There has been a lot of publicity over the case in Florida where the unarmed teenager, Trayvon Martin, was killed during a confrontation with George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch member. Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law has been used as an argument to justify the shooting of this young man. What…
Alaska Senator Ted Stevens was prosecuted for corruption in office by the United States Attorney’s Office. He allegedly failed to disclose gifts made to him. He was found guilty following a jury trial. The jury based their decision on what was provided to Stevens’ defense team. However, what Stevens and…
What does it mean when someone is put on probation? Many times you’ll hear a defendant is put on probation after either a guilty plea or as part of a sentence following a guilty verdict. First of all, probation is a conditional sentence. When someone is judged to be guilty…
Lawyers must continue their formal legal training no matter how long they have been practicing law. The California State Bar Association requires lawyers to attend Continuing Legal Education (CLE) classes and monitors or audits lawyers’ records to ensure they have attended the necessary number of hours. This is true even…
The United States Supreme Court on January 11, 2012, rendered a decision in Perry v. New Hampshire, that limits the ability of the defense to successfully attack a suggestive or unreliable identification of the defendant by an eyewitness. Eyewitness identification has long been the subject of commentary and even experiments.…
Recently, a video was seen on television showing a Los Angeles Sheriff’s Deputy questioning a woman on a train. The woman was facing two deputies. One was a woman and one a man. Both deputies were in uniform and both were substantially larger than the woman they were contacting. During…
On January 23, 2012, the United States Supreme Court issued it’s decision in United States v. Jones. The Jones decision is noteworthy because it requires law enforcement to obtain a warrant when using a GPS device. A look at the facts in Jones is necessary to understand the Court’s reasoning.…
How many criminal cases are in the courthouse that don’t belong there? Plenty, that’s clear from a recent case in the Los Angeles County Court. A homeowner gets cited for his dog running loose. The citation is for a misdemeanor because the County Ordinance carries the possibility of six months…
Getting assigned to vice as a police officer is tough assignment. Often times the required duties take the officer into dangerous situations. Quick thinking is often a necessity. Tension can build to the breaking point. How to relieve all that tension? The vice cop has found the answer. He gets…
As almost everyone on planet earth knows, Dr. Conrad Murray was convicted of Involuntary Manslaughter in the death of Michael Jackson. On November 29, 2011, Dr. Murray was sentenced to the maximum term of four years in State Prison. How did the judge determine that four years was the appropriate…