California has strict laws regarding the safety of children, taking any situation where a child is harmed – or potentially harmed – extremely seriously. While a criminal court can level hefty charges against anyone who harms or abuses a child, juries also convict parents and guardians who put children at risk of suffering an injury. Referred to as child endangerment, these cases involve exposing a child to drugs, poorly supervising them at a pool or beach, and even reckless driving.
Criminal Defense | Orange County Criminal Defense Blog
How California Courts Handle Child Endangerment in Reckless Driving Cases
What Is Formal Probation?
Even after you have been convicted of a crime, the court may grant you probation, or a suspended sentence, that allows you to leave prison early. Even though probation means you get to leave prison, you may still have to abide by strict rules and regulations that heavily impact how you live your day-to-day life.
Understanding a California Homicide Charge
The terms murder, manslaughter, and homicide are often used interchangeably, but there are important differences between each of them under the law. These differences can range from the intent behind your actions to the circumstances of a victim’s death. In fact, these differences could be vital to avoiding a life sentence in California.
What Is OC’s New Leaf Program?
Even after you have served time for a criminal charge, you may still pay for those crimes for years to come. Employers, housing managers, and other businesses can run background checks on you to determine if you committed a crime. If they do dig into your criminal record, they may decide that you are too dangerous to employ or be allowed to apply for housing without even getting your side to the story.
Lying About COVID-19 Only Makes Matters Worse
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought out the desperation in several individuals. The scarcity of supplies led to fights in grocery stores, the recession has driven everyday citizens to shoplift, and there have been reports of unemployment fraud across the country. One of the most damaging crimes that have come out of this healthcare crisis is individuals lying about COVID-19, often to avoid being arrested by the police. However, this can easily lead to far more serious charges.
Protesting vs Disturbing the Peace
The recent protests across the United States following the death of George Floyd have led to numerous discussions about the extent of local, state, and federal jurisdiction. Oftentimes, law enforcement will arrest and charge protestors for disturbing the peace and even going as far as saying that the suspects were inciting riots. However, there are several key differences between disturbing the peace and peacefully protesting that an attorney can take into account when advocating for a defendant’s rights in the state of California.
Are Other Officers Liable for Not Stopping Police Brutality?
The recent protests throughout the United States, including those here in Orange County, denouncing the actions of Minneapolis police officers have driven many politicians to push for serious police reform on a local, state, and even federal level. While these various proposals and reforms have focused on reevaluating how officers respond to 911 calls, changes to police budgets, new procedures, and more oversight into police misconduct, there is still the matter of how officers should conduct themselves when police brutality does occur. Misconduct and brutality do not occur in a vacuum, and many officers are taught these behaviors and practices throughout their training and careers.
California’s Executive Order on State Prisons and Parole During COVID-19
As the effects of COVID-19 has begun to impact not only the health and safety of California residents, but also our economy and social systems, our state Governor Gavin Newsom has enacted new regulations for prisoners and parole. Prisons are a breeding ground for outbreaks, as many inmates have limited health care options, are packed into close quarters, and live in unsanitary conditions. To respond to such events, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) utilizes infectious disease response plans to limit the spread to at-risk groups and contain any infections among inmates, but the governor has also expanded their authority to modify sentencing for inmates in state prisons.
The Difference Between Manslaughter Charges
A charge of manslaughter is a serious offense in California, which can conclude with a strict sentencing of multiple years in a California state prison and significant fines. Many may conflate this charge with murder, but they are actually two separate offenses, but both carry very severe sentences. California penal codes highlight a variety of different manslaughter charges and understanding their differences is vital to building a solid defense case.
Misdemeanor Hit and Run Explained by Michael Guisti
California Vehicle Code Section 20002 tells you what to do if you have an accident. If you don’t follow the instructions clearly, then you have committed a hit and run. In the 20 years that I have been practicing there are certain cases that come to me in a steady flow. Hit and run cases come to us on a regular basis, and I have personally worked on hit and run cases where clients didn’t fully understand what constitutes a hit and run, like the War Story at the end of this article.
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