. BLACK, Let’s End the Conflict
Between Cops and Minorities.
Born and raised in Vallejo, California, Burris obtained a Bachelor
of Science in Accounting from Golden Gate University, a Masters in
Business Administration from U.C. Berkeley Graduate School of Business
and a law degree from Berkeley’s Boalt Hall in 1973. He is
married to North Carolina Central Law Professor, Cheryl Burris; between
them they have nine children.
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