Recent Blog Posts

Lowest Crime Rate for San Diego Since 1963

San Diego Criminal Defense Lawyer — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 18:00:00 GMT

In the large city of San Diego, the crime rate reached the lowest it has been since 1963 with declines in each of the seven major crimes. Homicide, robbery, burglary, theft, rape, aggravated assault and auto theft are tracked annually, and all together those crimes decreased 4.7 percent over 2009. In all, murders showed the biggest decrease in the major crimes, dropping 29.3 percent from 2009.

The chief of police called San Diego "one of the safest large cities in America" at a news conference, and credited the cell phone with making the different in reporting and curbing crime. Police officers in San Diego use a variety of approaches to curb juvenile crime, using bicycles in parks and conducting frequent curfew sweeps. The sweeps meant that more juveniles were arrested, and police have also encouraged crime victims to file reports online and by phone.

While these measures help reduce crime, they may also result in someone being wrongly charged. If you have been accused of a criminal offense in the San Diego area, you need to act quickly and contact a San Diego criminal defense lawyer. You need a talented defense attorney to fight on your side against tough prosecutors and a strict court system. It is proven that the quality and talent of a San Diego criminal defense lawyer can make the difference in the outcome of your case, so call our firm today.

New Restrictions on Felons for IHSS Program

San Diego Criminal Defense Attorney — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 20:07:00 GMT

The In-Home Supportive Services program is a state-funded initiative that helps the elderly pay for services enabling them to stay in their own home. Over 300,000 home health care workers assist the elderly through this program.

In September, a report in the Los Angeles Times indicated that people with a history of violent crime, including those with a history ofrape and elder abuse, were permitted to work in the state's home health aide program. Investigators found over 200 applicants and workers, who despite being deemed "unsuitable" to work in this environment, were employed through the program or scheduled to begin employment.

According to the Times report, a judge ruled earlier in the year that felons could be permitted to work as home health aides under the law as it was then written. Under the court ruling, only those with convictions for child abuse, elder abuse or defrauding of public assistance programs could be excluded from the program. Despite the ruling, not all offenders with those convictions were prohibited from working in the program.

In a September letter to state legislators, Governor Schwarzenegger called the issue a "public safety crisis" and urged the legislature to take action. As a result, a measure was added to a budget package that the governor signed in early October.

In January 2011, the state will be able to disqualify workers in the program for a broader range of felony convictions. Participants in the program, however, will be able to sign a waiver allowing a felon to continue to care for them, as long as the conviction was not for elder abuse, fraud or child abuse.

Sex Crime Boundaries in California

San Diego Criminal Defense Attorney — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 20:06:00 GMT

A California man has been charged with two misdemeanors for discharging semen into a female coworker's water bottle. After feeling ill, the defendant had her water tested and discovered semen allegedly matching the DNA of her colleague, Michael Kevin Lallana, 31.

On August 17 Lallana was charged with assault and releasing an offensive material. Though both charges are misdemeanors, the acts were committed in a sexual context and if convicted, Lallana may face up to three years in prison and will be required to register as a sex offender.

What is a Sex Crime?

The most well known sex crime is rape. Types of rape include date rape, spousal rape and statutory rape. California's statutory rape law varies depending on the ages of the offender and victim. Generally, statutory rape is defined as when an adult engages in sex with a minor, or when a minor engages in sex with another minor more than three years younger in age.

Sex crimes where children are the victims are viewed as especially horrific. Lewd acts with a child, molestation and the distribution, production or possession of child pornography are all considered sex crimes.

Battery or assault can be classified as a sex crime when the violence takes place in a sexual context or for sexual motives. Lewd conduct in public, prostitution and the solicitation of prostitution are sex crimes. Failure to register as a sex offender is also classified as a sex crime under Megan's Law of 1996.

Consequences of a Sex Crime Conviction

When convicted of a sex crime, your status within society drops significantly. Even if a person has completed rehabilitation, society will most likely not accept that a sex offender has changed. It will often be very difficult to start living "a normal life" again.

Persons convicted of specific sex crimes are required to register with their name and home address at a local law enforcement agency upon release from prison or treatment facility. Most sex offenders will remain on the registry their entire lives.

Sex offenders will often have trouble finding a place to live within the given restrictions in California. Jessica's Law of 2006 bans sex offenders from living within 2,000 feet of a school or park.

This September, Chelsea's Law was signed, instituting an automatic life sentence without parole for those convicted of serious violent sexual crimes against children. The new law also requires tougher parole restrictions including lifetime GPS tracking.

Parole Officials Overwhelmed by Data From Sex Offender Tracking Bracelets

San Diego Criminal Defense Attorney — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 20:04:00 GMT

Too Much Information, Too Little Time to Digest It

We all face sensory overload at some point, but most of us do not have the safety and well-being of the public riding on our ability to quickly process and prioritize massive amounts of information. Unfortunately, the understaffed parole officers in California do. Less than 275 parole agents are currently in charge of tracking nearly 6,500 paroled sex offenders throughout the state.

What the Bracelets Are Intended to Do

California's $60 million program to track parolees who have committed sex-related offenses - the most aggressive program of its kind in the nation - using global positioning system (GPS) technology is laudable. In theory, the system should follow each parolee's progress and map his or her physical location in real time. Such a system should be able to easily prove violations of restraining orders, locate parolees who may have failed to check in with parole/probation officials as required and ensure that offenders do not wander into forbidden territory (like school zones or parks). It could also serve as a tool for parolees, helping teach them about the importance of obeying the conditions of probation and giving them an incentive to focus on rehabilitation.

What They Actually Do

The reality is that, as staffing levels remain stagnant in the face of budgetary constraints, the relatively few officers charged with keeping track of this data are so inundated with meaningless information from the GPS devices (receiving email or cell phone alerts for every single low battery or if a parolee innocently puts one foot into a prohibited area) - each officer received an average of 3,700 of them last year alone - that it is impossible for them to prioritize resources and handle the most pressing issues. Making parole officers unable to adequately assess if there is an immediate threat to public safety.

What to Do Next

Unless the system can be reformed, the commendable purposes of preventing crime and helping rehabilitate offenders will not be served. There are "fixes" currently being explored, such as the possible use of ranking GPS alerts by urgency, putting the most resources into those parolees with the greatest chance of recidivism and analyzing tracking data only a few times per month for lower risk offenders. However, until such a time when a more effective parole system is put into place, one that serves the public, protects the rights of parolees and ensures that they will get the help they need, the current program is considered the best that California can do.

Deportation of a Witness Could Mean Justice has Been Exiled

Kerry Armstrong — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 20:03:00 GMT

The California Supreme Court has ruled that the rights of a man accused of attempted murder were not violated by the deportation of a witness who was crucial to his defense.

Armando Jacinto was accused in May of attacking a man with a knife in a restaurant. The victim identified Jacinto and prosecutors then charged the Sonoma County man.

However, Jacinto's criminal defense attorneys located a witness who said Jacinto had not committed the stabbing. Instead, the witness said, it was a woman who was with Jacinto at the restaurant who stabbed the victim.

The witness was located in the Sonoma County Jail on an unrelated charge. After his release, he was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) authorities, who deported the undocumented immigrant to Mexico.

Jacinto claimed that his constitutional rights to due process and to compel testimony of witnesses were violated by the deportation of the only witness able to testify in his defense. As the court noted in its decision, "The right of an accused to compel witnesses to come into court and give evidence in the accused's defense is a fundamental one."

The state Supreme Court rejected the argument that the deportation violated the defendant's rights, saying that prosecutors had nothing to do the expulsion of the witness.

The court upheld a lower a state appeals court ruling, stating that Jacinto had to prove that misconduct by the prosecutors led to the deportation. Instead, the court found that sheriff's employees acted on their own by turning the witness over to ICE.

The seven-justice panel also pointed out that Jacinto could have secured the witness's testimony by taking a deposition or by contacting the Sonoma County Sheriff or ICE to have the witness detained.

Jacinto's defense lawyer said that because of this decision by the California Supreme Court ruling, an innocent man may be convicted of attempted murder.

San Diego Law Enforcement Crack Down on DUIs over St. Patrick's Day

Kerry Armstrong — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 20:02:00 GMT

On St. Patrick's Day, when California goes Irish, California police departments go on alert.
Each year, sobriety checkpoints and sweeps in San Diego County -- and across California -- result in a pile of DUI citations and suspended or revoked licenses. Police officers patrol the roads in greater number, pulling over drivers who appear to be driving erratically or dangerously.

For example, in San Bernardino County, the "Avoid the 25" campaign has run for the past several years with great success for law enforcement there. The "25" represents the number of law enforcement agencies in the county. On holidays such as St. Patrick's Day, New Years and Thanksgiving, officers throughout San Bernardino County participate in DUI checkpoints and "saturation patrols." Historically, such emphasis by law enforcement has resulted in much higher DUI citation numbers.

Under California law, if you are pulled over under suspicion of DUI and either record a high blood alcohol concentration (BAC) or refuse a chemical test, you can have your license suspended or revoked.

For a first offense, you may have your license suspended for four months and up to a year.
For a second offense within 10 years of the first, a DUI offender may be given a one-year suspension or have his/her license revoked for two years.
Finally, on the third fense within 10 years of the first, and upon any subsequent convictions, drivers face a three-year revocation.

In addition to license suspension or revocation, drivers convicted of a DUI offense in California may also face up to six months in jail on a first offense, pay a $1000 in fines, and be forced to install an interlock ignition device.

While St. Patrick's Day DUI checks are meant to protect drivers, not every individual who is pulled over and charged with drunk driving is a characteristically dangerous driver. In addition, breathalyzers are notoriously problematic in regards to giving accurate readings.
Still, a DUI conviction is a DUI conviction -- regardless of personal driving history or device malfunction.

Additionally, police expect to see drunk drivers on holidays such as St. Patrick's Day. While this results in removing many dangerous drivers from the road, it can also result in charges being levied against an individual who wouldn't have been charged on any other day.

California takes a tough stance on DUI and, if you have been charged, then you risk losing your license, money and even your freedom. Whether or not you have refused a chemical test, it is important that you contact an experienced DUI defense lawyer as soon as possible.

Welcome to San Diego, CA Metro Criminal Law Blog

Kerry Armstrong — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 20:58:00 GMT

We are pleased to announce the launch of our San Diego Criminal Defense Blog.