Just Because the Police Find Drugs in Your Room Does Not Mean That Your Are Guilty of Drug Possession
Just Because the Police Find Drugs in Your Room Does Not Mean That Your Are Guilty of Drug Possession
A recent decision of the Court of Appeals held that a defendant was wrongfully accused of possession of methamphetamines, a felony. The substance was found on a nightstand in a bedroom that the accused shared with his girlfriend. The District Attorney did not present any evidence to prove that the defendant knew the substance was methamphetamines. The defendant denied he knew the substance was a drug of any kind. The…
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HOW EASY SHOULD IT BE FOR YOUR UNCLE (YOUR UNCLE SAM THAT IS) TO SNOOP THROUGH YOUR E-MAIL ACCOUNT?
A recent opinion by the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recently addressed this issue. Warshack v. United States (6th Cir. Dkt. 06-4092, 6/18/2007). In this case, the US government was investigating Mr. Warshack for suspected mail and wire fraud, money laundering, and other federal crimes and they wanted to obtain Mr. Warshack's stored e-mails from his internet service provider. Typically, before government investigators can obtain personal…
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US SUPREME COURT: “JUST SAY ‘NO’” TO “BONG HITS 4 JESUS”
The US Supreme Court's recent opinion in Morse v. Frederick brings to the forefront how far a public school may properly go in restricting student speech. In this case, Joseph Frederick was a student at a public high school in Juneau, Alaska, and, on January 24, 2002, the Olympic torch was due to pass in front of Mr. Frederick's high school, en route to the winter games in Salt Lake…
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How does California feel about Dog Fighting?
Anybody who has not been hiding under a rock lately has heard about the legal troubles facing a certain high profile professional athlete and his purported involvement in Dog Fighting. The legal problems facing Michael Vick stem greatly from the participation across state lines in betting on, "sponsoring" and even hosting dog fighting events. Nobody knows exactly what this athlete's involvement was in these accusations, and until the court process…
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A Key Witness Leads to Court Victory
In a recent serious case handled by Wallin and Klarich, the police reports had one independent witness providing very incriminating evidence against our client. We realized that if this witness were to come to court and state the things that the police officer recorded in his report it would likely lead to his conviction. Wallin and Klarich did what we had to do to win the case. We immediately jumped…
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A District Attorney’s Failure to Turn over a Tape to the Defense Results in a Murder Conviction Being Overturned
A defendant was found guilty of beating his elderly grandfather to death in 2005. The defendant was sentenced to prison for life. A California Court of Appeal has reversed his conviction and granted him a new trial on the basis that the prosecution failed to turn over a tape recording made of the defendant when he was arrested. It appears that the defendant's trial lawyer did not seek discovery of…
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Investigation Is the Key to Success in Most Criminal Cases – Who You Have as Your Lawyer Can Make the Difference
In many criminal cases the difference between winning and losing has little to do with the truth. In most cases, it has much more to do with who the lawyers who are representing the parties. Often whether a defendant is found guilty or not guilty depends upon which side was able to present the best set of facts to the jury. This all starts with which lawyer will be doing…
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When Is an Accused Entitled by Law to a Lawyer?
It is thought by many people that a person who is accused of crime is entitled to a lawyer if they cannot afford one. Unfortunately this is not always the case. If you are under investigation for a crime, you are not entitled to have a lawyer appointed for you. If you are asked to take part in a line up where you are a possible suspect and you have…
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WHAT YOUN NEED TO KNOW IF YOU ARE FACING A PAROLE VIOLATION – YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO HIRE YOUR OWN LAWYER
A parolee that is arrested for a parole violation will have a "parole hold" placed on him or her at the time of arrest. This parole hold makes it so the parolee cannot be bailed out of custody. If the parolee is arrested for a NEW CRIME, it is best to have the parolee waive his right to a speedy probable cause hearing until the court case is disposed of.…
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WHAT DO I DO IF I AM ACCUSED OF STATUTORY RAPE OR UNLAWFUL SEX WITH A MINOR?
In the state of California, it is against the law for minors to have sex with each other or for anyone to have sex with a minor. This law is true even though nearly 50 percent of high school students have reported that they have already had sexual intercourse. The laws that make it illegal for minors to consent to sexual intercourse are called statutory rape laws. Under these laws…
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