Under health & safety code 11357, a person possessing less than an ounce of pot can be punished by no more than a $100 fine. But if he tries to sell the weed or is found to possess the marijuana for sale, he can be charged with a felony and sent to prison for up to 3 years.
The policy aims of the legislature are clear: give casual users no more than a slap on the wrist, but go after growers and sellers with a fierce sword. In fact, the penalties for selling or possessing for sale marijuana nearly match those pertaining to illicit drugs such as cocaine or heroin.
Not only are these laws inconsistent, but police, prosecutors and courts spend hundreds of millions of dollars each year enforcing marijuana "crimes." This occurs in spite of ample evidence that marijuana is a benign substance that actually relieves stress and provides medical benefits.
]]>But California Penal Code 148 reads broader than just the traditional notion of "resisting arrest." It applies to situations where a suspect is "resisting, delaying or otherwise obstructing" a peace officer or emergency medical technician in performing his/her duties. Basically this means anything that thwarts a peace officer in conducting an investigation and facilitating arrest qualifies as “resisting arrest.” Other examples would include providing a false identity to an arresting officer or filing a false police report.
Penal Code 148 is a California misdemeanor that could land a person in jail for up to one year. Many of these cases involve a police officer's word against a suspect's word. In that situation, defense attorneys will want to conduct a "Pitchess Motion" to see the entire personnel and complaint history of the officer. It may turn out the cop has been accused in the past of excessive force and making false accusations against suspects. If so, the defense can use this to impeach the officer's credibility, and often get the resisting arrest case reduced or dismissed.
]]>In that case, the prosecution charged Jackson with seven counts of Penal Code 288 -- Lewd Acts with a Child Under 14. The judge also allowed prosecutors to bring in evidence of other uncharged allegations of Jackson's inappropriate sexual activity with children.
Early on in the case, legal experts felt that the evidence against Jackson was compelling, and he faced very likely conviction. But after one of the most celebrated and closely-watched criminal trials, a jury acquitted Jackson of all charges on June 13, 2005--almost exactly four years before his death.
]]>California Vehicle Code 12500 is a relatively straightforward statute. It makes it a crime to drive without a validly issued license. This most often applies to people who never obtained a drivers license in the first place, or who failed to renew their license upon expiration, or people who moved to California and failed to switch from a license issued in the previous state to a California drivers license.
Vehicle Code 14601, on the other hand, applies to someone who had a valid driver’s license but whose license got suspended. The reasons for the suspension could include a California DUI conviction, failure to pay traffic fines and DMV fees, or becoming a "negligent operator" accumulating too many points on one's driving record.
Vehicle Code 14601 cases can be more difficult for the prosecutor to prove. To be guilty of the crime, the driver must have knowledge that his license was suspended at the time of driving. Unless a judge, police officer or DMV official specifically advised him/her of the suspension, this "knowledge" element can be difficult to prove (beyond a reasonable doubt, anyhow). But though VC 14601 is a tougher crime for the state to substantiate, the penalties for California Vehicle Code 14601 are substantially greater.
]]>This huge jail facility houses inmates that are on maximum security as well as inmates that have medical conditions. Inmates that require a variety of serious medical and mental health needs are also accommodated at the Twin Towers Jail in Los Angeles because they have a full-service medical response unit to provide treatment for the inmates both at the Medical Services Building and the Medical Center Jail Ward. All other inmates requiring comprehensive medical attention are transported to the Los Angeles Medical Center.
]]>The details of the attack weren’t reported, although it can be assumed that the firefighter wasn’t fighting a fire or otherwise engaged in the “performance of his duties” based on the fact that the Sherriff deputies were only charged with misdemeanors. Even though he was “off-duty”, if he had been in the act of trying to either save someone/something or fight a fire, the deputies would have most likely faced felony counts of assault and battery.
This is because firefighters, peace officers, doctors, nurses and a host of others receive special protection under California Penal Code sections 243 (b) and (c) when they are (1) engaged in the performance of their duties…whether on or off-duty, and (2) their assailant(s) knew or should have known that they were engaged in the performance of those duties.
If the fireman fit into that category, the deputies would have faced up to four years in the California State Prison and a possible “strike” on their records under Three Strikes Law, depending on how severely the firefighter was injured. As it was, both men were assigned community service and one of the deputies was additionally ordered to attend a year’s worth of AA meetings. Both deputies were relieved of duty without pay and are pending investigations to determine their final status within the department.
California Penal Code 242 battery is "any willful and unlawful use of force or violence upon another person." This offense is usually charged when the person committing the battery has no domestic-type relation to the alleged victim.
California Penal Code section 243 (e) (1) “simple domestic battery” is the misdemeanor charge and, therefore, the least serious of these three domestic violence offenses. To be convicted here, all you have to do is intentionally “touch” your “intimate partner” in an offensive or angry manner…that’s it…he/she doesn’t even need to be injured, only offended. 243 (e) (1) also has a broad definition of “intimate partners”. Here, your “intimate partner” includes your fiancé or fiancée, your current or former spouse, someone with whom you live or lived, anyone you are or were dating, or the parent of your child.
California Penal Code section 273.5 “willful infliction of corporal injury” is a bit more serious, in that it requires the accuser to at least suffer some type of injury. The accuser must sustain a “traumatic condition” which can actually be as insignificant as a red-mark or scratch. Here, your “fiancé/fiancée” and “people you are or were dating” do not qualify as “intimate partners”. Although this section could be filed as either a misdemeanor or a felony, it would typically only be filed over the 243(e)(1) above if prosecutors were pursuing the felony allegation.
California Penal Code section 243 (d) “aggravated battery” is the felony “catchall” for domestic battery purposes. This section, too, can be filed as either a misdemeanor or a felony, but would typically only be used in a spousal abuse situation if there was a “serious bodily injury” -- rising to felony level -- and the accuser didn’t meet the definition of “intimate partner” in 273.5 above.
]]>Sexual battery (Penal Code 243.4), in California, takes place when someone touches another’s “intimate part” (a female’s breast or anyone’s buttocks, anus, groin, or sexual organ) without consent and for a sexual purpose. Depending on the circumstances, the crime may be charged as either a misdemeanor or a felony.
California looks at “sexual assault” as sort of a catchall phrase that includes any type of offensive sexual contact. It can refer to sexual battery, rape, sodomy, penetration with a foreign object, or other sexual acts that are done against one’s will or without one’s consent. Sexual assault is not a crime in-and-of itself, but rather is a term used to describe a wide variety of California sex offenses.
Rape is always a felony offense in California and is defined under California Penal Code section 261 as nonconsensual sexual intercourse. This California sex crime may be charged any time there is an act of intercourse, no matter how slight the penetration is. A California rape conviction will result in a three, six or eight year sentence in the California State Prison.
]]>Although ADW is typically thought of as requiring a weapon, the law actually reads much broader than that. California’s Penal Code section 245(a)(1) not only addresses assault with a deadly weapon but also refers to any instrument or force that is likely to cause a substantial injury. That is how the felony complaint against the entertainer read – that he used “force likely to produce great bodily injury”.
This is precisely the type of case that leaves people wondering - what qualifies as a deadly weapon? Deadly weapons are defined as weapons, instruments or other objects that are able and likely to cause death or serious injury.
Los Angeles courts have typically held that people’s body parts are not “deadly weapons." Yet they can be used as a basis for this type of aggravated assault charge if they are used in a way that is likely to severely injure another. ADW is simply the “catchall” phrase that is commonly associated with aggravated assault, but it’s only one way to invite the charge.
Darrell York , a former 24-year veteran law enforcement officer with the Glendale Police Department , has joined the Los Angeles-based Shouse Law Group.
During his police career, Darrell York undertook a wide range of assignments...from patrol to narcotics to internal affairs to sergeant and watch commander. He made literally thousands of arrests, investigated nearly every type of crime, and trained new police recruits.
Now as a criminal defense attorney, Darrell York uses this extensive police background to aid him in investigating and defending criminal cases for his clients. Mr. York works on all kinds of criminal cases, from Penal Code 187 murder to fraud to Penal Code 273.5 domestic violence . But he maintains a particular focus on California DUI and drunk driving law.
The Shouse Law Group is a firm of California criminal defense lawyers comprised largely of former police and former prosecutors. The firm has offices in Los Angeles, Ventura County, Orange county, San Bernardino and Riverside.
California drug trafficking cases often involve multiple charges originating from different sections of the federal Controlled Substances Act. In the San Bernardino drug probe, some of the charges mentioned in the Press-Enterprise story are conspiracy, cocaine transportation, and possessing cocaine for sale.
Any one of these charges is quite serious for the defendants involved. Depending on the quantities of cocaine involved in the case, first-time offenders listed as defendants in this case and charged with possessing cocaine for sale could receive up to 10 years in prison as a minimum sentence. Prior felony drug convictions increase jail time and other penalties by a considerable amount.
]]> A cocaine trafficking case must establish beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendants in possession of the cocaine intended to sell the drug. When the defendants in the San Bernardino drug crime case are tried, the prosecuting attorney will point to the amount of cocaine possessed, as well as any suspicious amounts of cash found in the defendants’ possession as being proof of intent to distribute.In the San Bernardino case, the prosecuting attorneys will attempt to use allegations made by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) investigators who claim that the defendants made numerous pick-ups and deliveries of cocaine during the course of the month-long investigation—allegedly totaling over 1,200 pounds of cocaine.
Drug crimes charges are a serious matter at any scale, from simple possession to felony trafficking charges, and deserve the attentions of an experienced California drug crimes lawyer. Contact us for a free case evaluation.
]]>The news came less than two months after the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced the arrest of 10 people on felony warrants for welfare fraud. DA officials allege that the individuals involved in the charges had defrauded welfare programs for more than $460,000 in money and services.
These two examples of fraud in Southern California illustrate the highly diverse nature of what are commonly called “white collar crimes.” White collar crime in Southern California is a loose set of non-violent criminal activity typically associated with business people, investors and other professionals in positions of trust.
]]> Although the DA’s office arrests and the in-home care allegations can be loosely termed fraud, the conditions surrounding the in-home care case more closely fits with the common definition of a Los Angeles white collar crime—that is, a crime involving a breach of trust by a professional acting in a professional capacity. Of course, all of this is mere speculation until arrests are made and the facts determined in a court of law.Welfare fraud in Los Angeles committed by individuals for personal gain also falls within the broad definition of white collar crime. The act of welfare fraud often involves making false statements and/or perjury, which is a breach of trust.
White collar crime, including fraud, is a serious threat to a defendant’s rights and reputation. An experienced Southern California fraud lawyer will act quickly to limit the potential harm posed by allegations of fraud.
]]>Bratton cited a $500,000 shortfall in federal funding and delays in hiring 16 new lab technicians which strained the crime lab’s ability to process DNA evidence. In the NPR interview, Bratton stated that processing DNA evidence is “extraordinarily labor-intensive…not CSI,” and that “there are just not enough people in the crime lab to do the work.”
That situation is not likely to improve soon. Beginning this year, 2009, the state of California will be required to collect DNA from all adults arrested—not charged—for a felony offense. This is an expansion of existing California law, which mandated the collection of DNA samples from adults arrested—not charged—for California felony sex offenses, murder or manslaughter.
]]> As of October 2008, backlog of unprocessed DNA stood at 35,765. In October, the backlog of samples grew by over 4,000 although over 22,000 DNA samples were removed for various reasons. As the new mandated samples flood the crime labs, the DNA backlog is likely to increase at an unprecedented rate.These are the elements of an evidentiary perfect storm: an ever expanding backlog of unprocessed DNA samples, insufficient manpower and funding, and pressure from politicians and the public to “do something” about crime. The potential for mistakes are greatly elevated. In cases where DNA evidence is used, the state must be carefully watched, and if needed challenged, so that mistakes and rushed investigations do not cause a miscarriage of justice.
If you have any questions retarding the use of DNA evidence in your case, contact the top Los Angeles criminal defense attorneys at Shouse and Associates.
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