If you are stopped by the police, you may already know that you need to present your license and registration. If you don’t speak English, this may be where the difficulties increase. When you can’t speak English well or don’t at all, it may be hard to follow an...
Does a Miranda warning count if you don’t speak English?
Native English speakers are pretty familiar with the “Miranda” warning that starts out, “You have the right to remain silent…” They generally have little trouble understanding those rights once they are spelled out by the police. But what if English isn’t your first...
What you should know about the new assault weapons law
California has some of the strictest gun laws in the country. Lawmakers have been particularly concerned with curtailing the use of assault weapons. A little over a year ago, Senate Bill (SB) 118 expanded the definition of assault weapons. Although the bill was passed...
Are you facing criminal charges after a hit-and-run accident?
California law requires that you stop any time you have an accident to exchange contact and insurance information with the other driver(s) involved. It’s critically important to stop when someone else has suffered injuries in the incident. California Vehicle Code §...
Should you consider a plea deal?
Many criminal cases don’t ever go to trial, partly because so many defendants are able to work out plea deals with the prosecution. This enables the person to have a little say in the penalties they will face, and it helps to free up resources for the prosecutor to...
How can an aggravated felony affect your immigration status?
In most jurisdictions here in the U.S., there are two types of felony crimes: Both "simple" offenses and "aggravated" ones. There are at least 30 crimes that now fall into the category of aggravated felonies. Some of these include battery, theft, robbery, murder and...
Can parents avoid deportation because their child is a US citizen?
Family units are the building blocks of a happy, healthy and stable society. This is true even more so with families who have immigrated. What happens, however, when undocumented immigrants give birth to a child in the United States? Does that child’s citizenship...
Do the police need probable cause?
If you’re ever stopped by the police, something you should understand is the probable cause requirement. This requirement is one that an officer has to meet before they obtain a warrant, conduct a search, seize your property or make an arrest. Probable cause means...
Facial recognition could lead to false criminal accusations
Once when store owners found stock was missing, they would review the security camera footage for an image of someone stealing the stock. The police would then look to see if they recognized the person. Those images were often of poor quality and unreliable, making...
What to know about domestic violence in California
It can be hard to get along with one’s partner all the time, and in some situations two individuals may argue or even fight about the different opinions and preferences that they each hold. While many disagreements between dating or marital partners diffuse quickly,...
