Back on June 21, the Ninth Circuit struck down as unconstitutional a California law that has caused untold numbers of people to lose their cars to the impound business.  In the case of Lamya Brewster vs. Charlie Beck, et al., the plaintiff loaned her vehicle to her brother-in-law, who was stopped by the police.   […]

The East Bay Express reports that the presiding judge of Alameda County’s superior court told a board of supervisors committee today that past decisions made by the City of Oakland and the sheriff’s office forced him to make a controversial decision to move nearly all in-custody arraignments from Oakland to the new courthouse in Dublin. […]

The L.A. Times reports that Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions has expanded the authority of law enforcement to seize criminal suspects’ money and property, bucking a movement in Congress and many states to rein in a practice that critics said led to flagrant abuses and was unconstitutional.  You can read the full article here.

This morning, at the trial readiness conference, my client, who was charged with making a criminal threat as well as a probation violation, resolved his case for 60 days in jail.  He’d already served 54, so he will be released from custody next week.  This was a better deal than he was initially offered. **Case […]

Since January 1, 2017, a new California law is helping people erase the catastrophic consequences (immigration or otherwise) that can attach to even very old convictions. The law will permits people no longer in criminal custody to file a motion to vacate a conviction or sentence based on either one of two claims: (1) a prejudicial […]