Tag Archives: prison sentence

AB472 California State Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D- San Francisco) introduced a bill on February 15, 2011 regarding drug overdose.  As it currently stands in California, a high rate of drug overdose deaths occur because people are afraid of police and …

LEGAL GUIDE TO SURVIVING STAGECOACH 2012 Stagecoach Festival is country music’s answer to Coachella Fest.  Stagecoach follows Coachella Fest every year, and brings in just as many fun-loving, music-appreciating, rowdy fans as its rival Coachella Fest.  The cowboys and cowgirls …

Criminal Threats: In General Criminal threats are exactly as they sound: threats of a criminal nature.  Meaning, they are threats of hurting or harming someone.  They are threats of causing great bodily injury, or even death.  The threats can be …

Most of America is tuned in to the George Zimmerman/Trayvon Martin case.  A child of 17 was gunned down by a concerned neighborhood watchman.  This blog and this firm will not get into whether he did or did not do …

Cops lie.  Shocking, I know.  But it’s true.  Cops lie.  Attorneys lie.  Sometimes even clients lie.  Not me and not you, but some others.  Here’s a lie that a was recently told to a client that particularly made me mad: …

Criminal Defense: Sentencing Alternative- Home Confinement Sentencing Alternatives in general The California prisons have been grossly overcrowded.  The courts had been sentencing too many people to prisons, and there just wasn’t enough room to accommodate them.  Because of the budget …

COACHELLA FEST 2012 DRIVING ROUTES AND ROAD CLOSURES The following are road closures, expected delays and recommended routes for the two weekends during Coachella fest 2012 (April 13-15 and April 20-22).  There are 200,000 people expected both weekends, which means …

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival brings music, art, fun and entertainment to the Coachella Valley every year.  Dating back to 1999, the festival boasts Ticketmaster free musical entertainment. The problem is that cops know the music lovers are there …

The California Superior Court has begun a program aimed at helping US Veterans, called Veteran’s Court.  These courts are a mixture of criminal courts, mental health court and drug courts, where the person will get help focused on rehabilitation, rather …

I have always told my clients to be careful about what they put on facebook.  People think that what they post is private, especially if they’re page has been restricted to friends only.  However, everything you put on the web …

Criminal Defense: Penal Code 186.22, the “gang enhancement” laws Gang activity and 186.22 California has enacted specific laws regarding gang activity.  This means that if a person is determined to be a member of a criminal street gang, he or …

There is a bill in front of the California Legislature, regarding marijuana possession laws.  If a person is found driving with less than 28.5 grams of marijuana (not including concentrated cannabis), under current laws, the court can (and usually does) …

The United States Supreme Court has decided that it is ok for jail officials to conduct strip searches on inmates.  The right of jails and prisons to conduct strip searches was being challenged by a man who was wrongly arrested …

California Man Pleads Guilty to Arson A Cathedral City man pleaded guilty to arson charges today in Indio, at the Larsen Justice Center.  Jesus Abel Hernandez was arrested in December 6, 2011 after he confessed to police that he set …

Criminal Defense: DUI Charges  1st DUI A standard 1st DUI is what most people charged with DUI receive.  It means that the person was found driving with a blood alcohol level of .08 or higher.  The person must request a …

Result of Acquittal of Co-defendant The acquittal of one accomplice or co-conspirator does not bar conviction of another. Standefer v U.S. (1980) 447 US 10; People v Summersville (1995) 34 CA4th 1062;  People v Palmer (2001) 24 C4th 856. Under …

Criminal Defense: Improper Immunity in a Co-defendant Case Immunity in General in a Co-defendant Case Under Penal Code 1324, a prosecutor has the authority to seek immunity for a certain witness in exchange for his or her testimony in any …

Criminal Defense: California’s Three Strikes Victory in Riverside County California’s Three Strikes Rule The Three Strikes Rule was enacted in California in 1994 to make violent offenders accountable for their crimes. (For more, see here.)  The rationale was that certain …

Criminal Defense: What Is Arraignment? What is Arraignment- General Arraignment is the first time you will appear in front of a judge and will plead either guilty or not guilty. If you have not hired an attorney, the court will …

Criminal Defense: Seal Juvenile Records  Seal Juvenile Records  If you committed a crime as a juvenile and were subsequently convicted, you most likely want to seal those records as an adult.  You don’t want one mistake as a kid to …

Today the State Assembly passed legislation which would change the current Three Strikes Law.  As it is written now, any felony committed by a person who has two strikes would send them away to prison for “25 to life.”  This …