San Diego Criminal Lawyers BlogIn the nearby state of Washington, a 32 year old white supremacist named David Rowe was apparently enraged at the at the sight of a black man and a white woman kissing at a bar in Olympia. Police say Mr. Rowe was recently released from the Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla, about 300 miles […]
Search Results for: hate crime
The First ‘Blue Lives Matter’ Law Enacted in the US
As a reaction to the “Black Lives Matter” movement, the state of Louisiana has just enacted a controversial “Blue Lives Matter” law (HB 953), which would make police officers and other ‘public safety’ workers a special protected class under hate-crime law. In other words, it is now a ‘hate crime’ to target police officers. The […]
Ku Klux Klan Rally in Anaheim Erupts in Violence
A Ku Klux Klan (KKK) rally in Anaheim erupted in violence at the end of February, when three people were stabbed and 13 people were arrested. The KKK had planned a rally at Peterson Park for the afternoon to protest against immigration and Muslims, when counter-protesters showed up to confront them. Fighting broke out just […]
State Legislatures Coming Down on Campus Rapes in California Universities
Although the topic of campus rape has made national headlines, the state of California is no doubt the most aggressive when it comes to addressing sexual assault on campuses. Last month, California Attorney General Kamala Harris and University of California President Janet Napolitano released a Model Memorandum of Understanding on Campus Sexual Assault (“Model MOU”) […]
When Drones Respond to 911 Calls
It can take 30 seconds or less to get a response to your 911 call, but it will not be a uniformed officer that shows up first thing. Instead, police in some California cities and across the country are utilizing drones as first responders that can make it to the scene before a human body […]
Finding a Needle in a Haystack: Genealogy Testing in the Criminal Justice System
The Golden State Killer had raped and murdered for ten years and hidden in plain sight for decades before he was finally caught, years after terrorizing Californians. His crime spree involved nearly 90 victims, and because he was a former police officer, he knew how to evade detection and capture for decades. What finally led […]
California Cold Cases
More murders occur in California than in any other state. Some attribute the high population and dense living as the major contributors to this statistic, but, for whatever reason, the state leads in murders. Additionally, a lot of those murders are unsolved. There are cold cases going back over four decades to the tune of […]
Confidential Informants
On television, confidential informants (CIs) help to put the bad guys behind bars, right? Except that, even Hollywood sometimes depicts these individuals as self-serving criminals who are willing to say and do whatever it takes to secure a better deal for themselves and their own legal hassles. And since the use of these informants is […]
Free Speech in America
Free speech in America is central to our democracy. But do Americans really understand this right and the very real limitations on speech? It is worth noting in these challenging times that when people choose to ignore the restrictions on free speech it could lead to legal woes. Recent High-Profile Example Alex Jones, who spent […]
Reducing Your Criminal Charges From Felony to Misdemeanor
If you have been arrested and charged with a crime, the type of charge you are facing will impact how harsh your punishments will be. Also, the level at which you are charged can have far-reaching implications for your life long after you serve your time and pay your fines. For example, a misdemeanor charge […]