Practical advice from one California lawyer to another. Written for attorneys, not for clients.
The verdict came back guilty. The fight over the sentence is mostly done. What is left is a number, and it is the number that decides when you walk out: how many of the days you already sat in jail get taken off the end. If you were picked up on more than one case,…
Every defense lawyer has had this conversation. The client has been waiving time for eight months, something changes, and now they want their trial. So you stand up and pull the waiver. The clock that starts running is not the clock your client had before they waived, and it is not a clock the judge…
A complaining witness who moves her restraining order from civil court to family court usually thinks she is upgrading. She is not. Code of Civil Procedure section 527.6 has no relationship requirement, and the Domestic Violence Prevention Act does, so refiling under the DVPA hands your client a jurisdictional defense he did not have five…
Get arrested for DUI in California with your child in the back seat and you will usually see two things on the complaint: the DUI itself and a count of misdemeanor child endangerment. What most people miss is that the law will not let the court punish you for both. Vehicle Code section 23572(c) bars…
A California judge can sentence you to 180 days in county jail. That same judge, in most cases, cannot put you on home detention. The sheriff does that. This is the single most misunderstood thing about serving a jail sentence in California, and it drives almost every mistake that follows. Defendants assume the judge decides….
Before my first trial, an older trial attorney told me that three things happen after you speak to a jury. You find out what you wanted to say. You learn what you did say. And you realize what you should have said. It happens to all of us. Your first trial, much like your first…