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Recent Blog Posts
Judge dismisses Contra County DUI charge against assemblyman
Charges of driving under the influence against a California state assemblyman have been dismissed by the judge in Contra County. The state lawmaker was accused of driving drunk after leaving a Bar Area bar around 2:00 in the morning in the Bay Area.
The state assemblyman, from Covina, California took his DUI charges before a jury. The relatively lengthy DUI jury trial resulted in a not guilty verdict against the lawmaker on a charge of driving under the influence. However, the jury deadlocked 6 to 6 on a count charging the assemblyman with driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 percent or greater.
Prosecutors apparently decided to pursue the charge based upon the DUI test result. Authorities say that the assemblyman tested 0.08 percent BAC, a measurement that is right at the California legal limit. The assemblyman reportedly said that he had consumed a glass of wine around 9:00 during the evening the night before his arrest. He reportedly said that he had a second glass of wine just before the bar closed.
Chris Brown California probation review hearing delayed one week
Chris Brown was scheduled to appear in a California court for a probation review. The singer was convicted of felony assault in 2009. Prosecutors had accused the musician of a domestic assault involving Rihanna, which continues to receive a great deal of public attention due to the celebrity status of the two singers.
Brown received probation for five years on the felony assault conviction. More than a year ago, Brown appeared for a probation review hearing and the judge modified a restraining order that had been in place in the case. The judge changed the five-year protective order from prohibiting him from being within 50 yards of Rihanna to allowing some contact, so long as Brown does not annoy or harass Rihanna. Brown's criminal defense attorney had asked the court to loosen the restrictions on the protective order.
But the protective order does not appear to be an issue that prosecutors are now seeking to have reviewed under Brown's terms of probation. Brown has reportedly received praise from the judge in previous court appearances for his progress in completing the terms of his probation, although a judge denied a defense request in February 2011 to change Brown's probation from supervised to unsupervised.
Cash intercepted in the mail leads to pot bust in Fieldbrook, California
The Humboldt County Drug Task force says that a 32-year-old Fieldbrook, California man has been arrested on several marijuana-related drug charges. Officials say that agents intercepted $5,000 in cash that purportedly was being mailed to a Fieldbrook residence. Media accounts do not indicate how the mail was intercepted or what led authorities to look into the piece of mail.
Agents from the drug task force apparently went to the Fieldbrook residence that reportedly was listed on the mailed parcel. Authorities say that the agents intended to inquire about the sum of cash. The drug task force issued a statement that says agents contacted a 32-year-old man at the Fieldbrook home.
While law enforcement was questioning the man at the residence, agents claim that they could smell marijuana emanating from inside. The man at the home reportedly was detained and the site was locked down until law enforcement could obtain a search warrant, according to the Times-Standard.
Police arrest driver for manslaughter after Walnut Grove accident
Police still have not determined, or publicly announced, what may have led to the tragic accident. Authorities say that the pickup truck, for some unknown reason, drove onto a sidewalk, and struck the two women. The truck then became wedged between a pole and a concrete retaining wall. The accident occurred outside the Marriott Hotel in Walnut Creek around 6:15 Saturday evening.
The Contra Costa Times reports that authorities have not yet determined whether speed, alcohol or drugs may have been a factor in causing the tragic accident. It is also unclear from publicly released information whether some other factor, such as perhaps a medical emergency preceded the sidewalk crash.
A 52-year-old Santa Barbara, California, woman was killed in the sidewalk accident. Her daughter-in-law was critically injured and was taken to a Walnut Creek hospital.
The man accused of driving the pickup was trapped inside the truck when the vehicle wedged between the pole and retaining wall. He was extricated from the wreck and taken to the hospital for treatment. Law enforcement in Walnut Creek arrested the 53-year-old upon his release from the hospital around 3:45 a.m. Sunday. Law enforcement reportedly continues to investigate the terrible accident.
Two UFC contenders face separate California criminal cases
Two mixed martial arts competitors associated with the Ultimate Fighting Championship are facing California criminal charges. Officials have charged Jason "Mayhem" Miller with misdemeanor vandalism upon allegations that he caused damage to a Mission Viejo, California church during an incident last month. Meanwhile UFC featherweight contender Chad Mendes is accused of battery after an alleged incident at a bar in Hanford, California in late July.
Miller was originally arrested August 13, after police claim the MMA fighter was found naked in a Mission Viejo church. Police claim that the UFC competitor had damaged at least $400 worth of property inside the church, including a picture frame and a propane tank.
Authorities say that the MMA fighter had been spray painting inside the church. Orange County prosecutors announced that Miller was officially charged Wednesday with vandalism. He is scheduled to appear in court in Newport Beach, California November 21 on the misdemeanor charge.
Octogenarian accused of theft crimes in California
California officials say that an 82-year-old woman will be facing seven counts of burglary and one count of attempted burglary after a police detective says that he recognized the woman's hair in a security video. Law enforcement says that the woman has a so-called M.O. that has led to many arrests for California theft crimes. The woman reportedly told authorities after her arrest last week that this is a case of mistaken identity.
Like the current allegations, in 2009 a Torrance Police detective had claimed to have recognized the woman in a security video, based upon a bulletin issued several years earlier from Beverly Hills. After that incident, the woman was given a three year prison term, and was released on parole after serving nine months.
The newest charges are being brought in Los Angeles County. Authorities say that the woman targeted doctor's offices. Police began receiving reports from doctor's offices claiming that cash was missing from the office. That is when detectives looked to find security videos, and one detective says that he recognized the woman's hair on the footage. Authorities say that the alleged thefts fit the woman's M.O.
Future archbishop of San Francisco charged with DUI
Many people buy in to the stereotype that people who are arrested for DUI are alcoholics, party hounds or just plain "losers." In reality, people of all backgrounds and from walks of life get accused of drinking and driving. Drunk-driving arrests often lead to convictions, of course, but frequently enough they are based on spurious field sobriety tests, miscalibrated breath testing machines, the effects of legal prescription drugs or other mistakes.
Society may wish to believe that successful, responsible people are never charged with DUI, but they do. Last Saturday, for example, the man chosen by the Vatican to become the next archbishop of the Archdiocese of San Francisco was arrested in San Diego on suspicion of drunk driving.
The 56-year-old bishop from Oakland was driving his elderly mother home after a dinner with friends when he encountered a police sobriety checkpoint. Officers at the checkpoint claim the bishop appeared to be intoxicated and they arrested him.
Six-time U.S. ambassador charged with DUI and hit and run
Now only just weeks after his retirement, he was involved in a traffic incident that has led to charges of drinking and driving and leaving the scene of a car accident.
According to an eyewitness report, Crocker was waiting a red light in the left lane of a roadway. However, when the light turned green, Crocker attempted to make a right turn, despite the fact that a semi-truck was in that lane. The two vehicles collided. The witness then followed Crocker's vehicle as he continued driving away from the scene of the crash, and then the witness finally called police.
When police arrived on the scene they asked Crocker to submit to a breathalyzer test. He complied, and according to police reports was very cooperative. However, both of the breath tests revealed a blood-alcohol content of more than twice the legal limit for alcohol.
It is important for California readers to remember that DUI charges can be defended against with aggressive strategies, even when the evidence seems to point towards guilt. This may, for example, include questioning whether any errors were committed when the breath tests were administered.
Man faces three strikes law in alleged LL Cool J burglary
A 56-year-old man, who authorities describe as a transient, was arrested on suspicion of burglary after an alleged incident at the home of rapper and actor LL Cool J. Authorities say that the man broke into LL Cool J's home, where the musician/actor discovered the alleged intruder. A "knock-down, drag out" fight followed and LL cool J reportedly broke the alleged intruder's nose and jaw, according to UPI.
Police say that LL Cool J acted in self-defense and will not face any charges related to the fight. However, the other man is accused of first-degree burglary, and UPI reports that the man may also face a battery charge. Prosecutors have also brought the charges against the man under California's three strikes law, which could expose the man to a life sentence, with a mandatory minimum of 25-years.
Authorities say that the man broke into LL Cool J's home late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning. The actor/rapper says that he heard a noise, and went downstairs to investigate. LL Cool J says that as he looked for the source of the noise, a man approached him and a fight broke out between the two men. Police reportedly arrived around 1:00 Wednesday morning at the Studio City home, and law enforcement says that LL Cool J had detained the alleged intruder.
Purported search for runaway leads to Mill Valley marijuana arrests
Deputies responded to the Mill Valley residence, but did not find the runaway girl. She reportedly returned home sometime after her father contacted authorities. Nonetheless, a 19-year-old and a 15-year-old were each arrested for alleged marijuana offenses after law enforcement went to looking for the alleged runaway Tiburon teen.
Authorities claim that five people were found in a car parked in the driveway of the Mill Valley residence. The people inside the parked car ranged from 15 to 25-years-old. Deputies say that the female teenager that they were looking for was not among the group inside the parked car. However, deputies assert that they smelled marijuana coming from the parked car and chose to search the car.
The deputies seized a number of items in the search. Officials say that more than an ounce of suspected pot was located in the car, along with a variety of paper and plastic sandwich bags, and a digital scale. Law enforcement concluded that the items must be drug related and arrested the 19-year-old Mill Valley man, and a 15-year-old Marin City boy.
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