Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Re: countersuit

In order to sue someone for falsely accusing you of a crime, you have to avoid a conviction. Some defense attorneys do civil work and some don't. I do both.

Even if you avoid the conviction, besides suing to get your legal fees back, you first would be well advised to also seek a court order finding you "factually innocent" of the charge, or the arrest record will follow you forever. If you sue the false accuser, you could then include that cost in your damages.

If you are in the San Francisco Bay Area, I could help with that, as it is a specialty of mine. As to the lawsuit, it depends on the facts and on whether the accuser is likely to be able to pay a judgment even if you get it. We could discuss that too. You are welcome to give me a call for a free consultation to see if I can help you.

Re: countersuit

Whom do you want to sue? The prosecutors? Forget about it. You also can't sue your accuser, since making a police report is privileged. If he knowingly made a false police report, all you can do is press the prosecutors to go after him for it. Of course, unless and until they drop the charges against you, they won't believe the report was false.