Los Angeles Criminal Attorney Blog

The largest antipiracy raid in Los Angeles history occurred this month, according to latimes.com.

The Los Angeles Police Department arrested 10 individuals and seized over $4 million worth of counterfeit goods. The raids began in November and ended on December 20. The raids were conducted by L.A.’s antipiracy task force. Dozens of officers from the LAPD, as well as investigators from private companies, were involved in the raids.

The counterfeit goods included CDs, DVDs of recently-released movies such as “Tron” and “The Tourist”, purses, sunglasses, and other goods. Much of the merchandise was seized from vendors and downtown flea markets. Gangs were said to be responsible for most of the piracy.

According to officials, counterfeit goods cost local area businesses over $5.2 billion each year in lost revenue, and $4.4 billion in lost wages. Since 2004, the LAPD’s antipiracy team has made 498 arrests and seized almost $100 million worth of illegal merchandise.

Counterfeiting is a serious crime. White collar crimes, such as counterfeiting and forgery, can be prosecuted by state or federal officials, or both. Penalties for such crimes usually include fines, restitution, and sometimes prison. Many individuals accused of a white collar crime are not aware of their legal rights, which may increase the chances of illegal search and seizure taking place as well as other rights violations.

If you are ever questioned in connection with a white collar crime, do not talk to officials or submit to any police questioning until you have talked with a Los Angeles criminal defense attorney. The attorneys at the Law Offices of Lawrence Wolf have been helping defendants navigate the criminal justice system for over 30 years. For a free consultation, call us today at 1-866-390-7373. Our aggressive lawyers will defend your rights and help you obtain a successful case outcome.

Over the past two years, the Los Angeles Police Department has almost finished testing over 6,000 untested rape kits, according to DailyNews.com.

For six years, the LAPD has been aware of the problem of the untested rape kits and has been struggling to keep up-to-date with testing the kits. However, no action was taken until advocacy groups and a former L.A. controller publicized the problem. The LAPD then began collecting funds to send the kits to private labs for testing, as well as hiring more crime analysts in spite of a hiring freeze. As a result, only 35 rape kits remain to be tested from the original 6,000.

However, once the kits have been tested, the work is not over. The LAPD then must review the results and send the DNA information to federal databases. The databases then search for a match through millions of profiles of individuals whose DNA is on file. The LAPD has received over 2,500 new kits since December 2008 that require testing, which is when they began working on testing the backlogged cases. Of those, almost 1,000 are untested. The LAPD believes the lab will be able to handle the new cases when the new analysts finish their training.

These untested rape kits could be very problematic. An individual could be convicted of a rape or sexual assault without the kit, be sent to prison and have their life turned upside down, only to later find out evidence existed the whole time that could have resulted in the case being dropped.

If you have been accused of a sex crime in Los Angeles, contact the Law Offices of Lawrence Wolf to speak with one of our California sex crime defense attorneys. In most cases, sex crimes in California are felonies, which can carry life-changing sentences and heavy penalties. Contact us today for a free consultation by calling 1-866-390-7373.

The city of Huntington Beach is considering posting the names of suspected drunk drivers on Facebook because its local newspaper quit publishing these instances and the names of those accused of drunk driving, according to NBCLosAngeles.com.

Last summer, Huntington Beach began a tough campaign against drunk driving, including an increased number of police officers focused on drunk drivers, posting names of those arrested for drunk driving, and sending letters to bars if one of their patrons was arrested for a DUI. Huntington Beach has one of the highest rates of arrests for DUIs for a city its size in the state of California. In 2009, the city had 274 collisions that were related to alcohol use, and 1,687 drunk driving arrests. The idea of posting names of those suspected of DUI was suggested at a city council meeting in November. The city’s attorney is currently looking into the issue to see if there are any legal barriers.

This story is an example of how damaging a drunk driving arrest can be to a person’s reputation, particularly to someone in a public position or a position of trust. Although there are many valid defenses to a charge of drunk driving, Huntington Beach’s policy doesn’t give individuals a chance to prove their innocence before publicizing their arrest to the community.

If you have been charged with a DUI in California, contact the experienced California DUI defense attorneys at the Law Offices of Lawrence Wolf. Our lawyers will work hard to formulate a successful defense on your behalf and help you navigate through the criminal justice system successfully. Call us today for a free consultation at 1-866-390-7373.

A violent robbery occurred at the Port of Los Angeles on Sunday, November 28. Investigators believe the robbery was conducted by an organized gang, reports The Los Angeles Times.

Allegedly, the incident began when a man posed as a lost driver and then asked a security guard for directions outside a cargo depot. The guard stepped outside his security booth, and two men reportedly struck him in the face. They then allegedly bound and gagged the security guard and another employee in an office. The employees were warned the men were armed and dangerous.

Then, several big rigs pulled into the yard and began hauling loaded trailers away from the depot. As of yet, the contents of the trailers have not been publicly disclosed. In addition, a big rig and two more trailers were stolen earlier that day, but it’s unclear if the two thefts are related. Afterwards, the security guard and the other employee were found and taken to an area hospital with minor injuries.

According to investigators, these types of robberies are often associated with organized gangs. More than $10 billion in merchandise is stolen by cargo thieves every year. For many years, the Los Angeles area has been a center of cargo crime.

Individuals who are charged with multiple criminal offenses, especially violent and theft related crimes face serious penalties if convicted. If you have been charged with a Los Angeles theft crime, you need a very skilled and aggressive attorney on your side. The Los Angeles theft criminal defense lawyers at the Law Offices of Lawrence Wolf have extensive experience in protecting the rights of individuals charged with a crime in California. Contact us today for a free consultation at 1-866-390-7373.