Los Angeles Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog

A recent Los Angeles Times article reports that the California Supreme Court has overturned the death penalty for two men convicted of murder.

This shows that the skills of an experienced Los Angeles criminal defense attorney have two benefits -- possible acquittal at trial, and preparing the way for possible appeal if there's a conviction.

Murder is the most explosive charge on the books. It must be taken seriously because not only has one person died, but another person's liberty is at stake and possibly his life as well. In California, a person convicted of first-degree murder can be executed by the state.

Murder in Los Angeles must be treated differently than other crimes. That means judges must watch what they say in front of jurors, prosecutors must ensure that a defendant's rights are upheld and a Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer must do much preparation to get ready for trial.

If a person is to be charged with first-degree murder, the state must have proof beyond all reasonable doubt that these charges are legitimate. A person simply cannot be convicted of this charge if there is doubt. There is too much on the line. Simply said, death is different.

According to the Times piece, the California Supreme Court broke its streak of upholding 50 straight death sentences when it overturned the conviction of an alleged gang leader in Los Angeles and his alleged accomplice in two killings that have left them on death row for the last 15 years.

The court unanimously ruled that the two men who were convicted in 1997 didn't get a fair trial when a judge removed a juror who seemed to be critical of the state's case. The ruling stated that the judge had a lack of evidence to remove the juror.

The state alleges the purported leader led a gang that was responsible for 60 South Los Angeles killings. He was convicted of ordering his co-defendant to kill two rival gang members. He faced other killings, but another jury deadlocked on whether he was guilty.

Justices wrote that the juror who was removed was deliberating properly and was relying on their experience and not biased against the state in evaluating witnesses that the state presented. Jurors are allowed to judge the credibility of witnesses, justices wrote.

Prosecutors haven't said whether they will retry the men, but did indicate they will wait to read the ruling first. Attorneys for the men said they were pleased with the high court's decision, but frustrated it took so long, with one calling the decision a "foregone conclusion."

This case shows that a defense attorney at trial can make objections and keep them in the record so that lawyers and judges in the future may be able to see that errors were made. Not only will a good lawyer fight on behalf of the defendant now, but help prepare their appeal in the future, if needed.

Continue reading "Aggressive Los Angeles Murder Defense Can Set Table For Future Appeals" »

The California Highway Patrol reported that more people were driving drunk during the Thanksgiving holiday this year than in 2010.

Drivers should be aware that law enforcement will continue to step up patrols in an attempt to make as many DUI arrests in Los Angeles as possible during the winter holiday season.

While our Los Angeles DUI defense lawyers understand that drunken driving is down in the last several decades, police still enforce it robustly. Officers will be conducting DUI checkpoints in an attempt to make as many arrests as possible, though their value is questionable.

Police may also increase the number of officers on the roads this holiday season so they can attempt to make DUI-related arrests. AAA likely will estimate an increase in holiday traffic -- as the organization did for the Thanksgiving holiday -- so there will be more people on the roads during this time of year. If you are traveling, expect to see more police cruisers, too.

California Highway Patrol reported that they arrested 7 percent more people this Thanksgiving compared to last -- up to 200. That compares to the 182 people who faced a DUI charge last Thanksgiving. The period of enforcement lasted 96 hours from Thursday to Sunday, as reported by KLTA.

In order for police to start a DUI investigation, they must have a reason to stop a driver's car in the first place. They can't just do it because the driver looks "suspicious" or something seems "strange." They must have what's called probable cause in order to stop the car, and that usually is based on a driving infraction.

If a driver is speeding, changes lanes improperly, runs a red light or any other common driving infraction, an officer can pull him or her over. That doesn't necessarily mean a DUI investigation will start, but it can.

The officer must use his or her experience from that point on. If they observe "bloodshot" or "glassy" eyes or says the driver was speaking with slurred speech, they may then initiate an investigation for DUI. They could end up asking the driver to perform field sobriety tests or take a breath test. All of that could end up being used as evidence against the driver.

In order to fight the charge after the fact, an experienced Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer should be called immediately. Just because a person is arrested doesn't mean he or she is guilty. Breathalyzers have flaws and police officers can make mistakes. Both have been well documented.

It's also possible that witness testimony or video surveillance -- either from a nearby business or the police officer's dashboard-mounted camera -- could lead to evidence that helps the defense.

Examining the facts and being able to show what really happened is important if the driver wants to try to ensure this charge doesn't represent a mark on their record forever.

Continue reading "Be Prepared for Los Angeles DUI Arrests This Holiday Season" »

A recent court case out of Illinois highlights the great lengths to which law enforcement will go in order to arrest a person for murder. An incident likes this could happen to anyone, including those charged with murder in Los Angeles and elsewhere.

The case of Aleman v. Village of Hanover Park is a cautionary tale for defendants who may be charged with a crime.

Our Los Angeles criminal defense lawyers understand that police are under pressure to make arrests, especially in violent cases such as murder. They work overnight, get little sleep, review scads of documents, talk with witnesses, and look for clues as to who may be responsible.

They get calls from the media, from their bosses, from political leaders, from the victim's family and others who are looking for quick answers. We understand the pressure, but investigators must follow the rules and apply ethical judgment when doing their job.

In the Illinois case, Aleman ran a daycare from his home, which included caring for his own five children. In September 2005, after about five months in business, an incident happened that changed his life.

One day, a mother dropped off her 11-month-old son, who was lethargic and feverish. Shortly after dropping the boy off, he began grasping for air and collapsed. The man called for an ambulance and performed CPR, but was only able to get some fluid out of the boy's mouth.

Police asked him and his wife to come to the police station, which he did. After 45 minutes in an interrogation room without seeing anyone, he asked if he could come back in an hour and he was told no because he was under arrest. Five hours later, two officers entered the room.

They told him he had the most information and they wanted to speak with him. He asked to speak with his lawyer, which they allowed, but in the meantime, drafted a waiver of rights form for him to sign. His lawyers smartly told him not to speak to officers, but during their conversation, one of them got on the phone and talked with the lawyer.

They allowed him to make several other calls, though he didn't want to talk to them, they continued pressuring him. Eventually, he called his lawyer again and relayed to police his attorney said it was fine for him to talk to police. He then gave a four-hour statement, during which he made an admission to possibly shaking the boy.

He was charged with aggravated battery of a child, which was later upgraded to murder when the boy died. But, as prosecutors discovered, police went out of their way to finger this man when there was no evidence.

One of the main investigators had been in contact with the boy's mother and knew she had a violent past with a criminal history and had threatened the boy, was known to have hit him and wanted him dead. Yet, the officer tried to hide that from other detectives.

After a medical examiner found the boy couldn't have died from blows by the man that day, the detective told her he had information to believe the boy was acting normally and was healthy on the day in question and she changed her opinion. Once she found out she was lied to, she changed it back.

Charges were later dropped by prosecutors, though the mother was never charged. The man is now suing the police department and officers for their mistreatment.

Continue reading "Aleman v. Village of Hanover Park Shows Sloppy Police Work Leads to Unjust Murder Charges" »

A recent study found that the number of women who are arrested for drunken driving is on the rise.

Still, regardless of the gender, the number of drunken-driving arrests is down considerably in recent years, statistics have shown us. And yet we read that arrests for certain demographics are up, DUI in Los Angeles is a significant issue and many of us are somewhat worried when we take to the roadways.

It seems to be more propaganda than truth. Our Los Angeles DUI defense lawyers have been able to help many clients charged with DUI. That's because taking an aggressive approach to the charges is critical in these cases.

According to a recent study, the number of females arrested for DUI is up 36 percent over the last decade. The study also found that most of these women are more educated and older than their male counterparts.

A Washington Post article looks at the trend of mothers drinking while caring for their children. While some women may believe that a glass of wine or two while visiting with a friend is no problem, it could put them over the blood alcohol limit of 0.08 in California. Driving with children could add charges, if an arrest is made.

Fighting a DUI in California is a two-pronged process. First, a person must request an administrative hearing with the California Department of Motor Vehicles. If this hearing isn't scheduled within 10 days of arrest, the driver's license is suspended for 30 days.

Representing oneself isn't smart, though these hearings are more informal and are before a hearing officer instead of a judge, there are still ins and outs of the law that the person must know in order to be successful.

The second phase of the situation is the criminal case. A person who is charged and convicted of DUI in Los Angeles, even for a first-time offense, can face hefty penalties:

• Three years of probation


• 48 hours to six months in jail


• Up to $1,000 in fines


• Driver's license suspension for six to 10 months


• DUI education program


• An ignition interlock device installed

But there are defenses. Challenging the initial stop may be appropriate if the officer can't prove or if other evidence contradicts why the initial stop was made. An officer must have probable cause to make the stop, such as that the person was speeding, swerving, ran a red light or stop sign or otherwise violated traffic laws.

After that, the officer likely will attempt to conduct field sobriety testing or breath testing. Breathalyzers have been challenged in California and statewide for their inaccuracy and often police officers aren't properly trained or don't perform field sobriety tests correctly. Also, there are examples of people whose physical conditions or weather conditions that affect how they perform these tests, which are difficult to take under pressure and while nervous.

Continue reading "Female Drunken Driving on the Rise, Study Shows" »

A recent case out of Palm Springs has police accusing a 69-year-old woman of using scissors to attack her husband in an attempt to cut off his penis, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Perhaps the most memorable story Americans will recall from 1993 was the story of John and Lorena Bobbitt, a young couple from Virginia who were forever made famous when Lorena accused her husband of sexually assaulting her and later cutting off her husband's penis as he slept, drove away, and threw it out the window of her car. He was acquitted of the charges and she was found not guilty by reason of insanity.

In cases like this, or other violent crimes, a person can face assault charges in Los Angeles. These charges shouldn't be taken lightly because they can cause a person to be sent to prison for up to four years and fined $10,000 or more. In some cases, the charge could be upgraded to attempted murder. If the person dies, accidentally even due to blood loss or complications, the defendant could be looking at life in prison. It's a slippery slope.

As an experienced Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer knows, the news media attention brought from such a bizarre set of facts will permeate the case. This can be used to the defendant's advantage, depending on the skills of the lawyer.

Some attorneys believe they shouldn't say anything to the media because it will just bring more attention to the case. Others take the stance that the case will be in the news anyway, so why not try to get their defendant's opinion into the articles and TV broadcasts?

The big risk in big media cases is that every time a viewer or reader takes in facts of the case, they could be set up to be biased against the defendant. Every viewer or reader is a prospective juror. So the more the case is in the news, the more people know about it and the more they may not be able to listen to the facts during trial. That bias can definitely get in the way of the jurors as a whole as they deliberate a person's guilt or innocence.

This also makes jury selection so important. Weeding out jurors who may be anti-defense or who may not be able to put aside what they have learned about the case through media coverage is critical to ensure the defendant's rights.

According to this case, the woman is charged with mayhem, assault with a deadly weapon and felony domestic violence. The woman allegedly caused a non-life-threatening wound in the genital area of the man.

The couple -- who have been together for 32 years, according to police -- are still being investigated. At this point, detectives aren't sure what caused the wife to attack her husband, who is also 62.

Police say they have found scissors, what they described as poultry shears, that they plan on logging as evidence in the case.

Continue reading "Woman Accused of Scissor Attack on Husband's Penis in Los Angeles" »

An experienced Los Angeles criminal defense appeals lawyer is critical to ensure that a defendant's rights are upheld.

This is no more evident than in a recent case out of Maryland called State v. Allen. In this case, a man was tried for murder in different trials and there were errors both times that required new juries and new trials.

A criminal appeal in Los Angeles is a right that all defendants have. While the appeal may be different based on the circumstance, for instance a plea versus a guilty verdict at trial, there are still avenues for a case to be heard by a different court.

The bottom line is that everyone makes mistakes. Despite their best efforts, people in the court system can easily say something, do something or attempt something that is against the rules. And that's why there are other sets of eyes looking at the case to ensure that everything was done correctly.

In this case, little was done correctly -- several times.

The case started when Jeffrey Allen was at the home of his friend, John Butler. Allen asked for Butler to drive him home, but he refused. Allen then grabbed Butler's keys and jingled them in front of Butler and insisted he would drive himself home. The two started fighting and Allen ended up stabbing Butler to death. He took the car and later crashed it, which led to his arrest.

Authorities charged him with first-degree premeditated murder, first-degree felony murder, second-degree murder, robbery with a deadly weapon and other offenses. At trial, he was found guilty of first-degree felony murder, second-degree murder, robbery with a deadly weapon and the lesser related counts.

On appeal, the man argued that the judge's jury instructions, which stated that the jury could find him guilty whether or not his intent to rob was determined before or after the murder. For a conviction of felony murder, in Maryland as in California and many other states, the state must prove the person committed a murder while committing one of a list of felonies, typically including robbery, burglary, a sex crime, kidnapping or others.

An appeals court ruled that an "afterthought" robbery can't be strong enough to convict someone of felony murder and, therefore, put a person at risk for the death penalty. They granted a new trial on that charge only.

Despite already having the second-degree murder and other charges conviction, prosecutors went back to trial on a charge of first-degree murder. In this trial, the judge started off on shaky ground when he told jurors that the defendant had already been convicted of second-degree murder and robbery.

Despite objection by his defense lawyers, the judge told jurors during the instructions that the defendant had already been convicted of robbery. An appeals court ruled that by telling jurors that, the judge had already essentially proven a vital part of the case -- that the defendant had been convicted of robbery. If the state showed that Allen had killed Butler, they had the felony murder charge in the bag.

The appeals court awarded the man another new trial on the felony murder charge, though hopefully prosecutors will stop wasting taxpayer dollars and settle for the convictions they already have.

As you can see, being able to spot key problems in trials that have already taken place takes a lot of time and effort. There are scores of pages to read over and issues to look at and present to an appeals court. But it is worthwhile to make sure the defendant was treated fairly and to see that justice is done.

Continue reading "State v. Allen Shows Importance of Los Angeles Appeals Attorney" »

A Hollywood young actors manager was recently arrested and charged with suspicion of molesting a former client, and investigators have said they believe there could be more victims.

It's been a strange year for sex crimes in Los Angeles and nationwide. Take the ongoing Penn State University scandal for instance, in which a former football defensive coordinator has been charged with molesting at least 10 boys in a span of more than a decade. In another ongoing case, alleged victims have accused a former Syracuse University basketball coach of sexual misconduct.

It appears that alleged sexual assault victims have been more bold in coming out and making allegations. And while in many cases they were indeed abused, this doesn't mean that every person accused is guilty. Many are, in fact, being accused for the potential financial benefits.

Our Los Angeles criminal defense lawyers have seen many high-profile Los Angeles and Hollywood executives and officials charged with crimes, including sex crimes, only to see them later dropped because witnesses recant their testimony or cases fall apart because of credibility with the alleged victim.

According to a news article by the Los Angeles Times, the manager faces one count of suspicion of committing lewd acts upon a child under 14. Detectives obtained a search warrant for the Santa Monica house where the 47-year-old man lives and runs his business.

A singer is the alleged victim and told police he had been sexually assaulted in the man's apartment and in a Woodland Hills house. Bail has been set at $300,000.

According to a detective's affidavit, the accuser, now 18, told police in November that the man had molested him starting when he was 11 or 12. The detective wrote that the teen had been forced to have sex with the suspect between 30 and 40 times over three years, until he was 15. The alleged victim said the manager told him that it was common in the entertainment industry and that if he told anyone, they would both be hurt, including the boy's career.

When the boy was 15 and stopped doing business with the man, the alleged abuse stopped. The boy confronted the man in November and taped their conversation, fearing there might be other victims. The man, in the secret recording, allegedly acknowledged the two had sexual contact, but denied abuse. He said the boy was interested.

The teen went to police and allowed them to listen to the recording. The alleged victim told police others had spent the night at the house. The newspaper reported it was unclear if police found any evidence of child pornography or photos of the teen or other boys at the apartment.

According to California law, it is a crime to record or eavesdrop on any conversation in which you haven't told the other person you are recording. So, while the alleged victim in this case may have been trying to gain evidence, he may have committed a crime in doing so.

It will be incumbent upon the suspect's Los Angeles sex crimes lawyer to investigate whether any evidence of the recording can be brought into trial and whether the case should have gone forward considering the questionable start to the case. If other evidence was found as a result of an illegal recording, it's possible that evidence could be suppressed, or kept out of trial.

Continue reading "Hollywood Young Actors Manager Charged With Molestation in Los Angeles" »

Los Angeles made national and international headlines recently and it wasn't because of a celebrity.

This time it was an overzealous shopper at a Wal-Mart in the city limits. A woman, who has yet to be arrested, is accused of using pepper spray to back off about 20 shoppers during a Black Friday sale.

Our Los Angeles criminal defense lawyers certainly don't condone using pepper spray in a crowded area, especially on other shoppers, but as the police have pointed out this may have been a situation of self-defense.

Charges of battery in Los Angeles can hold serious penalties and can lead to a felony record that precludes people from getting jobs, voting, receiving federal benefits and other issues. It can also lead to prison time or probation, fines and fees, and other sanctions.

In the Black Friday Wal-Mart case, police are reviewing evidence to determine if the woman felt she was about to get trampled when she and about 20 other people were gathered around a palette of video games that were set to be sold for half their $60 normal price.

Once the wrapping was taken off by workers, it was "pandemonium," police said. Shoppers were pushing and shoving to get to the discounts. One woman allegedly used pepper spray in the fracas. Police are determining whether the pepper spray was used because she was trying to get an advantage or whether she felt she was going to get trampled.

The Los Angeles Times reports that detectives have interviewed more than a dozen witnesses and are looking to talk to another 10 shoppers. They are also looking at video surveillance.

Miles north in the San Francisco Bay area, news reports state that a shopper was shot after would-be robbers attacked in the parking lot of a Wal-Mart. In Arkansas, people were involved in a "waffle riot" when $2 waffle irons went on sale and people clamored to get one.

Experts say holiday shopping has turned into a blood sport, where crazed shoppers looking for deals will resort to violence in order to get the products they want after weeks of advertisements.

This can lead to major charges if consumers are charged with battering or even shooting other shoppers just to get a good deal or two. The savings can turn into much more in fines as well as possible prison time for those who are found guilty of felony charges.

Emotions and competitiveness can sometimes take over in cases like this, and could cause people, even those no criminal history, to act outside themselves. For these defendants, having an experienced Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer by their side is critical.

The criminal justice system moves quickly. There are many factors that must be taken into consideration that the average person isn't aware of or can't plan for. If you are new to the system and may have made a bad mistake this holiday season, you must be well represented. Don't expect the state to see the case the same way. They will push for tough penalties.

Continue reading "Black Friday Pepper Spray Incident Could Lead to Los Angeles Assault or Battery Charges" »