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Criminal Law

Southern California Criminal Defense Blog

Information about California Defense Law as well as up-to-date news from the legal sector.
By Walin & Klarich

Post Frequency: 9.1/day

Last Entry: April 01, 2011 at 15:11:30

Mel Gibson Claims he has Hard Evidence of Ex-Girlfriend Extortion ? California Penal Code Section 518

Posted on July 30, 2010
According to TMZ, officials have begun investigation into the extortion claims by Mel Gibson against his ex-girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva. Gibson claims that he has hard evidence of Grigorieva trying to extort him for money with the threat of releasing the audio recordings of a phone conversation between the two...

Ho Hum Bandit Suspected of Robbing Orange County Bank ? California Penal Code 211-215, 459

Posted on July 29, 2010
It was recently reported in the OC Register that the so-called ?ho hum bandit? is alleged to have robbed an Orange County Bank. The ?ho hum bandit,? nicknamed for having bland features, is suspected of robbing five San Diego banks. In the latest alleged incident, the robbery occurred in Corona Del Mar...

Trial Court?s Failure to Inquire into Reasons for Defendant?s Desire to Move for a New Trial Based on Ineffective Assistance of Counsel Can Reverse His Criminal Conviction

Posted on July 28, 2010
You must know that in California the claim of ineffective assistance of counsel may be asserted as the basis of your motion for a new trial pursuant to Penal Code section 1181. When the trial court failed to conduct any inquiry at all into the basis for your motion for a new trial, your conviction must be revered unless the record shows beyond a reasonable doubt that further inquiry into your claim would not have led to a different result in your case...

DNA Law Being Challenged in the Appellate Court

Posted on July 27, 2010
The usage of DNA evidence has been in the media lately because of the arrest of the alleged Grim Sleeper. In that case, the police found the alleged serial killer?s DNA from a discarded pizza slice and was able to track him down using a familial DNA search...

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Domestic Violence Probation ? Mandatory Conditions ? California Penal Code Section 1203.097

Posted on July 27, 2010
If a person is granted probation for a domestic violence crime, California Penal Code Section 1203.097 lists the conditions of probation that must be given. The list below shows some of the conditions that may have a significant impact on a person?s life: 1...

Types of Joint Child Custody Orders

Posted on July 26, 2010
Child custody orders are given when a couple is going through a separation or divorce. The child custody orders are designed to determine who will take care of the children and who will make decisions for the children. The courts may decide that a type of joint child custody would be in the best interest of the child or children...

REDUCING A FELONY ASSAULT WITH A DEADLY WEAPON TO A MISDEMEANOR ? CALIFORNIA PENAL CODE SECTION 245

Posted on July 23, 2010
In criminal law, there are many charges in the various codes that are known as ?wobblers?. A wobbler is a statute that can be treated both as a felony or misdemeanor. The sentence for a wobbler will indicate that the section is punishable by jail or prison...

Types of Evaluations in Dependency Court

Posted on July 22, 2010
Evaluations can be helpful and necessary in many types of dependency cases. In any written evaluation report, the evaluator describes the methods used and the reasoning for conclusions and recommendations. The specific purpose of the evaluation will dictate what type of assessment methods and what type of professional is necessary...

Mother Facing Felony Charges in Murrieta Pit-Bull Attack on 6-month-old child

Posted on July 20, 2010
A woman whose 6-month-old son was attacked by two pit bulls in Murrieta after she left him alone with the animals has been charged with felony child endangerment. . The attack occurred in April inside a condominium on Arboretum Way. The baby boy was fastened in a car seat and had been bitten by a pit pull while the boy?s mother and a male friend were in another room...

Lohan Sent to Jail for Probation Violation

Posted on July 20, 2010
According to the LA Times, Lindsay Lohan surrendered herself today and has been booked in county jail. Lohan was sentenced to 90 days in jail after violating the terms of her probation from her DUI conviction by failing to attend the required alcohol classes...

Former NFL Star Lawrence Taylor Pleads Not Guilty to Rape ? California Penal Code 261.5

Posted on July 15, 2010
According to ESPN, Former NFL star Lawrence Taylor entered a plea of not guilty to charges of statutory rape and solicitation in a New York court. Taylor is accused of soliciting a prostitute in a case involving a 16-year-old runaway girl. Prosecutors say Taylor paid the 16-year-old girl $300 to have sex with him...

Barefoot Bandit Arrested in the Bahamas ? California Penal Code 487

Posted on July 13, 2010
According to the LA Times, the ?Barefoot Bandit? has been caught and arrested in the Bahamas. Colton Harris-Moore, 19, has allegedly been on a crime spree for two years across four states and the Bahamian islands. His evasions and thefts had gained him a cult following...

Police Arrest Man Suspected to be the Grim Sleeper ? California Penal Code 187

Posted on July 12, 2010
It was recently reported in the LA Times that the police arrested the alleged ?Grim Sleeper? serial killer. Police went into the South L.A. home of David Franklin, Jr., 57, and arrested him without incident. Franklin is charged with 10 counts of murder and 1 count of attempted murder...

NINTH CIRCUIT: APPELLANTS? DECISION TO REPRESENT THEMSELVES WAS ?FOOLISH,? BUT DISTRICT COURT WAS NOT CONSTITUTIONALLY REQUIRED TO APPOINT COUNSEL AGAINST THEIR WISHES

Posted on July 09, 2010
On July 6, 2010, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal held that the district court did not violate appellants? Sixth Amendment right to a fair trial by failing to appoint counsel in response to the self-represented appellants? unprofessional trial behavior...

APPELLATE COURT AFFIRMS MANDATORY SEX OFFENDER REGISTRATION FOR INDECENT EXPOSURE, NONMANDATORY REGISTRATION FOR LEWD CONDUCT DOES NOT VIOLATE EQUAL PROTECTION ? CALIFORNIA PENAL CODE SECTION 290, PENAL CODE SECTION 314(1), PENAL CODE SECTION 647(A)

Posted on July 08, 2010
On June 29, 2010, the California Court of Appeal, Fourth District, decided People v. Honan, which ruled that mandatory sex offender registration for those convicted of indecent exposure but discretionary registration for those convicted of lewd conduct did not violate equal protection...

Special Military Court in Orange County, Calfiornia

Posted on July 08, 2010
Tens of thousands of veterans have completed combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan and almost inevitably suffer from some level of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Problems and symptoms include: sleeplessness, violent awakenings, flashbacks, nightmares, suicidal ideation, dissociation from events or reality, impotence, and other complications...

MCDONALD V. CITY OF CHICAGO AND WHAT IT MEANS FOR GUN LAWS ? CALIFORNIA PENAL CODE SECTION 12020(A)(1)

Posted on July 06, 2010
On June 28, 2010, the United States Supreme Court decided McDonald v. City of Chicago, a closely watched case that recognized that states cannot infringe a person?s right to own a firearm for self-defense in his home. The Court ruled that a law totally banning handgun possession in the city of Chicago was unconstitutional under the Second and Fourteenth Amendments...

VERDICT NEARS FOR WHITE OFFICER ACCUSED OF SHOOTING UNARMED BLACK MAN; OAKLAND PREPARES FOR POSSIBLE RIOTS ? CALIFORNIA PENAL CODE SECTION 189, PENAL CODE SECTION 192(A), (B)

Posted on July 06, 2010
On July 2, 2010, the city of Oakland, California, prepares itself for possible rioting as the trial of a white police officer accused of murdering an unarmed black man draws to a close. On January 1, 2009, Bay Area Rapid Transit police officer Johannes Mehserle, 28, shot Oscar Grant after passengers accused Grant and others of fighting on a train...

New Approach To Eliminating Graffiti: City Attorney Files Civil Injunction Against MTA ? California Penal Code Sections 594 & 166

Posted on June 29, 2010
As recently reported in the L.A. Times, the Los Angeles City Attorney?s Office is pursuing a new tactic to eliminate tagging and vandalism of public property. The ?Metro Transit Assassins? (MTA) are the most notorious tagging crew in L.A. and are responsible for hundreds of acts of vandalism...

Mexican Governor Candidate Murdered and How a Criminal Defense Attorney Can Help You ? California Penal Code section 187 and 189

Posted on June 29, 2010
It was recently reported by the Associated Press that gunmen assassinated the front-running candidate for governor of a Mexican border state. Mexican President, Felipe Calderon, called the murder as a drug cartels seeking to influence local elections...

MAN WHO PLEAD GUILTY TO SEX CRIME PLACED ON PROBATION ? PENAL CODE SECTIONS 459, 460(A), 289(A)(1)

Posted on June 28, 2010
A Chico man who plead guilty to burglary with intent to commit unlawful sexual penetration was placed on probation and his prison sentence was stayed. He faced up to six years in state prison. According to defendant Jeremy Hoptowit, 28, after a night of playing poker with friends, he broke into a house while intoxicated...

Police Able To Track Down Burglar After He Left His Birth Certificate At The Crime Scene

Posted on June 28, 2010
Allen Dawes was arrested by law enforcement officers for an alleged burglary of the First St. John's Church in York, Pennsylvania. Police say Dawes broke into the church and stole the collection box, which had been set out for church members to make donations to those less fortunate...

Times Square Terrorism Bombing Suspect Pleas Guilty To All Counts

Posted on June 24, 2010
Faisal Shahzad, the suspect in the May 1, 2010 terrorist bombing attempt in New York?s Times Square, plead guilty to all 10 counts he was facing. In a case of domestic terrorism, Shahzad attempted to set off a vehicle bomb on a busy Times Square street...

What Is the Difference Between Writs of Habeas Corpus and Audita Querela?

Posted on June 24, 2010
Recently, the Ninth Circuit held that a federal prisoner may not challenge his or her sentence pursuant to a petition for a writ of audita querela if the requested relief can be obtained through a writ of habeas corpus. Defendants in California have a right to challenge their conviction in either state or federal court by way of filing an appeal and later a writ of habeas corpus...

AL GORE ACCUSED OF SEXUALLY ASSAULTING WOMAN; CASE DROPPED FOR LACK OF EVIDENCE ? CALIFORNIA PENAL CODE SECTION 243.4(E)(1)

Posted on June 24, 2010
A woman whose name has not been released claimed that Al Gore sexually assaulted her on October 24, 2006. The woman, a massage therapist, stated that her employer sent her to Al Gore?s hotel room to perform a massage. During the course of the massage, the woman alleged that he sexually assaulted her...

Gang Expert?s Testimony, in Response to Improper Hypothetical, Should Have Been Excluded

Posted on June 23, 2010
The California Court of Appeal recently held that Killibrew error [People v. Killibrew (2002) 103 CalApp.4th 644] resulted from a gang expert?s response to an improper hypothetical question posed by the prosecutor. The rule set forth in Killibrew is that an expert witness may not offer an opinion on what a particular defendant is thinking...

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN DEFENDANT?S RIGHT TO CONFRONTATION CONFLICTS WITH WITNESS?S ATTORNEY-CLIENT PRIVILEGE?

Posted on June 23, 2010
The Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution assures the defendant the right to confront and cross-examine adverse witnesses. Under California Evidence Code section 594, ?a client. . .has a privilege to disclose or refuse to disclose, and to prevent another from disclosing, a confidential communication between client and lawyer if the privilege is claimed by (a) the holder of the privilege, [or] (b) a person who is authorized to claim the privilege by the holder of the privilege...

Good Conduct Credit for Presentence Custody Doubled ? California Penal Code � 4019

Posted on June 22, 2010
In People v. Keating, No. B210240, the court held that the 2009 amendment to California Penal Code � 4019http://www.wklaw.com applies retroactively to sentences handed down even before the amendment was passed. Keatings appealed his conviction claiming that there was not enough evidence to have found him guilty of several crimes...

LAKERS FANS RIOT AFTER GAME 7 VICTORY

Posted on June 21, 2010
On June 17, 2010, the night of the Los Angeles Lakers Game 7 victory over the Boston Celtics, Los Angeles fans took to the streets. Rioters threw bottles and rocks at police, set bonfires, and overturned vehicles. The police declared an unlawful assembly around the Staples Center after fans poured out of the arena to celebrate the Lakers 2010 NBA championship...

Man Bites off Victim?s Nose in Fight Convicted of Aggravated Burglary and Aggravated Battery California Penal Code Sections 243 and 459

Posted on June 21, 2010
KOAT recently reported that Joey Maes was convicted of one count of aggravated burglary and one count of aggravated battery for biting off a man's nose. The charges stem from an incident when Maes was asked to leave a party he had been attending. Maes returned soon after leaving, kicked in the front door of the home, ran into the kitchen, grabbed a knife and began threatening the occupants...

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