Nicole Quijano Valera’s Answers

Criminal Threats is a serious charge, especially if it is a felony, as stated in the answer above. If you have witnesses to the threats he made to you previously, gather those witnesses up and make sure you have your attorney talk to them. Good investigation in this case can help you mount an aggressive defense, especially given the background of your neighborhood. If don't have an attorney you will be appointed a public defender. If you can afford to hire an attorney, you should do so - while...

Unfortunately with charges like this, police officers will respond to investigate the situation, and having an ex giving input to a social worker does not make the situation any easier. Have you been formally charged at this point? If you would like to discuss your case futher, please feel free to contact me at (323) 377-2134. www.nicolevaleralaw.com

Once your son goes to court he will be advised of what he is being charged with. If it is charged as a misdemanor, then your son is entitled to an attorney. After reviewing what he is charged with, your son will be asked to either deny or admit the charges. Normally, for the first court date it is common to deny the charges so that the court can obtain what is often called a, "Pre-Plea Report". This is an interview with the probation department -- they will ask your son about school, home,...

If you're blood alcohol content was a .08 then you may have room for negotiation but a dismissal is difficult to obtain, even without any prior DUIs. If the officers lacked reasonable suspicion to pull you over, your lawyer can file a motion to dismiss based on a bad stop (1538.5) motion. However, swerving between lanes (if that's what it was) even if it is due to a mechanical issue is still reasonable suspicion to pull you over. There may be more facts in your favor, but you need an attorney...

It is possible that your sister had an offense which is often just cited to appear as the basis of the warrant and perhaps your son had a warrant out for his arrest that involved a charge that was more severe than hers. However it is absolutely possible that your son was discriminated against.

Being in rehab is definitely going to help your case, but it is no guarantee you will stay out of jail - it really just depends on the judge. In my experience most judges do not want to interfere with addiction recovery, but they need to see prove that the person is in active participation and is in good standing with the program. Again, it will just depend on the judge but I think you're on the right track. Good luck.

Your instinct is correct - the cleanest way to do it would be to terminate probation and run any time on the probation violation concurrent with any prison sentence you receive on the new case. A question I have for you is whether you are on probation for the misdemeanor case for which you served 6 months. Did you reject probation? If so, and the felony probation time is run concurrent with the new open felony case, after you are released from prison, you will be paroled and will not have...

You are being cited for 2 penal codes because the officer believes that you could be eligible to be charged under either of them. In the end, it's up to the prosecutor to decide which section to charge you under. However, since you have no priors, there is another penal code section that may be a better alternative for you since it is not a misdemeanor, but an infraction instead. Infractions do not require probation of any type, but there will likely be a fine involved.

Mr. Pickard is correct - hiring an attorney does not guarantee that you will stay out of jail - no such guarantee exists. However the advantages of hiring an attorney are that they are usually able to devote mpre time to your case since many public defenders have a heavy caseload and must be in court all day. If this is your first case, then that is likely to work in your favor and your attorney will be able to negotiate on your behalf with that information.

It sounds like you were never convicted in this first incident so it can't be used as a prior against you. However, Mr. Shapiro is correct, if there is a conviction, even if you have it expunged, the prosecutors can still use it against you to enhance punishment on any future theft related cases, such as elevating a misdemeanor to a felony. If you were never convicted and the case was dismissed, the prosecutors will still be able to see that arrest - prosecutors run rap sheets on...