Torrance Criminal Defense Attorney.
It matters. The answer is maybe. Sexual abuse cases are highly emotional cases for not only the defendant, but the victim, too. Often, evidence of sexual abuse or a single act is kept secret by a victim for years because the victim does not want to relive the event or events in describing them to law enforcement. In other cases, the victim is a daughter or son and believes greater damage will result if the family loses its financial support in the sexual abuser. A sad, but common fact...
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My answer differs from those of my colleagues. I assume you will receive a notice in the mail that you must appear in court. When you appear in court, your goal should be to have the case reduced to an infraction for petty theft (Penal Code section 490.1). You do not want a misdemeanor on your criminal record, i.e. for Petty Theft (Penal Code section 484). An infraction is civil, not criminal, in nature, so a "conviction" for an infraction does not go into the Department of Justice database...
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If you did not yet leave the store, as you indicate you were still in the store, I am unclear how this case is being brought at all. Did you have a chance to pay for the bag? Were you arrested merely for carrying the bag around the store? Putting that issue aside, intent may be established by circumstantial evidence, so merely saying, "I did not intend to take the bag" really does not work. As to the video tape, I find such tapes usually only show you in the store walking around, which...
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Assuming your upcoming court date is an arraignment, you should expect a district attorney to have a rather tough initial offer and press you to admit the violation immediately. While I do not know the specifics of your sales case, any other prior criminal activity or the context of the assault and battery, the district attorney may view the assault and battery case as nothing more than a simple continuation of a trend of disrespect for the law. In California, the burden of proof on a...
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I agree with the math that the attorney before me set out. Your ex may be released even earlier, however, if county jail is crowded. Your ex also could always face more time than predicted if he gets in fights or otherwise misbehaves in custody.
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Today's news includes a story that Governor Jerry Brown pardoned 79 convicted felons. The direct pardon process is controlled by Penal Code section 4800. There is a form to complete and submit for such an application. Best of luck.
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The answer to your question is yes and no. Sorry to be such a lawyer in this response, but it is true. Under a new law recently signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown and put into effect about a year ago on October 1, 2011, prison sentences may not be akin to having you or your loved one housed in Siberia. On May 23, 2011, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed a lower federal court’s ruling that overcrowded prison conditions in California violated the Eight Amendment’s ban on cruel and...
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The answer is generally yes, but as one of the other attorneys commented, you are probably quite premature on seeking early termination of probation. I do a lot of these motions and I find that courts usually like to see at least half of the probationary period completed before considering early termination. What might help is having a letter from the National Guard's office of admissions (or a similar position) confirming that you will be accepted to the Guard if the court terminates...
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You have the right to challenge whether the officer had a reasonable suspicion that you were doing something illegal that led him to stopping you. Please keep in mind that the reasonable suspicion can be that you were simply speeding, making an illegal lane change, or any of dozens of other things and not necessarily DUI. Once he pulled you over and became aware that alcohol might be involved, he had the right to further question you about your intake of alcohol. Your credibility with the...
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The answer previously given is correct in most scenarios. However, if the sentence involves a requirement that the defendant serve 85% of the time, the 1 to 1 credit does not apply. Then it becomes mathematically a little more difficult, but basically for each day in jail awaiting a sentence, the defendant gets 15% credit toward another day. So after seven days, credit for eight would apply.
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