More Than 500 Drivers Arrested Over Memorial Day Weekend

Police officer has pulled over a motorist and is using his flashlight to check the back seat.

More than 500 people were arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence in Los Angeles County over the busy Memorial Day weekend. According to a CBS Los Angelesnews report, 529 people were arrested for driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol countywide from Friday through Sunday. These arrests were made as part of the “Avoid the 100 Los Angeles County DUI Campaign.”

The DUI (driving under the influence) campaign that took place during Memorial Day weekend barely marks the beginning of summer DUI enforcement. Drivers in Los Angeles can expect to see increased DUI enforcement efforts this summer. If you are stopped for a DUI this summer, here are a few important DUI prevention tips to remember:

Remain polite and concise with your answers during the traffic stop.
Simply provide your name and insurance information without engaging in lengthy conversations about your recent activities.
Refuse a breath test or to take part in a field sobriety tests. You will be required under the law to take a blood test. Refusing a test at the station will result in additional criminal penalties including a lengthy license suspension.
Do not answer any questions without a DUI defense attorney present.
Do not admit fault without considering all of your legal options. It may be possible to have the charges dropped or your penalties reduced.
Call an experienced Los Angeles criminal defense attorney right away.

Torrance Worship Leader Faces New Molestation Charges

A 68-year-old worship leader from Torrance who has been recently charged with molesting a 10-year-old girl now faces additional charges. The Daily Breeze reports that a new investigation took place after a family member stepped forward with allegations. The new charges stemmed from an act that allegedly took place back in 2004 near Lomita Boulevard and Anza Avenue. The worship leader has pleaded not guilty to three counts of lewd acts with children and is scheduled to return to court June 5, 2013.

Molestation is defined as an act of unwanted and indecent advances for sexual gratification. The most serious molestation charges involve minors. Any form of physical contact of a sexual nature with a child is considered child molestation and the penalties for a conviction can be severe.

Avoiding DUI Arrests During the Summer Months

This summer, you can expect to see an increase in the number of patrol cars on the roadway. There is usually heightened DUI (driving under the influence) enforcement in Los Angeles County during the summer months. There will likely be saturation patrols in beach communities and an increased number of sobriety checkpoints in busy areas, especially near bars and restaurants. However, there are a number of ways in which you can avoid being arrested for a DUI.

First and foremost, it is vital to your own well-being that you do not get behind the wheel if you have been drinking. Depending on your body mass and food recently consumed, it may only take a couple of drinks to exceed the legal limit. California Vehicle Code Section 23152 (a) states that it is illegal to operate a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs.

Regulators Consider Lowering Drunk Driving Limit

A set of car keys in the foreground and glass of whiskey behind.

Under current law, it is illegal to drive with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of .08 percent or higher. The enforcement of this alcohol limit results in hundreds of thousands of arrests in California each year. For example, the California Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs reports that there were 203,866 DUI (driving under the influence) arrests made in California in the year 2007. During that same year, there were 42,736 DUI arrests in Los Angeles County alone. The number of DUI arrests could increase significantly if the alcohol limit is reduced to .05 percent.

According to The Los Angeles Times, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is calling for government incentives to encourage states to lower their drunk driving standard. They believe that a driver with a BAC above .05 percent has impaired abilities and is more likely to cause a fatal crash. Therefore, they recommend lowering the legal limit to help reduce the number of fatal DUI-related crashes.

Alcohol-related traffic fatalities have gone down since Bill Clinton signed legislation 13 years ago requiring states to enforce a .08 percent BAC or risk losing millions in federal highway funds. It is not clear, however, as to what type of cost the NTSB’s new recommendations will have. Their suggestion of lowering the legal limit will certainly prove costly for thousands of drivers in Los Angeles. They also want more high-visibility enforcement and an expanded use of ignition interlock devices to prevent impaired drivers from operating vehicles.

Los Angeles BAC LimitAccording to The Los Angeles Times, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is calling for government incentives to encourage states to lower their drunk driving standard. They believe that a driver with a BAC above .05 percent has impaired abilities and is more likely to cause a fatal crash. Therefore, they recommend lowering the legal limit to help reduce the number of fatal DUI-related crashes.

Palos Verdes Estates Man to Register as a Sex Offender

63-year-old Palos Verdes man will have to register as a sex offender and spend 90 days in jail for allegedly molesting teenage boys he invited to live in his Rolling Hills and Palos Verdes Estates homes. The Daily Breeze reports that he pleaded guilty in a Torrance court to misdemeanor counts of sexual battery by fraud and child molestation. He was charged with fondling two teenage boys who were allegedly thrown out of their homes. He allegedly groped the boys as they stayed in his house.

The victims, who are now young men, say that they did not come forward with the molestation accusations sooner because they needed a place to live. He was arrested after these allegations came to light. As part of his plea agreement, he will be placed on probation and forced to undergo sexual impulse counseling.

California Penal Code Section 288 makes it a crime to touch a child under the age of 14 for sexual purposes. Penalties for touching a child under 14 can result in up to eight years in a California state prison. If the minor was 16 or 17 years old, the case can be prosecuted as statutory rape, sexual battery, or as annoyance or molestation of a child under Penal Code Section 647.6.

Pharmacist Arrested in Chatsworth for Illegal Storage of Opiates

A 65-year-old Chatsworth pharmacist called the authorities to report a stolen handgun only to end up being under investigation for improperly giving away drugs. According to a Moorpark Acorn report, the authorities responded to the report of a stolen handgun on Ventura Way in Chatsworth. During their visit, officials were concerned about the amount of Schedule II and III opiates stored there.

The pharmacist had been storing prescription medication for a friend whose pharmacy was shut down years ago. He turned himself in for violating California Health and Safety Code for storing the medication in an unapproved manner and he may face additional charges pending the investigation. It is unclear if he will lose his job as a pharmacist.

There are many strict laws and regulations regarding when and how controlled substances are stored and distributed. If you are a medical professional in California, such as a pharmacist, nurse, or doctor, the concerned regulatory board can pursue disciplinary charges based on a criminal conviction. There have been cases, however, where professionals have lost their licenses even after they have successfully fought the charges or had their arrest expunged from their record.

How Do Search and Seizure Laws Affect Drug Crime Cases?

It is all too common for the war on drugs to take precedence over civil liberties and privacy rights. The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution places limits on the power of police officers to make arrests and conduct searches. If you have been arrested on drug charges in Los Angeles, it is important to understand your rights. If your rights were violated during a search or investigation, it may be possible to have evidence dismissed.

According to the Fourth Amendment, “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”

The Fourth Amendment protects individuals from unreasonable searches but it also allows search and seizures that are reasonable. The police may override your privacy concerns and search your person, home, office, or vehicle if:

There is probable cause to believe that they will find evidence that you committed a crime and a judge has issued a search warrant.
The particular circumstances justify the search without a warrant being issued.
You are aware of your rights and gave consent for the search.

Retired Officer Charged with Sex Crimes Against Minors

A 53-year-old retired California Highway Patrol (CHP) officer faces multiple sex crime charges after allegedly using a social networking site to contact children. According to The Daily Breeze, the Burbank man was arrested the morning of April 29. Officials say he allegedly identified himself as a teenage girl on Tagged.com to meet an 11-year-old boy and a 15-year-old girl. He was charged with two counts each of possession of child pornography, contact with a minor for sexual offense, and sending harmful matter to a minor. He retired from the CHP in 2012.

You do not have to make physical contact with a minor to face serious sex crime charges in California. For example, you can face misdemeanor or felony charges for “sexting” a minor, or for sending a minor harmful material with the intention of seducing him or her.

It is important to understand what type of material is considered harmful matter under California law. Under Penal Code Section 313 (a), “Harmful matter means matter, taken as a whole, which to the average person, applying contemporary statewide standards, appeals to the prurient interest, and is matter which, taken as a whole, depicts or describes in a patently offensive way sexual conduct and which, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors.”

Man Arrested in Burbank for Drug Possession

pills-17185160 A 36-year-old Los Angeles man was recently arrested on suspicion of using methamphetamine and possessing prescription drugs without a prescription. According to a news report in The Burbank Leader, the man was arrested in front of the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf in downtown Burbank.

Officials approached him because he was smoking, which is a municipal code violation. They say he acted nervously and admitted to using methamphetamine. He then allegedly consented to a search that resulted in the seizure of Norco and Vicodin. In addition to drug possession charges, he also faces identity theft charges because officials say they found someone else’s identification on him.

It is not only those who use illegal drugs who run the risk of being arrested on drug charges. Possessing any prescription drug without a proper prescription is a serious crime. It is common for individuals to face jail or prison time in California for possessing popular drugs such as Vicodin, Ritalin, Xanax, Methadone, Oxycontin, Hydrocodone, or Percodan.

Civil and Criminal Penalties for a DUI in Los Angeles

A DUI conviction in Los Angeles can result in a lengthy license suspension and increased insurance premiums. There are many other potential criminal and civil penalties that can result from a conviction as well. If you have been charged with driving under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol in Los Angeles, it is absolutely vital to your case that you contact an experienced DUI criminal defense attorney. You could be facing severe criminal penalties and devastating civil litigation from anyone who may have been affected by the incident.

Under California Vehicle Code 23152, it is illegal to drive with a blood alcohol level of .08 percent or greater. This offense is typically charged as a misdemeanor unless you have previously been convicted of a felony DUI. Penalties for a first-time conviction can include imprisonment, hefty fines and a license suspension.

Driving under the influence causing injury is a separate offense. Whenever a serious injury results from a DUI to someone other than the driver, the driver can face misdemeanor or felony charges under California Vehicle Code 23153. The severity of the penalties depends on the seriousness of the injuries suffered, the circumstances of the crash and the defendant’s driving record.