When Charged With a Crime ®

Our Firm is pleased to announce that Associate Attorney Ally F. Keegan and Legal Assistant (and first year law student) Brooke Walker were contributors to the February edition of LC News, the monthly publication of the Lawyers Club of San Diego. Their article, entitled “Evolving Laws Addressing Racial Disparities in Prisons,” focuses on recent and pending legislation that seeks to end the racial imbalance in sentencing in California, and specifically here in San Diego. For example, Ally and Brooke point out that in 2019, Black people in California were imprisoned at a rate nine times that of whites. Similar numbers were found when looking at the jail population in San Diego County. The article also discusses racial disparities in sentencing enhancements such as the Three Strikes Law. Ally and Brooke provide a rundown of various measures proposed by the Committee on Revision of the Penal Code, including proposals that have been enacted, and those which have been stalled or completely ignored. Further, the article notes that remedial measures are regularly presented to California voters, including initiatives to end slavery in the prison system by outlawing unpaid prisoner labor. This initiative may appear on the ballot in November of this year.

The article contains facts which many will find both surprising and disturbing. But, as Ally and Brooke note, the extent to which there will be further reforms to end racial disparities in our prisons remains to be seen.

In this video, Partner Stefano Molea discusses the effect preliminary hearings have on plea bargains in felony cases. Specifically, the question often arises whether the prosecution’s plea offer will get better or worse after the prelim. Prosecutors will sometimes put a plea bargain on the table and state that it is only available for the taking up to, but not after, the preliminary hearing. This suggests that, from the prosecutor’s point of view at least, the trouble of putting on witnesses and going through the hearing process places a premium the defense would have to pay if the offer is not accepted beforehand. However, as Stefano points out in the video, the results of a preliminary hearing can also benefit the accused. From a defense point of view, it may be possible to poke holes in the prosecution’s case; to convince a judge to reduce to misdemeanors one or more of the felony charges filed; or to obtain a dismissal in a case based on insufficient evidence and/or the granting of a motion to suppress evidence.

The lesson is, of course, that the merits of each case must be evaluated in order to determine whether it is better to accept an early plea bargain or to move forward with the preliminary hearing. Therein lies the value of making sure you have a quality, locally experienced, criminal defense firm with and for you each step of the way when facing charges.