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An Orange County woman is waging a one-woman campaign to identify the man she says groped her while riding the Tower of Terror ride at Disneyland’s California Adventure.

It seems the Anaheim Police aren’t working quickly enough for this person. She bought a keepsake photo of herself on the ride and has tried to implicate a man seated next to her on the ride. The police don’t say whether they have identified this person or whether he’s given a statement. The alleged groping took place in the dark.

Groping is defined under the law as a form of sexual battery. Sexual battery can be punished as a misdemeanor or a felony under California law, section 243.4. In the event the person is caught and convicted, he would be looking at a probation sentence and counseling. The accused may want to assert mistake as a defense, or consent, as I discussed in a January 13 post to my blog concerning a rape case here in Orange County, or that the woman falsely accused him, in order to gain financial benefit by suing Disneyland for failing to protect her from harm. He may even use her photograph to show that he was not assaulting her in any way.

if you are charged with sexual battery, call an experienced criminal defense attorney right away to assist you in preparing a defense.

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I am always impressed when the laws of physics are turned on their ear. But when it’s combined with a lot of verbal hoohah, I am doubly so.

Consider this story out of Santa Ana, California. A “special officer” with the Orange County Sheriff’s Department got into an altercationwith another motorist. As the other car was driving away, the “special officer” pulled out his gun and fired at the fleeing vehicle. Where are we? Pecos, Texas? Come on!

So……the Sheriff’s department mouthpiece had the cojones to say that the FLEEING car was firing at the “special officer”. That is special. I look forward to seeing all the casings from the bullets fired at the Sheriff’s deputy. As if Orange County needs another story like this about law enforcement.

The law is clear here (except if you’re a “special officer”. If you shoot a gun at someone after they anger you because you didn’t like their driving style? That’s a felony, folks. Ain’t no doubt about it. Recklessly discharging a firearm is a felony and carries the possibility of state prison time. The District Attorney better investigate this. They’ve filed Attempt Murder charges against people for conduct like this. A possible defense is self defense. If the other person threatened this officer and had displayed weapons, he may argue that he was just defending himself. Gun charges are serious, especially when paired with attempt murder charges.

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David Brent, a high-profile prosecutor in the Orange County District Attorney’s office, was arrested on Christmas Day for punching his wife in the face.

Roshawn Brent, 27, called 911 while standing next to the couple’s parked car in the city of Huntington Beach. It appears Mr. Brent decided discretion was the better part of valor and beat a retreat, taking the car keys with him.

What makes this story interesting is that the Orange County District Attorney appears to have waited several days before putting out a press release. Past history suggests they are quick to triumph following a high-profile arrest or conviction. So why the delay? It couldn’t be to avoid embarrassment. The arrest was noted in the Los Angeles Times and the Orange County Register. Also, did Huntington Beach Police sit on the story? Don’t they have press releases? If they did wait to tell, why so?

Domestic Violence is a common crime, cutting across all demographics. When a high official in the Prosecutor’s office is arrested for such a crime, it becomes doubly important to notify the public so that the public accurately perceives the DA’s office as being fair and impartial.

Whether you live in Tustin, Santa Ana or Huntington Beach, if you are charged with domestic assault, call an experienced Orange County criminal defense attorney right away to assist you.

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It takes an odd and disturbing commitment to flash your privates to nearly 100 south Orange County women while they are by themselves in isolated areas, like parks and hiking trails.

Christopher Holden Fenn was arrested on Feb, 2, 2008 by Tustin police after a 911 caller told them she’d been flashed through the bedroom window of her apartment.

On Sept. 25, 2009 Fenn pleaded guilty to 27 felony counts of indecent exposure with a prior conviction from 1981 and one felony count of aggravated assault.

The crimes ranged in location from Dana Point, Irvine, Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, Aliso Viejo, Mission Viejo, Tustin, and Rancho Santa Margarita.

Most troubling? It’s hard to say, but the fact that the defendant was married and had four children of his own has to rank up there. Imagine his children having to explain where their father is for the next ten years. The fact that Fenn covered his face while committing the crimes didn’t help him in court and won’t help him with his family, either.

Indecent Exposure is a very serious crime that will frequently come with prison time. If the exposure is repeated, and the defendant has a criminal history of the same or similar conduct, California law permits introduction of those prior acts under certain circumstances. Whether you live in Orange, Mission Viejo or Irvine, if you are charged with flashing or indecent exposure, call an experienced criminal defense attorney right away to assist you in preparing a defense.

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Jaime Ramirez is looking at life in prison. As a registered violent sex predator. He’s not going to see the light of day if he is convicted of two aggravated rapes.

In the first one, Ramirez allegedly knocked on the door of a neighbor he knew, went inside and had a beer. Then he came back and raped her.

In the other case, Ramirez duped a co-worker into sending a new employee to his house to supposedly pick up some paperwork for her delivery route from Fountain Valley. He raped her, then threatened her with immigration if she spoke up. Nice.

The facts are the driving force in these cases. Without witnesses, the jury will rely on DNA evidence, corroborating evidence of force, such as bruising or other clinical evidence discovered by doctors and any statements made by the defendant. If a jury decides he did these crimes, he’ll be branded a Sexually Violent Predator and sent to prison for life.

Rape is a very serious crime that will always come with prison time. If the rape is with someone who is kidnapped, or moved from the original area of assault, the sentence will be increased due to their inability to fight back. A major defense to rape charges is consent. Consent has to be freely given though and can not be influenced by the threat of force. Whether you live in Orange, Mission Viejo or Fullerton, if you are charged with rape, call an experienced criminal defense attorney right away to assist you in preparing a defense.

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You can’t say he wasn’t creative. Adolfo Aparicio, a documented Santa Ana gang member misidentified himself as an illegal alien so that he could avoid capture for an attempted murder charge for which he was being sought.

Turns out Aparicio got into a domestic dispute with his wife and mother in law. When the cops came, he took off but soon returned and took some shots at his wife, who fortunately, wasn’t hurt. Aparicio fled the area again and was arrested in Arizona, where he gave a fake name. But his fingerprints did him in: they matched a wanted out of Santa Ana for the attempted murder of his wife.

Aparicio is getting deported….to Santa Ana. He’ll face the criminal charges. It will be interesting to see if the District Attorney tries to charge it as a gang offense, which this incident doesn’t smack of. In either event, Mr. Aparicio is going to need good legal representation, because like it or not, his gang background will come up and may work against him.

Whether you live in Newport Beach, Fullerton or San Clemente, if you are charged with domestic assault or battery, call an experienced defense attorney right away to assist you.

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The crimes seemed simple. A person would buy something from the Apple store at the Mission Viejo Mall, or maybe at Fashion Island in Newport Beach, or at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, California. A thief would break into the car after the owner left to do other shopping, and get away with new computer equipment.

But detectives began to notice a pattern based upon the type of items stolen, particularly the desirable Apple products. They set up a sting after Christmas in Mission Viejo, where eight similar burglaries had been reported. Authorities said three men followed an undercover Sheriff’s deputy after he bought a printer and computer and broke into his car after he drove off, parked and shopped elsewhere.

The detectives from three counties, Orange, Riverside and Los Angeles, are sharing the information in hopes of capturing others believed to be associated with the ring. Shoppers often have to leave their purchases in their cars because they cannot take them with them which makes them easy targets.

Burglary is serious but the scale and number of the crimes makes it an even more serious situation. They will get jail time for their crimes. Whether you live in Tustin, Aliso Viejo or Brea, if you are charged with burglary, call an experienced criminal defense attorney right away to assist you.

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The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged Irvine-based Brookstreet Securities and it’s CEO, Stanley Brooks with Fraud, alleging they sold risky mortgage-backed securities to investors and failed to inform them properly of the risks.

These types of investment vehicles are at the heart of the collapse of the U.S. and global financial system last fall. Crafty Wall Street investment houses figured out how to bundle together all kinds of mortgages, some solid, many high-risk, and then sell them to investors looking to make money on the interest payments. Investment firms all over the United States, California and Orange County got in on the gold rush and sold them along to others.

Many of the people selling these securitized loans didn’t realize what a time bomb they were pushing on unsuspecting clients. Moody’s Investment Service gave many of the bundled loans a high rating, sending a message to the market that the loans were safe. and AIG made side deals to insure the loans, making them appear even more risk-free. An open question is to what degree the packagers were disclosing the contents of the bundled loans, known as tranches.

Brookstreet allegedly sold $300 million dollars worth of these loans. Many of those loans were used for margin trades by another company, further increasing the risk of default.

The case against Brookstreet is a civil one. There have been no criminal filings to date, though that can’t be ruled out. The U.S. Attorney would have to investigate whether the conduct on the part of Brookstreet rose to the level of criminal fraud, Additionally, there may be a better chance for the SEC to recover money in a civil setting than criminal. Additionally, the level of proof is lower in the civil arena, requiring only a preponderance of evidence to show liability vs. proof beyond a reasonable doubt in the criminal context.

White-collar fraud is on the rise as new, arcane and confusing investment vehicles are cooked up out of the sight of the regulators. If you are charged with any type of securities fraud, you will need help dealing with regulators, the SEC and other investigative agencies, as well as the US attorney’s office. Whether you live in Santa Ana, Laguna Niguel or anywhere else in southern california, if you are charged with fraud, call an experienced criminal defense attorney right away to assist you.

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A four-year old girl was rescued by law enforcementThursday after the police were alerted to a human smuggling operator by the child’s parents. It seems the kind gentleman, er, kidnapper and extorter, was supposed to bring the child to the United States and deliver her to her parents, who had illegally entered the U.S. via another route. But the kidnapper/smuggler decided to extract payment after payment from the parents, until they got so desperate that they walked up to a CHP officer parked at the Laguna Hills mall and told him what was afoot.

Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE0 was alerted and the Orange County Sheriff’s department ultimately arrested the kidnapper after setting up a payment meeting. Ironically, the child and her parents will be kept in the U.S. so that they can testify against the kidnapper.

The saying goes, “if you lie down with dogs, you wake up with fleas”. Human smuggling and kidnapping for ransom are among the most serious crimes, frequently punishable by life in prison.

Whether you live in Santa Ana, Laguna Hills or Santa Ana, if you are charged with kidnapping, call an experienced criminal defense attorney right away to assist you.

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John Arther Walthall, of Laguna Beach, was arrested last week for defrauding a Laguna Niguel elderly couple out of $4.7 million dollars.Walthall told this couple that he had invested his own money in a gold mining business and it had been very profitable for him. The couple gave millions of dollars to him to invest and instead, Walthall used it for his own personal expenses. He paid for his child’s tuition, alimony, and child support and bought gold coins and cars. After getting caught, he has been charged with nine counts of wire fraud, money laundering, and other charges. If convicted of all of these crimes, he faces 150 years in federal prison.

Fraud is an intentional deception made for personal gain or damage to another and comes in many different forms. Money laundering is the act of making huge amounts of money through illegal means and then claiming the money came from a legitimate source. Conning people out of money to invest in a fictitious business is a serious crime. If convicted, Walthall will have to spend his life in prison and will be ordered to pay back as much of the money as possible. Since these are serious crimes that Walthall has been charged with, he will need an experienced fraud defense attorney to assist him. Whether you live in Tustin, Brea or Villa Park, if you have been charged with fraud, call an experienced criminal defense attorney to assist you.

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