Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

My friend and I were at the corner liq.store when a sheriff stopped me.( I was walking into the store. )My tags were out of date on my truck. (I had just bought it and was waiting for my school $ to register it) he ran us and we were ok(no wants etc) we both have old drug charges. Mine are at least 10 years old.( I do however still associate with some people who haven't been able to stop.) My friend is one of them so when he handed a pipe to me saying hide it, I did. Not smart but there it is. Anyway, I didn't do it well and the sheriff found it. He started calling me names and was verbally abusive. He kept telling us we were high and we were pieces of scrap etc. Then he shook a little bag in front of me n said it was mine. All I had was a meth pipe! He impounded my truck overnight and took me to jail. This cost at least four hundred dollars.I bailed out, got my truck out, went to court n they said no charges were filled. Now there's a warrant out for me for transporting/etc of illegal substance! Same case #. They had a ex parte hearing. If I hadn't gone to the courthouse to ask a question about a ticket I wouldn't have known till too late. What do I do?


Asked on 4/22/14, 3:52 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys
Zadik Shapiro Law Offices of C. Zadik Shapiro

First,t get yourself an experienced criminal defense attorney Then have the attorney get you a court date. Do this ASAP. Otherwise you might he stopped for jay walking and get arrested on the warrant.

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Answered on 4/23/14, 5:56 am
Terry A. Nelson Nelson & Lawless

What do I do?

Defend the criminal charges, like any other defendant. At the earlier court hearing the DA hadn't filed charges YET. They have now. Sounds like you face at least 'possession' charges, with 'priors' or 'strikes'.

When charged with any crime, the proper questions are, can any evidence obtained in a test, search or statement be used against you, can you be convicted, and what can you do? No amount of free 'tips and hints' from here or elsewhere are going to effectively help in a legal defense. If you don't know how to represent yourself effectively against an experienced prosecutor intending to convict, then hire an attorney who does, who will defend you, try to get a dismissal, charge reduction, diversion, programs, or other decent outcome through motions, plea bargain, or take it to trial if appropriate.

Since you have a warrant outstanding, you risk arrest and being taken into custody at any time, until you get to court to deal with it.

If serious about hiring counsel to help in this, and if this is in SoCal courts, feel free to contact me. I�ll be happy to help fight and get the best outcome possible, using whatever defenses and sympathies there may be. I�ve been doing these cases for many years.

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Answered on 4/23/14, 2:02 pm


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