Criminal Appeals
26 YEAR SECRET KEEPS INNOCENT MAN IN PRISON
A recent report on the program "60 Minutes," detailing the case of Alton Logan revealed what can happen when concepts of law and morality collide. Mr. Logan was charged with first-degree murder in connection with the murder of a security guard at a McDonald's restaurant in Chicago in 1982. Police arrested him after receiving a tip, and got three eyewitnesses to identify him as the killer. Mr. Logan, as well…
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CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY DISBARRED FOR FAILURE TO PROPERLY REPRESENT DEFENDANT IN HIS ROBBERY TRIAL RESULTING IN HIS CONVICTION
An attorney was recently disbarred from the practice of law by the California State Bar for his failure to properly defend a client in a robbery trial. At the defendants first trial the lawyer called an expert witness who testified as to the unreliability of eyewitness testimony. In addition during the first trial the lawyer called several witnesses to support the defendants alibi as well as to the lack of…
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SHOULD I APPEAL?
If you or a loved one has been convicted of a criminal offense, you should consider appealing the case. The law on criminal appeals in California is specific and deadlines are important to understand. On felony cases, the Notice of Appeal needs to be filed within 60 calendar days of sentence. On misdemeanors, the time to file the Notice of Appeal is 30 days from the day of sentencing. Failure…
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There must be an adequate factual basis in the record to accept a plea
The California Court of Appeal recently reversed a plea agreement because there was not an adequate factual basis for the defendant's plea. The issue in The People v. Bobby Lee Willard was whether a general stipulation, without reference to a document in the record which contains factual allegations, satisfies the proper procedure when a negotiated plea is taken. When a negotiated plea is taken and the trial court asks defense…
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UNLAWFUL ADMISSION OF TESTIMONY LEADS TO REVERSAL OF CONVICTION ON APPEAL BY FEDERAL COURT EVEN THOUGH ALL OF THE CALIFORNIA COURTS TURNED DOWN THE APPEAL, FEDERAL COURT GRANTS NEW TRIAL AFTER WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS FILED
In a recent case a defendant was found guilty of making terrorist threats to his former girlfriend. Even though the former girlfriend did not come to court to testify the trial judge allowed a police officer to come to court and testify as to what the former girlfriend had told him about the threats the defendant had allegedly made to her. The defendant was found guilty after a jury trial.…
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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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UNDERSTANDING YOUR APPEAL
-- Information for Appellants -- This information will help explain what an appeal is about. It answers some of the general questions most often asked by our clients. Your individual attorney will help you understand your specific case. "WHAT IS AN APPEAL?" An appeal is not a new trial. The purpose of an appeal is to check over the proceedings in the trial court to see if the law was…
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