Marijuana Grower's Conviction For Voluntary Manslaughter Upheld From Killing...
Phayvanh Dydouangphan ("PD") had the appropriate documents to grow marijuana for medicinal purposes and did so in his backyard. The plants grew so large that people on the Fresno street alongside the...
View ArticleWhat is Kidnapping and Aggravated Kidnapping?
Kidnapping is often considered a crime only practiced in third-world countries like El Salvador and Ecuador. However, it certainly occurs here in the United States, but often in a far less serious...
View ArticleWhat is Child Abduction (Penal Code § 278)?
It is not uncommon during acrimonious divorces and child custody proceedings to hear one parent claim the other parent has "abducted our child." The parent missing the child calls the police, not only...
View ArticleWhat is Assault (Penal Code Section 240)?
Assault is a crime that often seems hollow because no one is physically injured, although no prosecutor would so characterize it. Assault, as defined by Penal Code § 240, is "an unlawful attempt,...
View ArticleConviction For Attempted Criminal Threat (PC 422) Proper Although Neighbor's...
Ben Chandler, Jr., and his female neighbor "had problems" with each other. His female neighbor, Ms. Lopez, then went to court and received a civil restraining order against Chandler. The two lived in...
View ArticleWhat is Arson (Penal Code § 451 and § 452) and Its Defenses?
Penal Code § 451 states that a person is "guilty of arson when he or she willfully and maliciously sets fire to or burns or causes to be burned or who aids, counsel or procures the burning of any...
View ArticleIf the Police Took Your Money, You Can Usually Get it Back, With Interest
Under Health and Safety Code § 11469(i), when a government agency seizes a person's money, the agency has a duty to protect the money and preserve its value. The government does this by placing the...
View ArticleFirst Degree Burglary Conviction Upheld When Residential Home Uninhabited and...
Under Penal Code § 460, every burglary of an inhabited dwelling is first degree burglary. Burglary of a structure that is not an "inhabited dwelling house" is second degree burglary.
View ArticlePolice Detention is Illegal When Based on Only One's Resemblance to a Suspect.
It is well-established law that in order to justify an investigative stop or detention, police must have a "reasonable and articulable suspicion that some activity relating to a crime has taken place...
View ArticleWhat is Rape (Penal Code §§ 261, 261.5 or 262)?
Under California law, rape is defined as nonconsensual sexual intercourse accomplished by means of force, threats or fraud (Penal Code § 261). Rape laws apply to both men and women. Spousal rape,...
View ArticleConfession is Inadmissible When Probation Officer Promised Shorter Sentence...
While on parole, Christopher Gonzalez used a hammer to hit Daniel Castillo in the face, fracturing his jaw, skull, cheekbone and nose. Police arrested Gonzalez and as they began questioning him, he...
View ArticleCan an Out of State Conviction Count As a Strike Under California's Three...
Cortez Washington was convicted in Illinois in 1998 of aggravated battery with a firearm, a felony, and in the same state, in 1993, of aggravated battery, also a felony. In each Illinois case, the...
View ArticleInvoluntary Manslaughter Conviction Upheld For Injury From Eight Years Earlier
In 2000, Jose Moncada was caring for his then three month old son, Joseph. Joseph was fussy and Jose became frustrated from the crying. Jose then forcefully pushed his son's face into the arm of a...
View ArticleThirteen New Laws to Know For 2013
Each year, in early January, there are newspaper articles describing new laws taking effect on January first. The articles summarize a wide variety of laws with consequences ranging from prison to...
View ArticleWhat is a STATIC-99 Report in a Sex Crime Case?
In sex offense cases, it is not uncommon for a judge, the prosecution or a defense attorney to request a STATIC-99 report to further document a defendant's danger to society.
View ArticleWhat is Carjacking (Penal Code § 215)?
We have all seen it in movies and on television. A person commits a crime, flees the scene and jumps into a car that is not his or her own. The driver is surprised and screams. The fleeing suspect...
View ArticleConsecutive Sentences, Not Concurrent Sentences, Upheld in Forcible Sex Case
Sex offenses in general are an area of law that has unique sentencing issues and penalties. Besides the obligation to register for life as a sex offender (and then be identified on the Internet under...
View ArticleIllegal Use of Disability Placards Can Lead to Far More Serious Charges
We have all seen it. An athletic person, appearing about twenty-five years old, pulls into a parking space reserved for handicapped parking. The driver opens the door of the car and jogs into the...
View ArticleMan Who Impersonates Female's Boyfriend While Having Sex is Improperly...
Victor (last name unavailable) and Jane Doe, age 18, came back to Jane's house after a party. Accompanying them was Julio Morales, Victor's friend, and several others.
View ArticleFederal Judge Incorrectly Classifies Crack Seller as Career Offender.
Jason Lee was convicted under 21 U.S.C. § 847 of distributing crack cocaine. Judge Vaughn Walker of the U.S. District Court in downtown Los Angeles sentenced Lee as a career offender under the U.S....
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