At first glance, Death Row Records co-founder Michael Harris, notorious “Pharma Bro” Martin Shkreli, and Ponzi scheme king Bernie Madoff may not seem to have much in common. However, all three men recently sought to reduce their lengthy federal prison sentences...
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COVID19 ANNOUNCEMENT
If you or anyone you know has been accused of a crime related to the COVID19 outbreak, please contact our office immediately for a free consultation.
Schemes, Scams and Swindles: Legal Challenges During the COVID Crisis (Law.com, The Recorder)
This article was originally published in the May 14, 2020 issue of Law.com's The Recorder, available here. Keith Middlebrook promised investors he was developing a cure to the coronavirus, and he claimed it was coming soon. He created a phony company, Quantum...
What Does the Ninth Circuit’s Holding in Miller Mean for Wire Fraud Prosecutions?
On March 20, 2020, the Ninth Circuit ruled in United States v. Miller, 2020 WL 1317275 (9th Cir.) that wire fraud requires the intent to deceive and to cheat, i.e., to deprive a victim of money or property by means of deception, overruling United States v....
What are we going to do about cash bail? It is unfair and discriminatory.
Monetary bonds are a disgrace in our criminal justice system. Here's a community taking action: http://chicagoreporter.com/a-community-solution-to-cash-bail/
California Supreme Court Rules that Conduct Alone is Insufficient to Support Finding of Ties between Subsets of Criminal Street Gang
The California Supreme Court held last month in People v. Prunty, S210234, that when the prosecution seeks to prove the street gang enhancement (Pen. Code, sec. 186.22(b)) by showing a defendant committed a felony to benefit a given gang, but establishes the...
Guest Blog: Why You Need to Do Your Research Prior to Hiring an Appellate Attorney
Written By: Paul J. Wallin, Senior Partner of Wallin & Klarich, A Law Corporation. If you have been convicted of a felony crime, you have options available to you. A guilty verdict does not necessarily have to be the final judgment. Many criminal convictions may...
Individuals Cannot Get Two Strikes for the Same Criminal Act Even if They are Convicted of Two Strike Felonies
The California Supreme Court recently resolved the issue of whether a single act resulting in two strike-able felony convictions can be used as two strikes. In People v. Vargas, 14 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 7786, 2014 Daily Journal D.A.R. 9070, Darlene Vargas was sentenced...
A delusional mental state is not enough for an unreasonable self-defense claim to 1st degree murder
Last week the Supreme Court of California ruled on whether a defendant can bring an “unreasonable self-defense” claim based on his delusional mental state at the time of the murder. In People v. Elmore the Court refused to give the jury an instruction of voluntary...
Alleyne v. United States : Facts that Increase Mandatory Minimum Sentences Must Be Submitted to Jury
Opinion by: Justice Thomas The United States Supreme Court decided in Alleyne v. United States (June 2013) that any facts that would increase the mandatory minimum sentence of a crime must be submitted to the jury, overruling Harris v. United States (2002). In...
Size of medical marijuana collective doesn’t bar defendant from introducing MMPA defense
Defendant's conviction for sale and possession of marijuana was reversed and remanded where the trial court erred in disallowing the defendant from offering his defense under the Medical Marijuana Program Act (MMPA), with respect to distribution to patients who...