Criminal Law

In an article published in the fall 2015 issue of the American Bar Association’s Criminal Justice magazine (“Advice from the Bench for White Collar Client Facing Sentencing”), I shared some of what I have learned from federal judges during my nearly 50 years of practice.[1] After that article published, I felt that an expanded, in-depth article that featured the experience, philosophy and viewpoints of those and other federal judges was needed. Law360 agreed, and a multipart series was born. Read more

All CLA members have complementary access to the Fastcase legal research system. To access Fastcase, login to your CLA account and click on Fastcase. On the next page, you have the option of clicking a hyperlink to directly view Sections publications, including the Criminal Law Journal. Editions of the Criminal law Journal are listed by date and volume. You can also download the editions as a PDF. Alternatively, you can locate and search Sections publications through the Fastcase system. Click… Read more

California felony sentencing law includes various sentence enhancements for: 1) crimes that involve the use of a gun; 2) crimes that involve members of a street gang; and 3) sexual offenses under certain circumstances. In many cases, the sentence on the enhancement is greater than that for the underlying crime being enhanced.  This webinar will discuss the firearm use enhancements, gang enhancements, mandatory consecutive sentencing rules in sex cases and the “One-Strike” sex statutes. Read more

This webinar will provide you the basic sentencing rules you need to be able to handle most sentencing situations. You will learn about sentencing triads, the Three Strikes Law, how to calculate determinate sentences with multiple consecutive counts, how to know where the client will serve their sentence, and whether they will be supervised afterwards. Read more

The Criminal Law Section held their Executive Committee meeting this weekend in Sacramento with special guest Ona Dosunmu, CLA Executive Director. Read more

Trial court did not err in denying defendant's motion to suppress drug evidence where a dog sniff that occurred while an officer was writing a citation did not unconstitutionally prolong defendant's detention for a traffic stop. A police officer with a narcotics-certified dog stopped Vera because his car windows were illegally tinted. Because the officer could not see into Vera's car, he ordered Vera out of the car. Read more

The Criminal Law Section continues to adjust to the move to the California Lawyers Association and is excited about the possibilities that move offers. Members of our executive committee attended the inaugural Winter Leadership Retreat in San Francisco in February. As a result of that meeting, discussions are underway for Crim Law to partner with other sections to co-present at a standalone event later in the year. Read more

The Criminal Law section wishes to encourage you to pursue legal specialization. To become a legal specialist, you must pass a written examination, satisfy the task and CLE requirements, and get favorable evaluations from attorneys and judges. Read more

Donald Heller, a member of the Criminal Law Section Executive Committee, is representing William "Rick" Singer, the lead defendant in the college admission prosecution. Mr. Singer, was the CEO of a college admissions prep company called The Key, which is alleged to function as an SAT-fixing and college admissions-rigging scheme. Fifty persons were charged in the indictment, filed in United States District Court, District of Massachusetts. Read more

Penal Code Section 1170.91 provides that a veteran, upon being convicted of a felony, may introduce evidence of a mental health malady arising from military service at sentencing, and that the court must take such evidence into account in sentencing as a factor in mitigation. This law took effect January 1, 2015. Read more