It is with great sadness that SJCL announces the passing of Professor Phillip Cherney on January 31, 2025. He was 75. Professor Cherney began teaching Criminal Law at SJCL in 2014. He impressed upon his students his passion for the protection of individual rights, the defense of death row clients, and the pursuit of justice, in conjunction with human compassion.
A well-respected attorney in the legal community with over four decades of trial and appellate experience, Professor Cherney focused his entire career on criminal defense.
Professor Cherney began his law career in Palo Alto in 1977. Ten years later he moved to Visalia and worked as a Tulare County Deputy Public Defender, overseeing felony trials. He went into private practice in 1994. Over the next 25 years, he worked on many notable cases, including the murder trial of Richard Allen Davis. Davis’ criminal record was instrumental in the implementation of California’s “three-strikes law.”
After retiring from active practice in 2019, Professor Cherney worked as a consultant to public defender agencies and private counsel in death penalty litigation. He also testified as an expert witness on professional standards and practices for defense counsel, and he published scholarly articles on select topics in criminal law.
Both Professor Cherney’s legal career and teaching style were driven by his belief that justice and “truth in sentencing” be equally applied to all within the criminal justice system.
Professor Cherney was a spiritual man who was passionate about justice and intellectual curiosity. These passions were balanced by his personal passions for travel, golf, film, long-distance running, and, most of all, family. He made many friends at SJCL and will be deeply missed.
His family is planning a memorial service in the spring.