California Criminal Defense Lawyers

The San Francisco District Attorney formally filed charges against the new sheriff in town, Ross Mirkarimi last week. The top cop faces three misdemeanor charges in conjunction with an incident that occurred on New Year’s Eve with his wife. At his swearing in ceremony, he brushed the incident off as a “family affair” and maintains he is innocent of all the charges. [Read More...]

Ross Mirkarimi was sworn in as the 35^th sheriff of San Francisco this past weekend, despite allegations that he was involved in a domestic violence incident with his wife. Mirkarimi’s wife, Eliana Lopez, was by his side during the ceremony and said she had “no complaints” against her husband. The duo suggests the fact that this “misunderstanding” went public may have been a subversive effort to derail his quest for his new office, though they remain confident that things will work out. [Read More...]

At least 1,480 wrongful jailings have occurred at the L.A. County Jail over the last five years, something the Sheriff isn’t proud of. As a result, he has vowed to make significant changes including establishing a task force to look at the whys and the what can be dones. [Read More...]

Over the past few years, numerous cameras were installed in downtown Los Angeles to help reduce crime. The city didn’t pay for these cameras; business owners and concerned members of the community did. And now, those who spent their money and those who supported the partnership are upset as the LAPD has admittedly not been using them at all. [Read More...]

The general public cannot own assault rifles. It’s against the law. However, in California and several other states, this law does not apply if you are a law enforcement officer, prison guard, school police officer, or even a game warden. A new investigation, as reported by the Long Beach Press Telegram, shows that in the decade since lawmakers first made this law enforcement exception to the assault weapons law, officers have purchased more than 7,600 such weapons. [Read More...]

The mentally ill are a tricky population for police to deal with. Without proper training, a cop’s actions can actually aggravate a situation rather than diffuse it. A new virtual roleplaying game is designed to help police learn better ways of working with the mentally ill, in order to avoid confrontations and potential tragedies. [Read More...]

By now you’ve heard of the incident at the University of California Davis, where one campus officer let loose pepper spray on a group of seated, peaceful protestors. You’ve either heard of it, seen the video, seen the spoof photos of the officer, or you’ve been living under a rock. The incident is now under official investigation, with the former Chief of the LAPD leading the way. [Read More...]

Taking pictures is not against the law. But if you are searched by the police for using your camera, you may be confused about what it is that you did wrong. The ACLU of Southern California has filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department for allegedly harassing photographers, using the guise of Homeland Security to detain, search, and otherwise pick on photographers. [Read More...]

The city of Oakland has served an eviction notice to protesters of the Occupy movement. The notice was posted on Thursday, stating that the park at Frank Ogawa Plaza must be cleared of all protesters by 10 p.m. Though it didn’t specify a date, the park was still occupied as of Friday. [Read More...]

The federal government is once again showing its disdain for the medical marijuana industry. This time federal prosecutors are threatening property owners with legal action if they don’t close down the dispensaries owned by their tenants. The letters went out last week and give the landowners 45 days to stop the sale of marijuana on their properties. [Read More...]