DUI Blood Draws Justified on grounds of Exigent Circumstances under the Schmerber and McNeely decisions. In Schmerber v. California (1966) 384 U.S. 757, the US Supreme Court determined that a warrantless compulsory seizure of blood for the purpose of a blood-alcohol test did not offend the Fourth Amendment if the procedure: (1) is…
Bail is the means the Court uses to ensure a defendant shows up in Court. Basically, by setting a “price” for the defendant to be released from custody of the jail on bail, the defendant has something at stake – money – that can be lost if he or she does not show up for…
California Voter’s approved recreational marijuana for statewide use last November 2016 with Proposition 64. What many may not know is that the passage of the Proposition is that the law was changed not just to allow future use and possession/ cultivation of cannabis, but also corrected past draconian and unproductive punishments and criminal records created…
Holiday season means DUI checkpoints increase across the State of California. DUI checkpoints are legal and police may use them in an effort to protect public safety, if they follow certain guidelines in setting up and operating the checkpoint. Vehicle Checkpoints and the Ingersoll Test The primary purpose of a sobriety checkpoint is to…
Strikes are included in Penal Code section 1192.7(c) (“Serious Felonies”) and Penal Code section 667.5(c) (“Violent Felonies”). [See Cal. Penal Code § 1170.12(c)(2)]. As mentioned on this website, under California’s Three Strikes Law, an offender can face up to 25 Years to Life in the State Prison if he or she is convicted of more…
If you are sentenced to State Prison, County Jail, or County Jail as a condition of probation, you are ordinarily entitled to “half-time” credits, unless you committed a violent felony (a type of “strike” offense) requiring you to serve the offense at “85 percent” time [Cal. Penal Code §§ 667.5(c), 2933.1], or have been found…
