A Whittier man, Dealio Lockhart, was recently sentenced to 22 years and four months in state prison for his role in the 2016 street race that caused a multi-vehicle pileup on the Golden State Freeway in Commerce. Three people died and four were seriously injured. An investigation by the City…
Criminal law has entered the digital age. Every day, the privacy of innocent people is compromised as law enforcement officials scoop up information about them while executing routine search warrants involving someone else. Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a warrant was required for law enforcement to be…
For the last two weeks the owner of the New England Patriots football team has been the subject of many jokes and conjecture in regards to his sex life following his recent arrest and charge for solicitation of prostitutes in Jupiter, Florida. As many as 300 people are expected to…
Domestic violence, according to The National Domestic Violence Hotline, is a pattern of behaviors used by one partner to maintain power and control over another partner in an intimate relationship. The behavior becomes criminal when one partner hits or strikes the other partner, known as battery, which is often part…
This week a San Francisco free-speech group, the First Amendment Coalition, sued the California Attorney General and Justice Department over their refusal to disclose police misconduct records under the state’s new transparency laws. Last year the Senate passed a bill providing the public with greater access to police personnel files…
An arrest is an undeniably traumatic experience. The simple question, am I free to go, will be answered with an affirmative “no.” Keep in mind that once the police officer starts the arrest process, he or she has probable cause to believe that you have committed a crime. If during…
This time of year, there is an uptick in muggings, when someone is attacked and robbed in public. It can happen as a person enters his or her home, walks out of a restaurant, steps off the bus, or walks through a mall parking lot. Robbery is the taking of…
This week, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced he would bring the First Step Act, a bipartisan criminal justice reform bill, to a vote. The proposed bill would bring criminal justice reform to individuals facing current charges and potentially cut the sentence of individuals currently serving time in federal prison.…
For the third year in a row, the rate of hate crimes increased in California. According to a report released by the California Attorney General’s office, there were 1,093 reported hate crimes in California in 2017, a 17.4% increase. This statistic follows an uptick in hate crimes since 2014: The…
Many employers conduct criminal background checks when individuals apply for a job. If you have been arrested or convicted of a crime, getting a job can become a stressful undertaking because some employers do not hire individuals with arrest or conviction records. Depending on the job, some classes of convicted…