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Man arrested in another state faces extradition to California
On Friday morning a Florida police officer believed a car was parked in an unusual spot. Police claim the officer approached the vehicle and asked the five people in the car what they were up to. The officer says the five people gave conflicting stories. She says she believes one of the occupants of the car was involved in some king of drug related activities. The officer called for backup and a K-9 handler to have the dog conduct a sniff search of the vehicle. The dog reportedly alerted during the sniff search.
As it turns out, one of the occupants in the car had an outstanding warrant from California. The 25-year-old is believed to have violated parole in California. Moreover, law enforcement in Los Angeles claims the man is wanted in a relation to charges in a number of alleged California burglaries.
Los Angeles police believe the man may be implicated in potentially hundreds of burglaries in Southern California. Police say the man, along with others would knock on the front door of residences during the daytime. If no one responded from inside the residence, police say the group would break into the home and take items, including jewelry, money and guns they found inside.
Federal appeals court overturns California murder conviction
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit overturned the murder conviction of a California woman Monday. The federal appellate court held that the woman was denied the right to a fair trial. California state courts and one federal judge previously had upheld the conviction.
The matter began with allegations in October 1993. Police claim the woman was driving a car in Long Beach on an October afternoon casing stores with friends, intending to return later that night and commit a California robbery.
The woman reportedly drove into a liquor store parking lot. Police allege two of the woman's friends got out of the car and entered the liquor store. Law enforcement claims the two came out of the store, when one went back in, robbed the store and shot the proprietor, killing him. The woman reportedly waited in the car during the alleged incident.
Law enforcement claims the woman admitted casing the stores, but the plan was to commit the California robberies later that night, after dark. The woman denied guilt and took the matter to trial before a jury. At the conclusion of evidence the jury deliberated the facts of the case.
Supreme Court rules California prison overcrowding violates Constitution
Overcrowding has been a large problem in California's prison system. In fact, lawsuits tracing back to 1990 challenging overcrowding issues led a district court to order the state to reduce its prison population. California took the matter to the highest court in the land. A Santa Cruz criminal defense attorney knows that individuals charged with crimes in the state have the constitutional right to challenge the state's case at trial. However, people convicted of crimes who are placed in the state's prison system also retain certain constitutional rights.
Monday the United States Supreme Court agreed that California's overcrowded prisons are a matter of constitutional importance. The Court handed down a five-to-four ruling that concludes the state has failed to correct "serious constitutional violations" in the prison system related to overcrowding.
The state prison system was designed to hold a maximum capacity of roughly 80,000 people when the federal litigation began in 1990. Two separate class-action lawsuits were filed over more than a decade in an effort to correct the constitutional flaws in the prison system. Populations in the state's prison grew to more than double the intended capacity of the system.
Former California police officer charged with perjury, falsifying reports
Prosecutors in Sacramento have filed 34 felony charges against a former Sacramento Police Officer for allegedly lying on police reports, in criminal court hearings and on driver's license suspension forms in DUI cases. In September, the District Attorney's Office dismissed 79 criminal cases in Sacramento County due to the false allegations of the police officer came to light. The current criminal charges filed against the former officer stem from 24 of the dismissed cases.
The majority of the dismissed cases involved charges brought against Californians for allegations of driving under the influence. In January 2010, the officer was placed on administrative leave after he was accused of brandishing a weapon while he was off duty. During the administrative leave, an attorney reviewed videotape of a DUI traffic stop that had been captured on the officer's squad car video camera. The footage reportedly showed different facts than those written in the officer's police report.
U.S. Supreme Court sides with police in warrantless search
The high court ruled Monday in an 8 to 1 decision that the police acted lawfully under exigent circumstances. The case arose in 2005 after law enforcement conducted an undercover sting operation. A person allegedly sold crack cocaine to a police informant. The suspect reportedly entered an apartment building after the alleged sale.
Police entered the building, but were unable to determine which apartment the suspect entered. They combed the halls of the apartment building until they say they smelled the odor of marijuana coming from one of the unit.
Police pounded on the door and announced their presence loudly. They then listened at the door. Police claim they heard people moving inside the locked apartment. The police announced their intent to enter the apartment and broke down the door.
Police found a different man inside the apartment than the man allegedly involved in the sale of crack cocaine outside. Police say the man they found was smoking marijuana inside the apartment. Police also found cocaine and placed the man under arrest. He later was convicted of drug trafficking and sentenced to 11 years in prison.
California Highway Patrol creates DUI warrant task force
The California Highway Patrol is seeking to beef up its enforcement in California DUI cases. The law enforcement agency has received a federal grant that it intends to use to reduce a backlog in outstanding California DUI cases. While checkpoints and other enforcement efforts can be expected to continue, the new initiative is focusing on cases that have already been charged. In a given year, California law enforcement agencies and prosecutors charge thousands of people with DUI. The CHP says that in 2009, more than 210,000 people were arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence in California.
The CHP recently announced the creation of a task force formed for the purpose of serving DUI warrants across the state. Currently the CHP says 330,000 misdemeanor and felony DUI arrest warrants remain outstanding.
The CHP received a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the national Highway Traffic Safety Administration and is using the grant in an effort to reduce the backlog of outstanding DUI arrest warrants in the state. The task force is expected to be serving warrants statewide. The task force will use service teams to conduct sweeps to serve the warrants.
Some drug charges dropped against Chico man, but they might be re-filed
A 62-year-old Chico man was arrested in October 2010 after a traffic stop near Tahoma, California. Police claim they discovered 103 pounds of processed pot in the man's vehicle during the traffic stop. The man reportedly was en route to a South Lake Tahoe pot cooperative. The man argued that he was in full compliance with California's medical marijuana laws at the time of the October arrest.
Before any ruling was made in the court proceedings in El Dorado County, prosecutors reportedly dropped the charges against the accused, but that may not be for long. Officials claim the man was involved in a pot growing operation in Butte County. The El Dorado marijuana charges reportedly were dropped pending the outcome of separate charges in Butte County.
After the original arrest, El Dorado County officials say they served a search warrant at the man's residence near Chico. Law enforcement claims they seized 295 pounds of marijuana and 62 plants during the search.
A California DUI conviction may carry collateral consequences
DUI charges in California can bring direct consequences under California sentencing if an individual is convicted of a DUI charge. An experienced Santa Cruz DUI attorney knows that conviction for DUI can have other "collateral" consequences, beyond what the judge imposes at the time of sentencing.
So far this year, six Major League Baseball players have been arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol across the country. Pat Courtney, a spokesman for Major League Baseball says the topic of discipline for ballplayers who are convicted of DUI will be "a topic of negotiations this time around" when the league and players union sit down to hash out the next collective bargaining agreement.
The current agreement expires in December. There is no provision in the agreement related to off-field matters. The number of ballplayers charged with DUI this year has caught the eye of the league.
The most recent arrest occurred Tuesday. Shin-Soo Choo of the Indians was charged with DUI after police say chemical tests indicated the man's blood alcohol level was more the twice the legal limit. In February, Tigers first baseman Miguel Cabrera was arrested during spring training. Police claim the ball player drank from a bottle of scotch in their presence during the alleged DUI investigation.
Victims of California burglary face drug charges
The two women pled not guilty to cultivation of marijuana, maintaining a house for the sale of marijuana, possession of marijuana for sale and theft of electricity. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 13. The women are being held on $100,000 bail.
Neighbors reportedly believed the home where the two women live was being burglarized. A neighbor called police to report the suspected burglary. Police arrived and say they could see the marijuana plants through the broken front door. Police say that nobody appeared to be home at the time they arrived.
Police obtained a search warrant. In executing the warrant, law enforcement claims they seized 800 marijuana plants and $3,000 in cash at the home. Police also claim to have found an electrical bypass in the home that they say allowed the women to tap into a Pacific Gas and Electric Co. power line.
Neighbors also gave police a description of a vehicle allegedly associated with the burglary. Law enforcement conducted a traffic stop of a BMW that reportedly matched the description of the car. A 38-year-old and a 34-year-old were arrested after the traffic stop.
80 Californians arrested in suspected gang related crimes
State and federal law enforcement agents swarmed neighborhoods on Los Angeles yesterday arresting as many as 80 people. Law enforcement says the operation was the culmination of more than two years of investigations. Sixty six Californians were arrested on suspicion of California weapons and drug charges. Federal authorities took an additional 14 Californians into custody, reportedly under federal indictments.
Law enforcement says the previous investigation included the use of undercover agents who allegedly purchased as many as 90 firearms. Undercover agents reportedly also bought drugs during the investigation. Police say agents bought roughly 1.5 kilograms of cocaine, 2 kilograms of crack, 2.5 kilograms of methamphetamine, 2 kilograms of heroin and 26 pounds of marijuana during the investigation.
Police allege that the focus of the investigation was on alleged California gang members and their associates. Law enforcement says they were particularly focusing on Rancho San Pedro, a gang that currently has 600 members and 400 associates.
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