San Francisco’s Hall of Justice at 850 Bryant St. is not a romantic place. Its ground floor courts can upend defendants’ lives. The exterior is an austere reinforced-concrete monument to 1960s utilitarian architecture. In 2017, feces literally streamed down its walls.
Still, it is a crossroads for love in all its forms, filled with parents, partners, and children waiting to see loved ones. This is true at any time of year, but particularly as Valentines’ Day approaches.
On Jan. 30, Naya stood outside the jail next to the courthouse, watching the road. She hoped to catch a glimpse of the vehicle transporting her boyfriend, Harvey, from the San Francisco county jail in San Bruno to the Hall of Justice for his probation hearing.
Harvey was taken into custody in December, she said. He missed his daughter’s birthday, Christmas, and New Year’s. When the 26-year-old discovered she was pregnant with another child, she had to tell him over the phone. He called most days, and when he didn’t, Naya assumed the jail was on lockdown. It was, Naya said, “stressful and sad.”
“Really, all we have is each other.”
Mission Local spoke to two women who were in court on a recent Friday to watch their partners’ probation hearings. Both described how hard it was to lose control over when they’d see their loved ones, and how nerve wracking to know that a few minutes in court could change everything.
That same day, Tiana, 32, was waiting inside a courtroom.
Her boyfriend of four years, Lovell, has been in custody since Halloween, she said. After his arrest, she lost her housing. She couldn’t keep up with expenses on her own, and had to send her children to stay with their biological father. It was the first time she’d spent the holidays alone.
Tiana hasn’t been able to visit Lovell in person, she said, because she doesn’t have a way to get to the county jail in San Bruno. Her attempts to set up Zoom visits have been unsuccessful. The Hall of Justice is the only place she has a shot at seeing him face to face, even if it is behind plexiglass.
The couple doesn’t know when he will come home, so they’re taking a hiatus on their shared activities. Lovell doesn’t play card games in jail that he and Tiana used to play together at home. She doesn’t watch any new movies or shows, so that they can see them together once he gets out. It’ll only be a matter of time, they tell each other.
Recently, a glimmer of hope appeared: Tiana heard that Lovell was going to be referred to a substance use program at his probation officer’s recommendation. She was at court that day for his hearing.
It was not to be. Lovell’s gun possession case was dismissed in San Francisco but only because the federal government was going to prosecute it instead, Tiana learned.
She cried so hard her false eyelashes fell off. “It’s not the news I was expecting,” she said outside the courtroom. “It’s like my whole world is just falling apart.”
In the days after Lovell’s court appearance, Tiana checked the booking logs every day. A week later, on Feb. 6, there was an update: “FELONY ENROUTE WARRANT.” She ran back to the courthouse, her oversized puffer coat falling off her slim frame.
This time, she wore no fake eyelashes. She paced outside the courtroom, waiting for his name to be called. The only thing that kept her sitting still was talking about her favorite memory of him — the day her three-year-old daughter asked Lovell if she could call him “dad.” Then Lovell’s hearing began, and she stepped inside.
It lasted a couple minutes. It was official: He was being transferred to federal custody. Tiana cried again. “I don’t even know where he’s going,” she said.
For the past week, Naya had also been nervous. There were times when she’d shown up to court for one of Harvey’s hearings, only to discover that his lawyer had been changed or his hearing date pushed back.
But recently things have looked up. Harvey had a strong attorney, she said. A few deputies on the inside have been kind to him. And her boyfriend is resilient — this is still the man who’d asked her out seven times before she acquiesced to a date.
Two days after Tiana went home alone, Naya finally got good news.
On Feb. 8, Harvey was released. He’s organized Valentine’s Day plans, and Naya is ready for a welcome surprise.