Will Economic Troubles Increase Crime Rate?

Financial desperation often leads to desperate acts. In California, an unemployed money manager lost a fortune and killed his family in a tragic murder-suicide. In Ohio, a 90-year-old widow shot herself as deputies arrived to evict her from her home of 38 years.
The first wave of violent fallout from the current economic crisis seems to be […]

Which Prevents More Drug Crimes, Treatment or Jail?

Incarceration appears to be a more effective deterrent to drug crime than treatment, according to a study of Proposition 36 recently released by UCLA’s Integrated Substance Abuse Programs at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior. In 2000, California voters passed Proposition 36, also known as the Substance Abuse and Crime Prevention Act, which offered […]

A Tale of Two Lawyers

Recently I blogged about my nephew’s frightening experience with the court system. A couple of beers with his high school friends before going off to college turned into a nightmare when he was stopped for DUI by a no-nonsense Virginia cop. (See our Oct. 10 post.) My 18-year-old nephew was lucky. His folks hired an […]

Jail or College? A Skilled Attorney Made All the Difference

If it weren’t for the experience and skill of his attorney, my 18-year-old nephew could be sitting behind bars instead of in a college classroom today. My nephew’s not a bad kid; in fact, he’s a great kid. But like most barely 18-year-olds he doesn’t always make great choices. One of those choices got him arrested […]

Drug Abuse May Have Contributed to Fatal Bus Crash

Drugs may have contributed to Sunday’s tragic bus crash that killed 8 people and injured 30 en route to a Sacramento gambling casino. The 52-year-old driver of the charter bus, Quintin Watts, was arrested in his hospital bed earlier this week on the suspicion of driving under the influence (DUI) of drugs. Watts, who was […]

AG Brown Goes After Prescription Drug Addicts

Prescription drug abuse is reaching epidemic proportions in the U.S. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health estimates that 20% to 30% of California’s drug abusers are addicted to prescription drugs. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) estimates that 48 million Americans have used prescription drugs for non-medical reasons. Abuse of prescription drugs like […]

Will Criminals Receive Due Process If Marsy’s Law Passes?

Victims’ rights are a hot political issue in California this election. Proponents of California Proposition 9, also called Marsy’s Law and the Crime Victims’ Bill of Rights, say it will give crime victims the same rights as accused and convicted criminals (see our Sept. 24 post). But crime victims in California already have most of […]

Marsy’s Law Would Give Crime Victims Equal Rights

Crime victims advocates, law enforcement leaders and numerous politicians have united in support of California Proposition 9, also called Marsy’s Law. If approved by voters on the November ballot, the ”Crime Victims’ Bill of Rights Act of 2008″ will provide crime victims with the same constitutional rights as accused and convicted criminals.  
“California’s constitution guarantees rights for […]

California Leads National Decrease in Drunk Driving Stats

California posted the greatest decrease in drunken driving deaths last year according to data released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Nationwide alcohol-related traffic fatalities decreased by 4% from 2006 with fatality rates falling in 32 states.
California had 117 fewer alcohol-impaired driving deaths in 2007. A driver is considered drunk when he has a […]

Does Incarceration in Coalinga Violate Inmates Rights?

It looks like hundreds of shopping malls scattered across California. There’s a barbershop, post office, library, dentist’s office and cafe.  If it weren’t for the Orwellian khaki uniforms and armed guards, it could be a mall in any town in California. But this mall is in Coalinga State Hospital, California’s long-term treatment psychiatric facility for […]

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