Violent Crimes
I’m Charged with a Violent or Serious Felony. What Should I Do Next?
In California, a felony is a crime which is punishable by death or by imprisonment in the state prison. Every other crime or public offense is a misdemeanor except those offenses that are classified as infractions. Violent and serious felonies defined in Penal Code sections 667.5(c) and 1192.7(c). The most common violent or serious crimes include residential burglary, robbery, kidnapping, murder, most sex offenses like rape and child molestation, any…
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Penal Code 187(a) – Murder in California
In Penal Code 187 (a), California law defines murder as "the unlawful killing of a human being or a fetus with malice aforethought." Malice aforethought is a necessity in murder as opposed to manslaughter. This is a state of mind where someone intends to kill a person but not necessarily out of spite or hatred. Malice Aforethought can also exist if there is an intentional infliction of serious bodily harm…
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I Am Being Charged With Murder In San Diego, What Do I Do? – P.C. 187(a); P.C. 189; P.C. 190(a)
If you are being charged with murder in San Diego, it is important to know what legal consequences you may be facing. Under California law, murder is the unlawful killing of another human being with malice aforethought. (P.C. § 187(a)) First degree murder exists when a person commits murder with premeditation and deliberation or under certain circumstances such as by poison or during a drive-by shooting. (P.C. § 189) To…
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PC 187 – MOTHER ALLEGEDLY KILLED HER 3-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTERS, THEN SET FIRE TO APARTMENT TO TRY TO COVERUP THE DEATHS
California Penal Code 187 - Murder On October 13, 2010, police allege that a mother stabbed her two 3-year-old daughters to death, attempted to commit suicide, and set fire to her apartment to try to cover up her daughters' deaths. On October 12, after responding to reports of a late night fire, firefighters arrived at the mother's apartment and subdued the flames. They found the daughters' bodies inside the apartment.…
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PENAL CODE 187(A), PENAL CODE 189, PENAL CODE 190(A) – MAN CONVICTED OF MURDER AND STEALING VICTIM’S PRIZED FLUTES
On October 5, 2010, Alejandro Hernandez Rivera, 24, was found guilty of first degree murder for strangling a retiree as part of a plan to steal the retiree's expensive flute collection. Rivera worked as a janitor by day, but prosecutors alleged that he also advertised his services as a prostitute on Craigslist. Theodore Neff, 66, was one of his regular clients. In 2008, Rivera allegedly murdered Neff, set fire to…
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COURT UPHOLDS RECKLESS DRIVER’S MURDER CONVICTION – PENAL CODE 187 AND SECTION 189
On August 23, 2010, the Second Appellate District affirmed the trial court's determination that appellant, a driver who collided with another vehicle and killed the other vehicle's passenger, had the requisite intent to be convicted of murder. On November 29, 2006, appellant Hal Moore drove north on Hill Avenue in Pasadena at a rate of between 80 to 90 miles per hour, according to officer testimony. The posted speed limit…
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Police Arrest Man Suspected to be the Grim Sleeper – California Penal Code 187
It was recently reported in the LA Times that the police arrested the alleged "Grim Sleeper" serial killer. Police went into the South L.A. home of David Franklin, Jr., 57, and arrested him without incident. Franklin is charged with 10 counts of murder and 1 count of attempted murder. Nicknamed after taking long breaks between killings, the Grim Sleeper is alleged to have committed murders from 1985 to 2007. Detectives…
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VERDICT NEARS FOR WHITE OFFICER ACCUSED OF SHOOTING UNARMED BLACK MAN; OAKLAND PREPARES FOR POSSIBLE RIOTS – CALIFORNIA PENAL CODE SECTION 189, PENAL CODE SECTION 192(A), (B)
On July 2, 2010, the city of Oakland, California, prepares itself for possible rioting as the trial of a white police officer accused of murdering an unarmed black man draws to a close. On January 1, 2009, Bay Area Rapid Transit police officer Johannes Mehserle, 28, shot Oscar Grant after passengers accused Grant and others of fighting on a train. Mehserle claimed that he had meant to subdue Grant with…
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Mexican Governor Candidate Murdered and How a Criminal Defense Attorney Can Help You – California Penal Code section 187 and 189
It was recently reported by the Associated Press that gunmen assassinated the front-running candidate for governor of a Mexican border state. Mexican President, Felipe Calderon, called the murder as a drug cartels seeking to influence local elections. The attackers ambushed governor candidate Rodolfo Torre's car as he headed to the airport in Ciudad Victoria, border state littered with violence as a result of rival turf battles between two drug cartels.…
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Death Row Inmate Executed by Firing Squad – California Penal Code Section 3604
CNN recently reported that Ronnie Lee Gardner, 49, was executed by firing squad for the shooting death of attorney Michael Burdell during a failed escape attempt from custody in 1985 at a Salt Lake City, Utah courthouse. A hood was placed over Gardner's head and a paper target pinned to his chest. He was heavily restrained as a five-person firing squad took aim at the target and shot him. Gardner…
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