Pursuant to Penal Code §2900.5, when two different sentences are imposed at the same time (concurrently) for unrelated crimes, a defendant is entitled to credit for the time spent in jail on each sentence assuming that the defendant is not also serving any type of sentence for a case that has already been adjudicated. Penal Code §2900.5 allows pre-sentence credit to be given in situations where the only reason a defendant is in jail is because there is a case pending. Santa Rosa criminal lawyers, Napa criminal lawyers and San Rafael criminal lawyers understand that the purpose of Penal Code §2900.5 is to ensure fairness between defendants who spend time in custody before their case is adjudicated and those who only spend time in custody once they have been sentenced.

In a recent case, People v. Kunath, 203 Cal.App.4th 906 (2012), the defendant was in custody on two separate cases. The defendant was not serving any time in jail for a case on which he had already been sentenced. As a result, the defendant in this case was entitled to full credit for the time spent in pre-sentence custody in both cases.

Sonoma County criminal defense lawyers, Napa criminal defense lawyers and San Rafael criminal defense lawyers should carefully handle clients who may be able to bail out of jail on one case, but not on the other. Considering the fact that a client can acquire credit for pre-sentence time in jail on both cases, it will do more harm than good to have a client bail out on one of two cases.

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Sonoma County criminal attorneys, Marin County criminal attorneys and Napa County criminal attorneys are gratified by the recent holding in People v. French (2012) 201 Cal.App.4th 1307 which held that the search warrant affidavit (which is basically the application for a search warrant) was insufficient to acquire a search warrant because it was based on statements from unreliable informants about other individuals selling drugs and this information was not based on personal information and, further, based on “corroboration” from a police officer that one of the alleged drug dealers had a history of narcotics offenses but did not include any specific information supporting that allegation.

As criminal attorneys in Santa Rosa, Marin and Napa know, the judge who issues a search warrant must decide whether the circumstances set forth in the application for the warrant include information supporting the truth and basis of the knowledge of the person supplying hearsay information to the extent that it shows a “fair probability” that certain contraband or evidence will be found at a particular place. The veracity of the information, its reliability and the basis for knowledge are all considered together with any other evidence that may be available to support a finding of probable cause.

In this particular case, the affidavit contained information that asserted that an informant was reliable but did not set forth any facts establishing the reliability. The affidavit also referred to a second informant whose information was reliable in the past but there were no details confirming that reliability and therefore that information was insufficient. At least one Sonoma County criminal lawyer has stated that this is truly a welcome decision.

In short, the court stated that corroboration of probative facts are important and without them there is no basis to conclude, in this particular case, that the informants’ allegations of drug dealings by the defendant were reliable. The court held that it would be illogical to come to the conclusion that multiple unreliable informants can corroborate each other to justify issuing a search warrant. Sonoma County criminal lawyers, Marin County criminal lawyers and Napa County criminal lawyers will be scrutinizing such warrant affidavits in the future for this type of information insufficiency.

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Pursuant to California law, under certain circumstances, you have the right to have your felony conviction expunged. However, before you apply for an expungement, you should investigate whether or not your felony conviction in California can be reduced to a misdemeanor. This process proceeds under California Penal Code §17(b)(3).

There are two basic requirements that must be met. First, the felony that you were either found guilty of or pled guilty to must be a “wobbler” which means the felony could have been charged as either a felony or a misdemeanor. To determine whether a particular crime is a wobbler, call us by clicking here.

Secondly, you must have been given a probationary sentence. Even if you had to do up to a year in county jail, your case can still possibly be reduced from a felony to a misdemeanor. You are not eligible for a reduction of a felony to a misdemeanor if you were sentenced to state prison. You may however, be eligible for a Certificate of Rehabilitation which will serve as an automatic request for a pardon from the Governor of the State of California. The process for applying for the reduction of a felony to a misdemeanor involves the filing a formal motion in the Superior Court in the county in which you were convicted. Even if you violated probation and had your probation reinstated which was ultimately successfully completed, although the judge has discretion to grant or deny the motion, in many cases the motion is successful.

The primary benefits of having a felony reduced to a misdemeanor is that it puts you in a position to start the process to restore your right to carry a firearm. You are also then in a legal position to say that you have never been convicted of a felony, for example, on employment applications. A felony reduced to a misdemeanor can also substantially increase your ability to get a job with an employer who, for a variety of reasons, does not hire convicted felons. You will also be eligible to apply for certain professional licenses such as becoming a stock broker, a real estate agent or broker, etc. Only a Santa Rosa criminal defense attorney, San Rafael criminal defense attorney, or Napa criminal defense attorney can effectively help you reduce felonies to misdemeanors in Sonona County, Marin County and Napa County.