INVOLUNTARY MANSLAUGHTER IS OFTEN A CRIME OF STUPIDITY Stupidity often puts otherwise law-abiding people on the wrong side of the law, but this act in Minnesota might be among the stupidest ever. A young and very pregnant woman, 19 years old, shot and killed her boyfriend. The entire killing was…
California Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog
DOCTORS CHARGED WITH MURDER FOR PRESCRIBING OPIATES
The opioid epidemic in this country couldn’t have happened without the doctors. Now, I am not saying all doctors are bad, I am just stating a fact. I am not imputing motivation, but I suspect money had something to do with the fact that some doctors found a good…
The War On Drugs In California
CREATE THE ENEMY AND MAKE THE WAR: AMERICA’S WAR ON DRUGS The History Channel is running a very interesting Docuseries about the War on Drugs. Many viewers of the series may be shocked to learn how one arm of the government has been prosecuting the War on Drugs while the…
THE DIMINISHED ACTUALITY DEFENSE
Perhaps you have heard of the “Twinkie Defense.” The term derives from the 1979 trial of Dan White, a former San Francisco Supervisor who, following a dispute with San Francisco Mayor George Moscone and San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk, shot and killed both men at the San Francisco City…
UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT TO DECIDE WHETHER A SEARCH WARRANT IS NEEDED FOR HISTORICAL CELL PHONE DATA
Sometimes a person arrested for a crime will swear he or she was nowhere near the location when the criminal incident took place., but the prosecution will allege otherwise…with evidence to prove it. That evidence: tracking of the defendant’s cell phone. Even if the defendant wasn’t using his or…
Anger Management Classes And Cases Involving Violence, Abuse Or Neglect
ANGER MANAGEMENT Many violent crimes have one common variable: anger. As a criminal defense attorney in Orange County, I have witnessed the role anger plays in violent crimes from domestic abuse to assault to murder. While most people are able to control their feelings of anger to some degree or…
MONEY BAIL SYSTEM REFORM IN CALIFORNIA
Last week I wrote about computer-assisted bail decisions. There is something even bigger afoot: a bill before the California Legislature—California Money Bail Reform Act of 2017—would end bail altogether for a wide array of charged offenses. Even when a judge grants bail, the offender often can’t pay it. This…
DOES MARIJUANA USE CAUSE SCHIZOPHRENIA?
With the recreational use of Marijuana now legal in eight states including California and its medical use legal in many more states, it might be time to revisit Reefer Madness. We laugh at that 1936 film that claimed marijuana created psychotic addicts but there may have been some truth…
PROPOSITION 57 GIVES EARLY PAROLE TO CERTAIN NON-VIOLENT OFFENDERS
On November 8, 2016, California voters passed Proposition 57, The Public Safety and Rehabilitation Act of 201, by an overwhelming majority of 64%. This proposition contained two key provisions: 1) It makes certain non-violent felons eligible for immediate parole and 2) It requires a court hearing before a juvenile…
Bail Bond Hearings in California
COMPUTER-ASSISTED BAIL HEARINGS When a person is arrested and held in custody, his or her first appearance before a judge will be in what is called an arraignment. Under California law, the defendant must be afforded an arraignment within 48 hours (not to include weekends or holidays). At the arraignment,…