STRATEGIC LEGAL DEFENSE SERVICES FOR CRIMINAL ACCUSATIONS
We provide full legal defense services for all matters related to criminal accusations such as getting out of jail, clearing a bench warrant, wining a restraining order hearing, asserting a violation of rights, expungement of a record, DMV hearings, police investigations, and more.
The criminal justice system is complicated. Consider having the right defender on your side to make a difference.
Legal Defense Services
- Clean Your Record–if you have a conviction for a misdemeanor or felony, we can file a petition to clean your record. This is commonly called an expungement and may help with employment, immigration and reputation. If you have a felony conviction, it may also be helpful to file a petition to ask the judge to reduce the felony to a misdemeanor.
- Police Investigations–if the police want to talk to you, call us immediately. There are strategic decisions to be made on your behalf that can change the outcome of the investigation and the criminal case.
- Release From Jail–we can help you get released from jail on your own recognizance, meaning without paying any bail money, or help convince a judge to reduce the amount of bail in order to get you released and save you money.
- Violation of Rights–we defend your Constitutional rights to remain silent, to challenge illegal searches of your property, unlawful detentions of the car you were driving, and many other protected areas.
- Reduce a Felony to Misdemeanor–we prepare and file written petitions in court asking the judge to reduce the charges. This can occur, depending upon the type of crime, during the course of a case or after the case is closed.
- Work Furlough–we help you qualify for work furlough to avoid going to jail, so you can continue to work, make a living, and not lose your job. There are also other alternatives to custody that we can arrange on your behalf to avoid going to jail, such as CPAC.
- DMV Hearings–we defend your right to keep your driver’s license or to get it reinstated or restricted.
- False Accusations–we have the ability to run background checks on witnesses or alleged victims to find out about their past. Sometimes what we discover about witnesses and their past can be used in court to benefit our clients.
- Sentence Modifications–we prepare and file written petitions in court to modify the terms and conditions of a sentence or probation.
- Rehabilitation Programs–we have access to many rehabilitation programs which you can enroll in to improve your life and the outcome of your case.
- Coerced Confession–did the police read you your rights? Did you voluntarily make a statement that can be used against you? We can determine whether this occurred, and if so, find a way to remedy the situation for your benefit.
- Pretrial Drug Diversion–this is a way to resolve your case before trial for drug offenses. We can help you avoid lengthy court proceedings until the trial.
- Alternatives to Custody–work furlough, electronic monitoring, CPAC, and house arrest are possible ways to avoid going to jail.
- Subpoena Witnesses–we can subpoena witnesses to make them appear in court and help your case.
- Probation Violations–if you have not complied with probation, we can help you to avoid further punishment.
- Civil Compromise–in certain cases you may qualify to have the charges against you dismissed, if the alleged victim agrees to receive compensation and you pay the compensation.
- Demand for Speedy Trial–we defend your legal rights to be granted a speedy trial.
- Writs and Appeals–if something went wrong at the DMV or the court, a written appeal can help.
- Expert Witnesses–we have many experts who can testify in court and help you win your case.
- Search Warrant Analysis–did the police had the right to search you or your property? Let us examine the affidavit or sworn statement that the police used to convince a judge to issue a search warrant, and the return and inventory of property that was searched and seized.
- Unlawful Police Detention–if the police had no legal right to stop your car late at night, look into your private property like a purse or a backpack, search your pockets, order you to get out of your car, we can use this information for your benefit.
- Motion to Dismiss Charges–this request is made in felony cases where there was a legal error according to Penal Code section 995.
- Community Service–this is an alternative to jail that we can help you achieve.
- Lie Detector Results–call us before you take the test! This test is tricky and you need to know your rights.
- Terminate Probation–if you are on probation, we can file a petition to ask the judge to terminate probation early.
- Civil Harassment Orders (TRO)–if someone is bothering you, or you received a restraining order claiming that you are bothering them, we have successfully fought and won many of these TRO hearings, including having the judge order the other side to pay attorney’s fees.
- Withdrawal of Change of Plea–if you believe that your present or previous attorney did not advise you correctly about the consequences of pleading guilty, or made some mistake in representing you, you may be eligible to withdraw your plea of guilty. This is also referred to as a “motion to withdraw a plea.”
HIGHLY EFFECTIVE DEFENSE FOR CRIMINAL ACCUSATIONS
We defend all accusations related to crimes including driving under the influence, child abuse, domestic violence, drugs, theft, assault, battery, hit-and-run, embezzlement and much more.
Place your trust in a well known and experienced criminal defense attorney like David Pflaum who consistently gets great results if you are charged with a crime.
Types of Crimes
- DUI Alcohol or Drugs–if you are charged with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, there are many ways to help defend you and to keep your driver’s license.
- Domestic Violence–these cases arise almost always as felonies when one person, or even a neighbor of a person, calls the police and says that he or she was hurt by his or her boyfriend, girlfriend, husband, wife or partner. There are many factors that come into play that an experienced lawyer can use to eliminate a felony charge of domestic violence, reduce the charges and win at trial.
- DUI with Injury—if a person was driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, including prescriptions, and hurts another person during a car accident, this serious charge may be the result. This type of crime can be a felony or a misdemeanor. Depending upon the circumstances of the accident, insurance, the injuries, the police report, the blood or breath sample results, and other factors, an excellent defense attorney can make a huge difference in the outcome of the case.
- Assault–this type of offense comes in all sorts of varieties, some involving the use of force, some involving the use of a weapon, and all usually involving some type of a confrontation or altercation between two people, where it can be one person’s word against another, or self defense, or defense of another.
- Grand or Petty Theft–if the amount of property that was supposedly taken exceeds $950, this qualifies as grand theft, but could be reduced to a petty theft or eliminated depending upon the circumstances.
- Sex Offenses–these types of allegations come in all sorts of varieties and must be defended aggressively, particularly since a conviction may result in a life-time requirement that a person register as a sex offender.
- Robbery–this can be anything from a petty theft with some use of force, like pushing the store security guard, to actually taking someone’s property by use of a weapon or a threat. This can also be a “strike” offense, so it could be quite serious. There are many ways to defend this accusation.
- Burglary–there are many varieties of this crime, which can also be a “strike” offense, so you need the services of an excellent attorney to prevent a strike on your record, or to reduce the charge from a felony to a misdemeanor.
- Hit and Run—this type of crime may be subject to a civil compromise where we can arrange for the client to pay the victim’s damages and then the criminal charges can be reduced or eliminated. There are also other ways to successfully defend this charge.
- Restraining Orders—we handle these cases very well if you want to file a TRO or if you need a strong defense against a TRO that has been filed against you.
- Rape—a very serious allegation that may be refuted by testimony of witnesses, forensic analysis, circumstantial evidence and an experienced defender.
- Drug Sales/Transportation–the police have many ways to accuse someone of possessing drugs for sale, selling them, and transporting them, and the consequences can be very serious. We know how to defend against these charges.
- Molestation—these types of allegations can happen to anyone, they are not always true, and they require an aggressive experienced defense attorney.
- Manslaughter—the most common type of manslaughter occurs when someone is driving and the driver makes a mistake that causes a death.
- Prostitution–the police arrest a person supposedly engaging in, or asking for, sex in exchange for money; there are many ways to defend against this charge and to dismiss or reduce the charge.
- Kidnapping–rarely do the police file this charge against a person, but simply moving someone from one place to another against their will could get you into trouble for this charge. This type of offense is also sometimes called false imprisonment.
- Terrorist Threat—you do not have to be a ‘terrorist’ with a bomb or a gun or a weapon to have this charge filed against you since the charge, violation of Penal Code section 422, essentially means a person threatened to harm another person. It is potentially a “strike” offense, so must be aggressively defended.
- Embezzlement—an employee who takes money from his or her employer can result in severe punishment, depending upon the amount of money, and how the victim feels about the case. The ability to pay restitution, or give back the money that was taken, will play a key part in defending against this charge.
- Weapons Possession–very few people are charged with this crime, but sometimes it can occur when there is some sort of a weapon like a bat, a stick, a gun, or brass knuckles in the possession of the accused.
- Suspended License—dealing with DMV and driver’s licenses can be a bureaucratic nightmare, so we cut to the chase and try to figure out what to do to get a driver’s license reinstated or restricted and can appear in court on behalf of a client to resolve the case successfully.
- Elder Abuse–if the alleged victim of the crime is above a certain age, a person may be subject to increased penalties that we can help you try to avoid.
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