Newport Beach, California Criminal Defense Law Blog
Say and do or don’t do this when stopped by police
What you say and how you act when police stop you can follow you during the entire criminal investigation and prosecution. Do not expect that police will be fair or concerned about your rights. They are legally allowed to lie, intimidate, and bluff in these...
Were my Miranda rights violated?
If you have been arrested and are in police custody, it makes sense that law enforcement officials will want to interrogate you to get as much information as they can regarding the alleged crime. However, when you are facing this kind of questioning, it is very easy...
What is murder with ‘malice aforethought’?
One of the most serious crimes a person in Newport Beach can be accused of committing is first-degree murder. It is important to understand what constitutes first-degree murder, so you can make informed decisions should you be charged with committing such a crime....
What is California’s ‘three strikes’ law?
California residents facing a felony charge may have heard of the state’s so-called three strikes law and wonder how or if it could affect them. The three strikes law was initially enacted in 1994. Under the original law, a person convicted of a felony would have...
Understanding California’s stalking laws
Most serious criminal offenses involve acts of physical violence. However, others involve no physical contact act all, with words or behavior constituting the substance of the crime. Stalking is perhaps the most well-known crime in this later category. The elements of...
What is a felony DUI in California?
Any time a driver operates a vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration of over .08 percent, they may be arrested and charged with driving under the influence. A standard DUI charge is classified as a misdemeanor in California, and can result in multiple of the...
Carefully weigh the consequences of entering a plea bargain
Criminal defendants have the Sixth Amendment right to a jury trial which forces the government to prove their case in court beyond a reasonable doubt. But only 5,242 of the 568,408 criminal cases resolved in California in 2019 were decided by a jury trial according to...
Can you reuse to take a breath test when asked to by police?
If you are pulled over by the police and are accused of drunk driving, you likely will be asked to perform a breath test or blood test. Sometimes it may seem like doing so would not be beneficial for you and you will not want to submit. What happens if you refuse to...
What is considered domestic violence?
Domestic violence charges can significantly impact those accused of it. Because domestic violence can impact everyone touched by it, it is important for those accused of domestic violence to know about the legal resources available to help them through domestic...
Two insurance agents face dozens of fraud charges
Two insurance agents from Newport Beach now face a total of 64 individual cases of fraud totaling more than $10 million after they were discovered using high risk investments to steal money from some of their wealthy clients. The pair were first arrested on Nov. 24,...