Robbery

Robbery (PC 211):

Penal Code 211 defines “Robbery” in the state of California as: taking the personal property that is in the possession of another person, from their immediate presence, against their will, or through the use of force and/or fear (for example, wearing masks and wielding guns). However, the crime can also be committed in less obvious ways such as: breaking into a home with residents inside, then threatening them with physical harm before stealing their property, or drugging someone then stealing their personal property.

Penalties (PC 211):

First degree robbery can land you in state prison for 3 to 9 years. Second degree robbery is punishable by 2 to 5 years in state prison.

Legal Defenses (PC 211):

In order to defend a person charged with robbery, it must be proven by the defense that there was no force or fear is taking the property that you felt a right to take the property, that you are a victim of mistaken identity and that you were falsely accused.

Legal Definitions

211. Robbery is the felonious taking of personal property in the
possession of another, from his person or immediate presence, and
against his will, accomplished by means of force or fear.

212. The fear mentioned in Section 211 may be either:
1. The fear of an unlawful injury to the person or property of the
person robbed, or of any relative of his or member of his family;
or,
2. The fear of an immediate and unlawful injury to the person or
property of anyone in the company of the person robbed at the time of
the robbery.

212.5. (a) Every robbery of any person who is performing his or her
duties as an operator of any bus, taxicab, cable car, streetcar,
trackless trolley, or other vehicle, including a vehicle operated on
stationary rails or on a track or rail suspended in the air, and used
for the transportation of persons for hire, every robbery of any
passenger which is perpetrated on any of these vehicles, and every
robbery which is perpetrated in an inhabited dwelling house, a vessel
as defined in Section 21 of the Harbors and Navigation Code which is
inhabited and designed for habitation, an inhabited floating home as
defined in subdivision (d) of Section 18075.55 of the Health and
Safety Code, a trailer coach as defined in the Vehicle Code which is
inhabited, or the inhabited portion of any other building is robbery
of the first degree.
(b) Every robbery of any person while using an automated teller
machine or immediately after the person has used an automated teller
machine and is in the vicinity of the automated teller machine is
robbery of the first degree.
(c) All kinds of robbery other than those listed in subdivisions
(a) and (b) are of the second degree.

213. (a) Robbery is punishable as follows:
(1) Robbery of the first degree is punishable as follows:
(A) If the defendant, voluntarily acting in concert with two or
more other persons, commits the robbery within an inhabited dwelling
house, a vessel as defined in Section 21 of the Harbors and
Navigation Code, which is inhabited and designed for habitation, an
inhabited floating home as defined in subdivision (d) of Section
18075.55 of the Health and Safety Code, a trailer coach as defined in
the Vehicle Code, which is inhabited, or the inhabited portion of
any other building, by imprisonment in the state prison for three,
six, or nine years.
(B) In all cases other than that specified in subparagraph (A), by
imprisonment in the state prison for three, four, or six years.
(2) Robbery of the second degree is punishable by imprisonment in
the state prison for two, three, or five years.
(b) Notwithstanding Section 664, attempted robbery in violation of
paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) is punishable by imprisonment in
the state prison.

214. Every person who goes upon or boards any railroad train, car
or engine, with the intention of robbing any passenger or other
person on such train, car or engine, of any personal property thereon
in the possession or care or under the control of any such passenger
or other person, or who interferes in any manner with any switch,
rail, sleeper, viaduct, culvert, embankment, structure or appliance
pertaining to or connected with any railroad, or places any dynamite
or other explosive substance or material upon or near the track of
any railroad, or who sets fire to any railroad bridge or trestle, or
who shows, masks, extinguishes or alters any light or other signal,
or exhibits or compels any other person to exhibit any false light or
signal, or who stops any such train, car or engine, or slackens the
speed thereof, or who compels or attempts to compel any person in
charge or control thereof to stop any such train, car or engine, or
slacken the speed thereof, with the intention of robbing any
passenger or other person on such train, car or engine, of any
personal property thereon in the possession or charge or under the
control of any such passenger or other person, is guilty of a felony.

215. (a) “Carjacking” is the felonious taking of a motor vehicle in
the possession of another, from his or her person or immediate
presence, or from the person or immediate presence of a passenger of
the motor vehicle, against his or her will and with the intent to
either permanently or temporarily deprive the person in possession of
the motor vehicle of his or her possession, accomplished by means of
force or fear.
(b) Carjacking is punishable by imprisonment in the state prison
for a term of three, five, or nine years.
(c) This section shall not be construed to supersede or affect
Section 211. A person may be charged with a violation of this section
and Section 211. However, no defendant may be punished under this
section and Section 211 for the same act which constitutes a
violation of both this section and Section 211.

May 5, 2015May 7, 2015

Disturbing the Peace

Disturbing the Peace (PC 415):

Several ways a person can violate California’s “disturbing the peace” law is by: Unlawfully fighting, or challenging another in a fight, in a public place, willfully and maliciously disturbing the peace by loud and unreasonable noise, and/or using offensive words in public so as to provoke violence.

Penalties (PC 415):

Depending on the circumstances of the case, the prosecutor may charge PC 415 as a misdemeanor or a less-serious infraction. In more serious cases, a person may serve up to 90 days in county jail and/or pay fines up to $400.

Legal Defenses (PC 415):

It is often difficult for prosecutors to prove that a person violated California’s “disturbing the peace” statute, making it easier for our criminal defense attorneys to help you avoid a conviction.

Under California Penal Code 415, it is illegal for a person to do any of the following:

Unlawfully fight in a public place or challenge another person in a public place to fight;
Maliciously and willfully disturb another person by loud and unreasonable noise; or
Use offensive words in a public place which are inherently likely to provoke an immediate, violent reaction.

Actions that can result in a disturbing the peace charge include challenging another person to a physical fight in a bar, playing music at a high volume to disturb your neighbors and repeatedly using racial or ethnic slurs in a verbal confrontation.

May 5, 2015May 7, 2015

Grand Theft

Grand Theft (PC 487):

In California, the crime of theft is defined as the unlawful taking of someone else’s property. It is considered grand theft under Penal Code 487 if the property is valued over $950. If convicted of grand theft, you may face many repercussions to your professional and personal life. Examples of grand theft include (but are not limited to): shoplifting an item valued higher than $950, embezzling money in great amounts from an employer, or breaking into a home to steal personal items worth thousands of dollars.

Penalties (PC 488):

This is considered a “wobbler”, meaning the prosecutor has the discretion to charge a person with a misdemeanor or felony. A misdemeanor charge carries up to one year in county jail. For felony grand theft, you may be sentenced up to three years of incarceration.

Legal Defenses (PC 488):

In a typical grand theft case, our attorneys will strive to prove several factors: that you did not intend to steal, you took the alleged stolen property because it actually belongs to you, and the person who the item was taken from gave you consent to do so, and/or that you are falsely accused of a crime you did not intend to commit.

California

“Grand theft is committed when the value of stolen property exceeds $950. Theft is also considered grand theft when more than $250 in crops or marine life-forms are stolen, “when the property is taken from the person of another,” or when the property stolen is an automobile, farm animal, or firearm. There are a number of criminal statutes in the California Penal Code defining grand theft in different amounts. Most common amount is $950.00.” –wikipedia

May 5, 2015May 7, 2015

Gang Related Crimes/Gang Enhancements

Gang-Related Violence/Gang Enhancements (PC 186.22):

Penal Code 186.22(a) is the crime of participation in a gang and Penal Code 186.22(b) is defined as the gang sentencing enhancement. The second part (b) is an actual sentence enhancement (an addition to the penalty) for anyone who commits a felony for the benefit of the crew. The first part of the law makes it illegal for anyone to participate in a street crew and/or assist in any felony criminal conduct.

California law punishes crew members on a grand scale and much more harshly than those people who have no gang ties; Penal Code 186.22 is part of the “STEP Act” (California Street Terrorism Enforcement and Prevention Act), which punishes gang members, and those who associate with gang members. In order to be convicted under Penal Code 186.22(a), these three elements of the crime must exist: that you actively participated in a criminal street gang, you know of the gang’s criminal activity and the members engaged in it, and you willfully assisted/promoted felonious criminal conduct by gang members.

Penalties (PC 186.22):

The participation in a criminal street gang (PC 186.22(a)) is a wobbler in California law; the prosecutor decides whether to charge you with a felony or misdemeanor. The maximum sentence you can receive if convicted under 186.22(a) PC is 1 year in county jail and/or fines up to $1,000.

If you are convicted of a felony, you may face 16 months to 2 years in the California State Prison. Penal Code 186.22(b) sets forth the actual California criminal gang sentencing enhancement. Assuming that the prosecutor can prove all the “elements” of the sentencing enhancement, a PC 186.22(b) conviction could mean anywhere from 2 to 15 years, or even 25 years-to-life, in prison.

Legal Defenses (PC 186.22):

Potential legal defenses that can be used against a Penal Code 186.22 PC charge include (but are not limited to): arguing that you did not commit the underlying felony, that you are not an “active participant” in a criminal street gang, that you were not acting for the benefit of the crew, and/or arguing that the gang sentencing enhancement would go against “the interests of justice.”

May 5, 2015May 7, 2015

Resisting Arrest

Resisting Arrest (PC 148(a)(1)):

California Penal Code 148(a)(1) describes the crime most commonly referred to as “resisting arrest.” In California, “resisting arrest” law prohibits you from willfully obstructing, delaying or resisting a law enforcement officer or emergency medical technician (EMT) while he/she is performing his/her duties.

Penalties (PC 148):

Resisting arrest in California is a misdemeanor. You can receive up to 1 year in county jail and/or a maximum $1,000 fine.

Legal Defenses (PC 148):

Having a Penal Code 148 PC conviction on your record could turn any future encounter with a police officer into a negative one. Potential legal defenses to resisting arrest charges include (but are not limited to): you were acting in self-defense, you were falsely accused and/or your arrest was wrongful and/or the police were engaged in police misconduct.

142. (a) Any peace officer who has the authority to receive or
arrest a person charged with a criminal offense and willfully refuses
to receive or arrest that person shall be punished by a fine not
exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or by imprisonment in a
county jail not exceeding one year, or pursuant to subdivision (h) of
Section 1170, or by both that fine and imprisonment.
(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), the sheriff may determine
whether any jail, institution, or facility under his or her direction
shall be designated as a reception, holding, or confinement
facility, or shall be used for several of those purposes, and may
designate the class of prisoners for which any facility shall be
used.
(c) This section shall not apply to arrests made pursuant to
Section 837.

145. Every public officer or other person, having arrested any
person upon a criminal charge, who willfully delays to take such
person before a magistrate having jurisdiction, to take his
examination, is guilty of a misdemeanor.

145.5. (a) (1) Subject to paragraph (2), notwithstanding any law to
the contrary, no agency of the State of California, no political
subdivision of this state, no employee of an agency, or a political
subdivision, of this state acting in his or her official capacity,
and no member of the California National Guard on official state duty
shall knowingly aid an agency of the armed forces of the United
States in any investigation, prosecution, or detention of a person
within California pursuant to (A) Sections 1021 and 1022 of the
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 (NDAA), (B)
the federal law known as the Authorization for Use of Military Force
(Public Law 107-40), enacted in 2001, or (C) any other federal law,
if the state agency, political subdivision, employee, or member of
the California National Guard would violate the United States
Constitution, the California Constitution, or any law of this state
by providing that aid.
(2) Paragraph (1) does not apply to participation by state or
local law enforcement or the California National Guard in a joint
task force, partnership, or other similar cooperative agreement with
federal law enforcement if that joint task force, partnership, or
similar cooperative agreement is not for the purpose of
investigating, prosecuting, or detaining any person pursuant to (A)
Sections 1021 and 1022 of the NDAA, (B) the federal law known as the
Authorization for Use of Military Force (Public Law 107-40), enacted
in 2001, or (C) any other federal law, if the state agency, political
subdivision, employee, or member of the California National Guard
would violate the United States Constitution, the California
Constitution, or any law of this state by providing that aid.
(b) It is the policy of this state to refuse to provide material
support for or to participate in any way with the implementation
within this state of any federal law that purports to authorize
indefinite detention of a person within California. Notwithstanding
any other law, no local law enforcement agency or local or municipal
government, or the employee of that agency or government acting in
his or her official capacity, shall knowingly use state funds or
funds allocated by the state to local entities on or after January 1,
2013, in whole or in part, to engage in any activity that aids an
agency of the armed forces of the United States in the detention of
any person within California for purposes of implementing Sections
1021 and 1022 of the NDAA or the federal law known as the
Authorization for Use of Military Force (Public Law 107-40), enacted
in 2001, if that activity would violate the United States
Constitution, the California Constitution, or any law of this state.