Criminal Defense
Los Angeles Neighborhood Councilman Facing Felony Charges for Misusing City Funds
James Tyrell Harris, a South Los Angeles anti-gang activist, was arrested for allegedly misappropriating $85,000 in city funds. While serving as chairman and treasurer of the Empowerment Congress Southwest Area Neighborhood Development Council, Harris is said to have made unauthorized withdrawals and purchases for travel expenses and hiring his daughter for administrative work. Harris already has two prior felony convictions for robbery in Los Angeles during the 1980s. Although Harris…
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What is the Difference between First and Second Degree Robbery?
Robbery is prosecuted very seriously in California, and it comes with harsh consequences. But if you are convicted of robbery, how you are punished will depend on how you are charged. That is because there are two separate types of robbery in California: first degree robbery and second degree robbery. The circumstances of your case will be used to determine if you are charged with first or second degree robbery.…
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Under California’s Felony Murder Rule, an Unarmed, First-Time Offender Served 29 Years in Prison for Waiting in a Getaway Car During a Robbery
Connie Keel was charged with first-degree murder for participating as an aider and abettor in the robbery of a liquor store that resulted in the death of the store clerk. Keel was convicted of murder in California at her 1981 trial, even though she was never accused of killing anyone with her own hands. To this day, Keel claims that she had no idea that her husband and cousin intended…
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Grounds for Being Convicted of Receiving Stolen Property
A California Appellate Court affirmed once again that a person convicted of theft in California cannot also be convicted of receiving stolen property when the property in question is the property of the theft. The courts have long recognized that a crime of theft and/or robbery is the taking of personal property of another. Now, if you are the individual who took that property, you cannot also be found guilty…
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California Robbery with Multiple Employees Present Influences Charges
California Supreme Court Confirms Its Position on Robbery Issue, Meaning You Need an Experienced Criminal Defense Attorney The California Supreme Court recently clarified a conflict in the Court of Appeal concerning whether, for purposes of Robbery, all employees have constructive possession of the employer's property while on duty and thus may be separate victims of the employer's business. The court held that all employees on duty during a robbery in…
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