Misdemeanor Record Expungement In California Did you know that you may be eligible to receive an expungement of your misdemeanor charges in California, in a particular situation? You should never attempt to handle these complicated circumstances on your own. Which is why the support of a criminal defense attorney in Orange County is strongly recommended. I procedure known as expungement, outlined under California Penal code 12023.4, may allow you to have a misdemeanor conviction taken off of your California record. Expungement is the official process in which you petition the court to reopen the criminal case, to get that conviction dismissed and then request the court to close the case. Getting a misdemeanor offense expunged from your record can be critical for allowing you to seek out important opportunities in your life such…Read More
Young Adults In Adult Court A legislative hearing was recently packed with former youth offenders and criminal justice experts, but California legislators pushed back a bill that would keep minors who commit crimes out of those adult courts. Mandatory sentencing rules have long been a problem in California and in other states and some advocates argue that these disproportionately affect Latino and black defendants. Allegedly, the goal of the new legislation is to acknowledge that as a society of adults, the system or the adults have failed juveniles being accused of a crime. Nine bills signed into law in California last year were in place to assist young people who are facing charges or serving time. Those laws allowed courts to seal some juvenile records, allowed for increased parole opportunities for those…Read More
Are There Problems With The Bay Area Criminal Justice System? Being accused of a crime can trigger a whole series of events that can be confusing for the accused. Although everyone accused has certain rights under the constitution, a new study indicates that it can take a long period of time for someone accused of a crime to see their case completed in California. This can add further stress and frustration for the accused individual. A recent NBC Bay Area analysis of disposition data for the state courts shows that thousands of criminal cases at the felony level have been delayed for years or even decades in jurisdictions throughout California. The analysis shows that San Francisco County and Santa Clara County Superior Court have had some of the biggest criminal backlogs and…Read More
Immigration Impact On Crimes If you have special immigration status in the US, you already might know that being accused of a crime comes with higher stakes than a traditional US citizen. If you’re convicted of a crime, you could be deported. In addition, officials are now taking a much tighter look at the possibility of immigrants committing crimes. You could be targeted even if you didn’t do anything wrong, and you must know how to respond in this situation. Any person accused of a crime in the US needs help from a lawyer. A new study that explored more than 33 years of Arizona prison data has determined that undocumented aliens are much more likely to commit crimes as well as to commit serious crimes when compared with typical U.S. citizens.…Read More
The Effects Of Criminal Justice Reform In California Across 2010 to 2016, crime in Los Angeles county, including both violent and property crime, increased by 5% even as the rest of the state experienced a downturn in crime, according to a recent report from the Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice. They explored city crime trends throughout California during a period that is often referred to as an era for justice reform. During this period, court mandates, voter-approved initiatives and legislation encouraged major change in the California justice system. One such example is Proposition 47, one that downgraded numerous theft and drug crimes to misdemeanors and allowed defendants to renegotiate punishments, in addition to Proposition 57, which had a primary purpose of focusing on rehabilitation while shrinking the state’s prison population. Advocates…Read More
Probation Violation Penalties In California Probation may be a preferred outcome of your criminal case if you cannot avoid conviction, but it’s important that you realize the stakes are higher if your probation officer believes that you, at any time, violate the terms of these conditions. Your attorney should sit down with you and walk through probation and how it works so that there are no unpleasant surprises. The right lawyer can help you with a case from start to finish, but you need to know what to expect first. Probation In Lieu Of Jail Time After you have been convicted of a crime, the judge may determine to give you probation instead of another sentence. It is important that you understand all the rights and responsibilities afforded to you when you…Read More
Police Brutality Allegations In California It might go by like a blur- suddenly, you’re being handcuffed and shipping off to the police station. You’re not sure how things escalated or why you’re being charged, but you know things just got quite serious. This is a common occurrence for someone who has been arrested. Respecting Your Rights Even when you are being accused of committing a crime, it is important for the police to respect your rights. When the police overstep the bounds of the law and violate your constitutional rights or engage in unnecessary physical violence, you may be eligible to pursue a claim of police brutality or police misconduct. Officers’ actions are typically protected from liability under a general doctrine of governmental immunity, which means that the government cannot be sued…Read More
California Money Laundering Defenses While common, the white-collar crime of money laundering is a serious one. If you are charged with money laundering, you stand to incur significant fines, restitution, incarceration, and a permanent criminal record. Money laundering is charged as a felony. A conviction can affect your ability to get a job, rent a home, buy a home, or pursue additional education. It’s important to launch a solid defense against money laundering charges. This tactic increases the chances that the charges against you will be dropped or that you will be found innocent. Defense #1 — You Did Not Intend To Launder Money Money laundering is considered an intent-specific crime. This means that if there was no intent to commit the crime, the accused cannot be considered guilty. In order to…Read More
Breathalyzer Tests Are Notorious For Being Inaccurate There are multiple factors that can cause a positive breathalyzer test, leading to an arrest and a DUI charge. If you failed a breathalyzer test and were charged with drinking and driving, the following could have caused inaccurate results. Elevated Mouth Alcohol Typically before a breathalyzer test, police officers will ask an individual to take a deep breath and blow into the machine. This is because breathalyzer tests are designed to measure the level of alcohol in a person’s lungs. The lungs are believed to accurately indicate the amount of alcohol present in the entire body. However, it’s not uncommon for a person to have elevated mouth alcohol, which can skew the test results. In these cases, the test is not reading the alcohol in…Read More
