Sacramento Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog

While courtroom dramas on television and in the movies give the impression that most criminal legal cases end up in trial before a judge and jury, the reality is that the vast majority - over ninety percent - are resolved through negotiation. These negotiations, which take place between the defense attorney, prosecutor, and judge, result in a plea bargain, a judgment that falls somewhere between the prosecutor's desire for a conviction on all charges and the defendant's desire for a dismissal or finding of not guilty. District attorney's offices and judges are motivated to negotiate plea bargains because there aren't enough courtrooms, prosecutors, judges, and jurors to have all cases go to trial. Your defense lawyer has to be able to use this to get you the best possible deal.

A plea bargain can take many forms depending on the alleged crime, evidence, and defendant's criminal history. It might be that a charge is dropped from a felony to a misdemeanor or one charge is dropped altogether if there are multiple charges. It could also involve reduced jail time, deferred entry of judgment, jail alternatives, residential treatment, ankle monitoring or work project.

During negotiation, the defense attorney points out weak evidence, questionable aspects of the investigation and arrest, as well as case law that contradicts the prosecution's argument and supports the defendant's, all with the purpose of having the prosecution question the strength of the case. The defense counsel also points to mitigating factors such as a minimal criminal history. The best outcome is to have the charges dismissed altogether. But when that's not possible, the goal is to get penalties reduced to the absolute lowest level that the DA is willing to accept.

The process of negotiating a plea bargain highlights the importance of having an experienced and skilled defense attorney. To get the best deal for her client, the defense attorney needs to have an up-to-date understanding of the law, be familiar with past actions of prosecutors and judges, and possess superior negotiating skills. From our perspective, it's advantageous to have a defense attorney with past experience as a prosecutor, and thus an understanding of how the DA's office approaches the plea bargain process. This "inside" information is valuable negotiating power.

If you have any questions, call the Law Office of Nancy King (former Yolo County Deputy District Attorney).

This Friday, December 18, the Sacramento Police Department will conduct a sobriety and drivers license checkpoint in south Sacramento, while CHP will have one in Rancho Cordova. These are the first of at least eight traffic screenings that law enforcement in the Sacramento region plans over the next two weeks.

Sacramento drivers are receiving particular scrutiny because of data showing that Sacramento ranks at the top of U.S. cities larger than a population of 250,000 in terms of injuries and fatalities caused by alcohol-related traffic accidents.

We strongly advise everyone to not drive after consuming alcohol or ingesting narcotics. The risk of injury to yourself and others is real, and the legal consequences can be severe. Moreover, California law enforcement conducts more DUI checkpoints than any other state and that number is only going to increase throughout 2010, dubbed by public safety agencies as the "Year of the Checkpoint." With district attorney's offices and courts pushing for harsher and harsher penalties for drunk drivers, you are well served to do whatever it takes to keep yourself and family and friends from driving while intoxicated. See our December 11 and August 18 posts for more information.

If you or someone you know is cited for a DUI, get experienced and knowledgeable legal representation. Contact the Law Office of Nancy King if you have any questions.

Sobriety and Drivers License CheckPoint Notification, Sacramento Police Department

CHP to conduct DUI checkpoint on Friday in Sacramento County, Sacramento Bee, December 16, 2009

More checkpoints bolster statewide, Sacramento DUI push, Sacramento Bee, December 17, 2009

With the holidays approaching and many people taking to the roads to visit family and friends, we thought it a good time to provide some highway safety data from Traffic: Why We Drive The Way We Do (And What It Says About Us), by Tom Vanderbilt. If you haven't read Traffic, get a copy and read it this weekend as you stay inside to avoid the rain. It's a tremendously interesting book that uses clear, accessible language to explain research on all aspects of life affected by motor vehicles and roads, including why it's best to form a single line when traffic merges from one lane down to two, the astonishing extent to which people are unaware of what's going on around them as they drive, and why roundabouts are safer than traffic signals.

The part of the book we'll focus on concerns the risk factors that contribute to traffic accidents.

• Speed: People in an accident at 50 miles per hour are fifteen times more likely to die than they are at 25 miles per hour
• Alcohol: Alcohol slows reflexes and diminishes the brain's ability to evaluate risk
• Gender: Men are more likely across all age groups to be involved in auto accidents
• Age: Teenagers are involved in more crashes because they lack experience behind the wheel, underestimate risk, and engage in activities that distract their attention, like talking on a cell phone
• Rural, non-interstate roads: The rate at which accidents occur is higher on country roads than it is on city streets

Interestingly, when analyzing accidents by profession, doctors are among the most accident-prone, perhaps because they tend to rush to and from work and can be fatigued after a long shift. Firefighters and pilots are toward the bottom of the risk list, perhaps because they are attuned to safety and their jobs give them skills that make them better drivers.

So as you enjoy time with family and go to end of the year parties, take it slow and be safe while on the roads. A little caution and some common sense can prevent injury, avoid entanglement with law enforcement, and make for a happy holiday season.

Tom Vanderilt's blog: How We Drive

People who have a "juvenile delinquency adjudication" - commonly referred to as a juvenile record - may petition the court to have that record sealed through the provisions of California Welfare and Institutions Code Section 781. As with expungement for adults, sealing of juvenile records is important for people who violated the law in the past but have since that time maintained a clean record and been contributing members of society.

It's important to understand the difference between juvenile and adult courts. Adult criminal courts in California deal with people 18 years of age and older accused of violating state and local laws. Adults found guilty of misdemeanors or felonies have a criminal record. It is possible at a later date to have this record expunged, whereby the conviction is replaced by a dismissal if specific requirements are met and the court believes that the person has learned from his/her experience. (See all our posts on expungement.)

Juvenile courts deal with minors, people 17 years of age and younger. A person found guilty in juvenile court has a juvenile delinquency adjudication rather than a criminal conviction. The idea is that since young people are not always appreciative of their responsibilities as citizens and understanding of the consequences of their actions, they should not have the stigma of a criminal conviction. Nonetheless, juvenile violations can still hinder people's ability to obtain employment or apply for college, even though they can legally answer no if asked if they have a criminal record. Thus the importance of having juvenile records sealed.

Having juvenile records sealed means that the court orders that all documents pertaining to the case - court records, police and probation reports - are sealed and inaccessible. (Exceptions to this are DMV records pertaining to driving violations.) Once the records are sealed, a person may legally say that he has no convictions and the courts and law enforcement must say that they have no record of a violation. Records are destroyed five years after they are sealed.

You may petition to have your juvenile records sealed if:

• It has been five years since your supervision by juvenile court ended or you have reached 18 years of age, whichever comes first;
• Your case began and ended in juvenile court;
• You have not been convicted of an adult court felony, or an adult court misdemeanor involving moral turpitude;
• You have not been convicted of any crimes listed under California Welfare and Institutions Code Section 707(b) after turning 14 years of age, including murder, arson, violent felonies, robbery, certain types of assaults and sex offenses and other serious violations;
• You can demonstrate that you have been rehabilitated;
• You do not have civil actions pending against you related to the incident that you wish sealed;
• You have paid all fines and restitution.

Continue reading "Sealing Juvenile Records" »

Among the most common interactions between citizens and police are traffic stops. Many of these are straightforward: a driver is speeding or doesn't heed a traffic signal and receives a citation from a police, sheriff, or CHP officer. Though the driver is irritated and out a few hundred dollars, nothing more serious results.

Some stops go beyond this, though, with charges of more serious crimes. This is where knowledge of probable cause and rules of search and seizure is so important.

Let's say that while driving home one night you're pulled over by your local police. Because of constitutional protections, police can't pull you over, detain you, or question you just because they feel like it. For an officer to initiate a traffic stop, he has to have probable cause, or some evidence that a crime has been, or is being, committed. (See our October 28 post for a general discussion of probable cause.) That means that he has to see you committing a traffic violation - e.g., driving too fast, weaving, rolling through a stop sign - or observe that some equipment on your car, like a brake light, isn't working.

Assume that the police do have probable cause to pull you over - your left front headlight is out - and during the course of this traffic stop, the officer asks for permission to search the car. Do you have to say yes? The short answer is, NO, and we advise clients to politely but clearly state something like, "I do not give my consent to a search of my vehicle." When police lack probable cause to search your vehicle, they must let you go on your way. Moreover, the officer is not allowed to hold your refusal against you.

Under some circumstances, though, police may conduct a vehicle search without your permission and without a warrant.

Though the Fourth Amendment appears to require that police obtain a warrant to conduct a search, the reality is not so simple. A traffic stop is one of those times when police may, depending on the circumstances, conduct a warrantless search.

The law is complex and ever changing on this issue, but there are some key guidelines to keep in mind. In Carroll v. United States (1925) the U.S. Supreme Court established the principle that police may conduct warrantless searches of motor vehicles if probable cause exists that evidence of a crime is present. The justification for this is that since motor vehicles are mobile, evidence could be carried away and disposed of if police were required to go off and ask a judge for a warrant. In California v. Acevedo (1991), the Court extended the scope of searches to include containers in a vehicle, again because the evidence in the container could be driven away and disposed of. Some limits on warrantless searches were articulated by the Court in Arizona v. Gant (2009) when it ruled that once a person has been arrested and moved away from the vehicle, police may not initiate a search unless that search pertains to evidence related to the crime for which the person was arrested. (See our detailed discussion of Arizona v. Gant in our August 23 post.)

The principles to keep in mind are (1) any warrantless search of a vehicle requires probable cause, and (2) without probable cause police must obtain your permission to conduct a search.

If you have questions or concerns about a traffic stop conducted by the police, sheriff, or CHP, call the Law Office of Nancy King.