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Criminal Law

LA Criminal Defense Blog

Commentary, News, and Tips About Criminal Law
By Steven Rodriguez

Post Frequency: 1.5/day

Last Entry: October 05, 2009 at 07:26:31

Internet Crimes: Even the Defense Department Is At Risk

Posted on December 01, 2008
With more houses, apartments and offices getting Internet ready, Internet crimes are on the rise. Not just the number of crimes, but the complexity of them. For example, senior military leaders took the exceptional step of briefing President Bush this week on a severe and widespread Internet attack on Defense Department computers that may have [...

Retailers Are Cracking Down on Shoplifters

Posted on November 28, 2008
Today is “Black Friday,” the make or break day for most retailers. Good sales today mean staying “in the black;” that is, on the profit side of the balance sheet. Poor sales mean a ledger full of red ink and possible bankruptcy...

Drug Offenders May Qualify for Alternative Sentencing

Posted on November 26, 2008
Most drug crimes in California are aggressively prosecuted as felonies and carry stiff sentences, often including mandated prison time. California’s tough Three Strikes Law can result in even more onerous sentences. As we discussed in our November 24 post, a number of things determine how drug offenses are charged and prosecuted, including the type and [...

How Criminal Defense Attorneys Defend Drug Crimes

Posted on November 24, 2008
In California, most drug crimes are charged and prosecuted as felonies (see our Nov. 21 post). Conviction carries stiff legal penalties, often including prison time, high fines, confiscation of assets, loss of driver’s license and registration as a narcotics offender...

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Supreme Court to Rule on Using Cell Phones to Buy Drugs

Posted on November 21, 2008
In what could become a new legal hurdle for those accused of drug crimes, the U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case involving the use of a cell phone to purchase drugs. The ultimate court of appeals, the U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether someone who uses his own cell phone to buy [...

L.A. councilman seeks to protect celebrities from paparazzi

Posted on November 20, 2008
Paparazzi and celebrities go together like the beach and seagulls, lots of people like the beach, but seagulls aren’t so great.?? A city councilman in Los Angeles is trying to pass new laws to both protect celebrities from having their rights violated, and make places like school zones safer for the general public...

Appeals Court Overturns Rape Verdict, Frees Man After 12 Years in Prison

Posted on November 19, 2008
As we have previously discussed (see our Nov. 3 and Nov. 5 posts), the appellate process exists to correct judicial errors and ensure that criminal defendants receive justice. An excellent example of how an appeal can right a wrong is the recent case reported in the Dallas Morning News...

Suge Knight Faces Serious Charges

Posted on November 19, 2008
The Clark County Nevada district attorney’s office is seeking charges against Marion “Suge” Knight in the alleged beating of his girlfriend in August. A criminal complaint being processed Tuesday in Las Vegas Justice Court charges Knight with two counts of felony drug possession and one count of misdemeanor battery...

Famous Fashion Designer Found Guilty of Rape

Posted on November 18, 2008
A Beverly Hills fashion designer, once touted as a future star of the catwalks, was found guilty of sexually assaulting seven girls and young women, capping a two-month trial that offered a sordid portrait of the fashion world. During this jury trial, the jury was made up of six men and six women, the deliberation lasted for seven days [...

In Appeals, You Can’t Have Your Cake and Eat It Too

Posted on November 17, 2008
Once again, the appellate court has ruled, “You can’t have your cake and eat it too.” In Satchmed Plaza Owners v. UWMC Hospital Corp. (2008 DJDAR 16123), the 4th District, Division 3 Court of Appeal reaffirmed that accepting the benefits of a judgment invalidates your right to appeal that judgment...

Tragic End of Paula Abdul Stalker

Posted on November 17, 2008
Paula Abdul, former pop music queen and current American Idol judge, was the focus of an obsessed stalker who was found dead outside of her home. The stalker had been a contestant on American Idol and was judged harshly by the panel, including Abdul...

Obama Win Shoots Up Gun Sales

Posted on November 14, 2008
Fears that President-elect Obama will push for more restrictive gun laws after his inauguration in January have sent gun sales shooting through the roof. Recently released FBI statistics show a significant increase in gun purchases since the election earlier this month...

Watts Police Shooting Leads to Arrest

Posted on November 13, 2008
A Watts man was arrested for attempted murder, charged with shooting a police officer. The man barricaded himself in a home in Watts for several hours after allegedly shooting an officer who survived because he was wearing a bullet-resistant vest. The accused was booked on suspicion of attempted murder of a police officer, authorities said...

Britney Spears’ ‘Paparazzies’ Target Paparazzi Excess

Posted on November 12, 2008
Britney Spears is turning the tables on the league of paparazzi that haunt celebrities. Fed up with the increasingly aggressive tactics of the paparazzi who seem to dog her every step, the pop diva has started handing out weekly awards dubbed “Paparazzies” on her website Britneyspears...

Gang Related Shooting in Van Nuys

Posted on November 12, 2008
In Los Angeles, gang activity is on the rise. For example, in Van Nuys a man was wounded in a shooting in an apparent gang-related hit. Allegedly, a car pulled up in front of the wounded man and someone inside yelled a gang slur and then shot him. In such a situation as this, various charges [...

Iraq War Bleeds Into Civilian Life

Posted on November 11, 2008
Within the last few years, veterans of the War in Iraq have returned, and criminal defense attorneys in Los Angeles and Southern California have begun to handle matters involving those veterans. In one such tragic case, the father of an Iraq war veteran accused of beating his girlfriend to death has been charged with threatening [...

Assault on a High School Football Coach

Posted on November 10, 2008
An Eagle Rock High School football coach allegedly was assaulted by a disgruntled former player who graduated last year, officials said Friday. It was the latest episode in a series of conflicts related to the firing of the previous head coach.The coach was bending down to pick up a ball when a young man struck him from [...

Craigslist Cracks Down on Prostitution Ads

Posted on November 10, 2008
Under fire from law enforcement officials in 40 states, Craigslist agreed to crack down on prostitution ads on its community websites. Advertisers of “erotic services” will now be required to provide a working telephone number and pay a fee using a valid credit card in order to post an ad on the popular internet classified [...

LAPD Officer Indicted for Trading Sex for Arrest

Posted on November 07, 2008
It’s appalling when the very people charged with protecting society abuse their powers and cause harm to the people they are assigned to protect. Some would argue that it happens every day in Washington, but it’s an unusual occurrence when the perpetrator is a member of the Los Angeles Police Department...

Weapons Charges for Popular Comedian

Posted on November 07, 2008
Comedian Katt Williams has been arrested on weapons charges in midtown Manhattan after police say they pulled him over for driving a car without license plates. The 35-year-old performer was released on bail Thursday in time to make it for his show at Carnegie Hall...

California Propositions and the Law

Posted on November 05, 2008
After going to the polls to make major decisions about California’s laws, here is an update of how this election will affect the legal world of the state. Proposition 5, which would have allocated $460 million a year to treat perpetrators of nonviolent drug-related crimes, was defeated...

What Kinds of Court Mistakes Can Be Appealed?

Posted on November 05, 2008
As we noted in our November 3 post, courts do sometimes make mistakes. Criminal defendants have a constitutional right to appeal their conviction. Through the appellate process, a higher court — the Court of Appeals — reviews court proceedings and sentences...

Keanu Reeves and the Paparazzi

Posted on November 04, 2008
A member of the paparazzi claimed that Keanu Reeves, the star of “The Matrix,” “Speed” and “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure”, struck him with his Porsche in March 2007, causing him to fall and injure his left wrist...

Appeals Can Overturn Criminal Convictions

Posted on November 03, 2008
The American justice system isn’t perfect. Sometimes errors are made during the court process that can result in unfair criminal convictions. The California criminal appeals process can correct court errors and overturn wrongful criminal convictions...

Can Gaming Lead to Crime?

Posted on October 31, 2008
Rockstar Games’ release of the popular video game Grand Theft Auto IV set sales records earlier this year, easily topping first week sales of Halo 3, which had pulled in $300 million during the first seven days of its release. Variety called the international launch of Grand Theft Auto IV last April the most lucrative game [...

FBI Breaks Up Nationwide Child Prostitution Rings

Posted on October 29, 2008
In the dramatic break-up of a major national sex trafficking ring this week, 47 children aged 13 to 17 were rescued. All but one were female. The FBI coordinated the arrests of more than 600 adults in 29 U.S. cities to break up 12 major prostitution rings that forced children into prostitution...

California Cracks Down on Gangs

Posted on October 28, 2008
Throughout California, federal and state authorities have been attempting for years to combat gang activity and membership. Gang activity can be quite varied, involving everything from tagging (graffiti) to murder and drug trafficking. Combating gangs is difficult in part because communities often live in fear of being targeted by gangs if they interfere...

Voter Fraud Mars Presidential Election

Posted on October 27, 2008
With the election countdown in its final days, charges of voter fraud are heating up, particularly in key swing-vote states in America’s heartland. Fictitious voter registrations in Ohio, an absentee ballot mailed to a goldfish in Illinois and campaign workers voting illegally in Indiana have topped Midwestern headlines in the final weeks of what has become an increasingly contentious [...

Lynyrd Skynyrd Member Charged With DUI

Posted on October 27, 2008
Lynyard Skynyrd is one of the quintessential bands from the 1970’s, made legendary when members of their original band died in a terrible plane crash. Gary Rossington, one of the founding members of the band was arrested on DUI charges last month in Milton, Ga...

Update on Proposition 9

Posted on October 24, 2008
Many Los Angeles criminal defense attorneys are up in arms over the chaos that an upcoming state proposition could cause if voters choose to pass it. Proposition 9 would alter the state Constitution to require that crime victims be notified and consulted on developments in their cases...

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