Posted on July 30, 2020 in Criminal Defense

You have likely heard the phrase “stalking” used when talking about looking at someone’s social media profile in detail. Perhaps you looked at all of their recent photos or glanced at who they follow. While this is jokingly labeled as social media stalking, these actions can quickly become a crime in California. The digital age has made it easier than ever before for stalking and harassment to occur, either physically or digitally. Stalking requires habitual patterns of following, pursuing, or harassing another person, causing the victim to fear physical harm or mental distress at their hands. Before any crimes can be convicted, this form of harassment must happen, closely together, on two or more occasions.

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 Posted on July 02, 2020 in Criminal Defense

Since the War on Drugs began in the early 1970s, prison inmate numbers have skyrocketed for criminal drug charges, even those considered minor. As more research surfaces regarding addiction and the effectiveness of rehabilitation, many states have begun to rethink the sentences given to those individuals facing drug charges. California has been known to be a more liberal state when it comes to laws regarding marijuana, although there are still strict regulations for those caught with illegal drugs. As a state near the border of Mexico, California has a high immigrant population and these drug regulations apply to them as well. Drug charges can affect the future of anyone found guilty, but this is even more true of people who depend on a clean criminal record to remain in the United States. Rather than sending offenders with minor drug charges to prison, California has created a program known as “pretrial diversion” to keep individuals with minor charges out of jail and immigrants wishing to stay in the United States from being deported.

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