Articles Posted in Sex Crimes

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Jose Campoverde, a pastor from Anaheim, was arrested this week and is being held on $500,000 bail on suspicion of lewd conduct with a minor, sexual battery, child annoyance and false imprisonment. Allegedly, on September 11, 2009 Campoverde drove a young girl home from church and molested her in the car. The victim told police, who then started an investigation into Campoverde. A few other teenage girls then admitted to police that they too had been fondled by Campoverde.

Molesting a minor is a serious offense that is punishable by up to 8 years in prison, per count. If he is convicted of these charges, he will have to spend a long period of time in prison and register as a sex offender. Campoverde will need an experienced criminal defense attorney to assist him in fighting these charges. Possible defenses include child suggestibility or false accusations.

Whether you live in Lake Forest, Fullerton or Irvine, if you are charged with molestation, call an experienced Orange County criminal defense attorney to assist you.

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Dr. William Moore Thompson, 82, of Orange County plead guilty of sexually assaulting a relative of his and was sentenced to 30 days in jail and 330 days of home confinement. In 2003 and 2004, when the victim was under 14 years old, Thompson asked his young female relative to rub his genitals. Sentencing guidelines for 2 counts of lewd acts on a minor should result in between three and eight years in prison. Here, however, since Thompson was so old and sick and he had helped Orange County by setting up free medical clinics in prior years, the judge gave him a light sentence of just 30 days in jail.

In this case, the defense attorney initially likely argued that the assault never occurred. If the judge did not believe that, the defense attorney would then try and mitigate the situation by claiming that this was an isolated event and that the doctor is a good man who has helped this community. Clearly, the judge beleived that Thompson was in fact a good man that did one bad event and his sentence reflects that. Whether you live in Irvine, Santa Ana or Fullerton, if you are charged with child molestation or sexual assault, call an experienced criminal defense attorney to assist you.

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James Detory Shipp, Jr. was found guilty of murdering a woman in 1998 who tried to stop him from sexually assaulting one of her co-workers. Shipp was a former football player and aspiring Boxer who claims that he had neurological problems and faced domestic violence while growing up that changed him. Between 1997 and 2001, Shipp had also raped 5 women and had kidnapping and robbery charges on his record. For the murder/rape he received life in prison and for the crimes between 1997 and 2001, he faces 119 years and another life term.

Sometimes troubled pasts make people want to turn to crime. Here, Shipp witnessed domestic violence, associated with gangs and had neurological problems. These experiences all affected him adversely and caused him to commit these heinous crimes. For his actions, Shipp will spend the rest of his life in prison, contemplating what he did. He received so much time in prison so that it could never be a possibility that he be released. If you are charged with murder or rape, call an experienced criminal defense attorney to assist you.

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Michael Alexander Clemmons and John Paul Foster II pled guilty this week to sexually assaulting an unconscious 18-year-old acquaintance in Tustin, which was recorded on videotape. A third party found the tape and turned it over to the police. The tape shows the heavily intoxicated victim laying on the bed and the men taking turns raping her. The men both pleaded guilty to eight felony sexual assault counts and are expected to be sentenced in November. A third co-defendant, Luster Mitchel Lewis, is expected to stand trial in November for similar charges.

Drinking alcohol can set you up to be the victim of rape. These men were supposed to take care of the victim (or so she thought), but instead they took advantage of her and she did not even know it happened. If there was no video recording of this incident, she likely would not have even known she was raped and the boys would have never been charged. Please remember that when you are drinking, have someone around you that you trust. Whether you live in Lake Forest, Anaheim or Laguna Beach, if you are charged with rape, call an experienced criminal defense attorney to assist you.

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George Joseph England spent 29 years as a fugitive after he was convicted of multiple child molestations in Costa Mesa in the 1970’s. In the 70’s, England was a contractor in Vietnam, where he met a woman who had a 5-year-old daughter and bought the young girl from the woman. They moved to Orange County, where he repeatedly molested her. He also molested her young friends, who told police and it eventually led to molestation convictions against England. Before being sentenced, while out on bail, England took his daughter from protective services and absconded. He was captured in Florida in 2006 and has been serving time since.

Since the crime was committed in the 70’s, the laws during the 70’s were not harsh on molesters. After just three years in prison, England is up for parole. District Attorney’s are trying to prevent his release by claiming he is not remorseful and could do it again since he has not been to counseling yet. Even if he is not released soon, the maximum time he can serve is 6 years for his crimes, so he will be released in 2013. If he was convicted of those molestation charges today, he would be facing 45 years to life in prison.

Whether you live in Irvine, Buena Park or Lake Forest, if you are charged with a sex crime, call an experienced criminal defense attorney to assist you.

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Juan Armando Candela was charged with two felony counts of unlawful sexual intercourse and oral copulation of a minor. Candela was the security guard at Beckman Hight School in Irvine, which is where he met a 16-year-old student. Candela and the girl started dating and they eventually had sexual intercourse. Newport Beach police saw the couple having sex in the car in August and he was arrested. If convicted, Candela will receive about 3 years and 8 months in state prison and may have to register as a sex offender.

Unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor is a serious charge because there is an implied issue of consent. Even if the minor consented to the sex, which in this case she did, the assumption is that she is not yet of the age to consent and does not really know what she is doing. Besides being held criminally liable, Candela may be sued by the victim or the victim’s parents. If found guilty during a civil trial, Candela could have to pay around $25,000.

Whether you live in Buena Park, Laguna Niguel or Anaheim Hills, if you are charged with any sex crimes, call an experienced attorney to assist you right away.

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Dennis James Ward was found guilty yesterday of nine counts of lewd conduct on a child who was a young male relative of his, that occurred 15 years ago. For this crime, he now may face 30 years in state prison.

In 1985, two Costa Mesa boys claimed they were molested by Ward. Ward was convicted and was sentenced to six years, although he served just three years. He was released on parole in 1988 and the molestation on the victim/relative occurred between 1990 and 1992. The victim was between 4 and 7 at the time and did not tell anyone what occurred. Ward was then arrested in 1995 for molesting two young Huntington Beach boys and was sentenced to 23 years in prison. Ward was going to be released in 2007, but once the victim of the current case found out, he reported the molestation that occured 15 years prior.

Child molestation is a very serious offense that will stay on your record and will require you to register as a sex offender. Whether you live in Newport Beach, Laguna Niguel or Fullerton, if you are charged with child molestation, you will need a good Orange County defense attorney to investigate the claim and prepare defenses.

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Anand Jon Alexander was convicted of 16 counts of rape and sexual assault and was sentenced to 59 years to life in prison for his acts. Alexander was a well known fashion designer in California and was well liked among celebrities. Alexander hired models (some who were under 18) for his fashion shows and then raped and assaulted them and other model hopefuls who he lured to his house.

Initially, the grand jury indicted Alexander of 59 counts, but the majority of the charges were dropped. Before sentencing, Alexander claimed he didn’t receive a fair trial because a juror contacted his sister, the prosecution withheld evidence and his attorneys were ineffective. Since he thought his lawyers were ineffective, he fired them and represented himself in court. Nevertheless, the judge still sentenced him to 59 years to life in state prison. He is awaiting similar rape and sexual assault charges in Texas and New York. If he is convicted of those, he will have more time tacked onto his sentence.

This sentence of 59 years to life seems very steep for rape charges. Although the article did not mention the details of the rapes, they must have been very heinous. In California, rape is a very serious crime that comes with steep penalties. Additionally, statutory rape or the rape of someone under 18, is an even more serious crime and was probably what cause Alexander to receive such a long sentence.

Whether you live in Laguna Beach, Westminster or Brea, if you are charged with rape or sexual assault, call an experienced OC criminal defense attorney to assist you in fighting your charges.

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In July, Jaime Martinez of Buena Park pleaded guilty to 32 felony counts including the rape of 4 young girls in his family aged 5 to 11. One of the girls claimed she had been molested since she was 5 years old and once was abused by Martinez in the school bathroom. Additionally, the girl said that he once hit her and showed her a gun and said he would kill her and her family if she reported him to authorities. Last week, Martinez was sentenced to 330 years to life in prison for the sexual assaults.

People often wonder why sentences are so long. Clearly, no one will live for 330 years so why have a sentence for so long? Sentences are actually calculated based on how many offenses the person is convicted of and the severity of the offenses. Even with that number calculated, the judge has broad discretion in sentencing and can add or subtract years. Whether you live in Irvine, Santa Ana or Fullerton, if you get charged with a sex crime, you will need an experienced Orange County criminal defense attorney on your side.

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Adrian Montano Fuerte was found guilty, this week, of felony forcible rape and assault with the intent to rape and two misdemeanor counts of sexual battery and battery. Fuerte, who worked at a few Econo Lube and Tune locations in 2007 would lure women into the garage to explain their car problems. Once there, he would assault them, sexually batter them or rape them. Five women came forward and said that Fuerte either raped them or assaulted them. Fuerte could face around 15 years in state prison for his crimes.

Sexual battery is the touching of the intimate part’s of another without consent and is a misdemeanor. Rape, on the other hand, requires actual penetration and is a felony. Sex crimes stay on your record and may even require you to register on a sex offender list. Whether you live in Santa Ana, Fullerton or Newport Beach, if you are charged with a sex crime, you will need an experienced defense attorney to assist you with your legal matters.

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