Articles Posted in Uncategorized

In 1994, through Proposition 184, California enacted the unduly harsh Three Strikes law, which was later codified by Penal Code 667. Under the Three Strikes law, a so-called repeat offender with one or more prior violent and/or serious felonies, would receive a harsher prison sentence for a subsequent qualifying felony conviction, with a defendant with…

In the last few years, California’s leaders have finally put the effort to improve the State’s criminal justice system and to course-correct its policies. One of the main principles of the criminal justice system is that the punishment has to fit the crime. However, during the 1990s, the California legislature actively pursued tough on crime…

Thousands of people in California have been serving unjustly long sentences because they have been convicted of murder, manslaughter, or attempted murder, even though they never killed, attempted to kill, or intended for a person to die. Until January 2019, that was the reality for countless of inmates who had been convicted of murder under…

On January 1, 2018, SB 180 went into effect and repealed the prior California law, which required a sentencing court to impose a 3-year enhancement for every prior conviction for controlled substance crimes. The only exception left was in instances where the prior convictions were for crimes that involve the use of a minor in…

The United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world, and within the US, California hosts the second largest prison population behind Texas. Mass incarceration has led to overcrowding, which in turn has resulted in increased health risks and decreased psychological welfare of inmates. In recent years, California’s legislature has worked hard to correct…

There are very few crimes in California that carry such a high penalty as being charged with attempted murder. Individuals who assault another person with the intent to murder will be found guilty of this offense. These criminal charges are covered under PC 664/187(A) and require an excellent criminal defense attorney with in-depth experience dealing…

The Writ of Habeas Corpus protects prison inmates from false imprisonment to ensure people are not thrown into jail unlawfully. Today, it is a highly effective post-conviction tool that can be used by inmates to challenge their sentencing conditions. It isn’t uncommon for defendants to hire new attorneys post-conviction because appellate law requires a different…

Child sexual abuse is one of the most vicious and reprehensible crimes regardless of where you are in the world. It can refer to a range of sex crimes involving children such as sexual assault, forced physical contact, statutory rape, sexual abuse, and public lewdness. Under the California Penal Code, a person will have committed…

What is the difference between manslaughter and murder? Simply put, the act of killing another person with malice is murder and carries a very serious charge. On the other hand, manslaughter is the unlawful killing of a person(s) without malice or prior planning. The prosecution thoroughly reviews the specific circumstances surrounding a murder before deciding…

On December 15, 2021, the governor of California signed SB 81 into law to dismiss sentence enhancements in the interests of justice. This bill comes at the heel of widespread activism, drawing attention to the plight of convicts spending more time than necessary in jail or prison. Studies show that sentence enhancements for long sentences…