Recent Blog Posts in 2010

In a Los Angeles Superior Court, Robert Michael O'Ryan was charged with one felony count each of stalking and commercial burglary, along with two misdemeanor counts of carrying a loaded firearm in a vehicle.  O'Ryan had driven from Florida to Los Angeles while Shawn Johnson was on Dancing with the Stars in hopes of being able to meet and marry the Olympic gold medal winner.  He was arrested when he tried to jump over a fence at CBS Studios and authorities found a loaded shotgun, knife, and sharpening stone in the suspect's vehicle, along with a wooden club, duct tape, 22 zip ties, a bulletproof vest and love letters to Shawn Johnson.

Judge Pastor found O'Ryan guilty on all counts, however, after considering the evaluations of two psychiatrists, he ruled that O'Ryan was legally insane at the time of his arrest last March.  If found sane, O'Ryan faced up to six years in prison, a sentence he will likely serve in a state mental hospital.

If you or someone you know has been charged with stalking, burglary, or concealed weapons, contact Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Robert M. Bernstein for a free consultation today.

On March 29, 2009, two USC students, Adrianna Bachan and Marcus Garfinkle, were walking home from a fraternity party when they were struck by a vehicle that failed to stop at a red light at a crosswalk.  Bachan, 18, died from massive head injuries. Garfinkle was carried about 300 feet down the street on the hood of the car but survived with multiple injuries, including two broken legs.  A student who witnessed the crash testified at a court hearing last year that he saw the car's passenger haul Garfinkle's body out of the vehicle's broken windshield while the driver pushed from the inside.  The passenger then dumped Garfinkle onto the sidewalk before the car sped off.

An anonymous tip led to the arrests of Claudia Cabrera, who was driving the car and her husband, Josue Luna, who was the passenger that evening.  Their 7-month-old baby was in the backseat of the vehicle as well.  Cabrera, 31, fled because she had been drinking earlier in the evening and had also had her driver's license suspended and a lawsuit filed against her following a previous collision where she had stopped. 

When Cabrera was arrested she tried to blame the accident on her husband, who was in Mexico at the time.  The authorities found that the pair allegedly tried to cover up the crash by getting the car's windshield fixed before having the vehicle towed to Tijuana, Mexico.  Luna was arrested as he was coming back into the United States about two weeks later but the vehicle was never recovered.

Both plead no contest in March to a felony charge of hit-and-and run resulting in great bodily injury.  Cabrera also plead no contest to a misdemeanor count of vehicular manslaughter.  Judge Robert J. Perry issued a sentence of eight years in prison for Claudia Cabrera, the driver, and seven years for Josue Luna, who was riding in the front passenger seat.

If you or someone you know has been charged with Vehicular Manslaughter or Hit-and-Run, contact Robert M. Bernstein for a free consultation today.

23-year-old Kainat Syeda allegedly stole money from the city of Anaheim from January 2006 to April 2009, while working as a uniformed cadet in the front lobby traffic bureau window of the Anaheim Police Department.  When people paid cash for the release of their impounded vehicles, Syeda would enter a "No Sale" in the cash register and take the payment instead.  She is accused of committing the act about 1,799 times, resulting in a loss of $225,000 for the city of Anaheim.

Syeda is charged with one felony count of the misappropriation of public funds, four felony counts of falsifying and altering records maintained at a public office and 40 felony counts of Grand Theft.  She also faces sentencing enhancements and allegations for theft exceeding $100,000 and property loss over $200,000.  If convicted on all counts, she faces a maximum sentence of up to 46 years in state prison.

If you or someone you know has been charged with Grand Theft, embezzlement or misappropriation of funds contact Robert M. Bernstein for a free consultation today.

Federal prosecutors announced that they had broken up a major online international child pornography ring that at its peak had more than 1,000 members trading millions of sexually explicit images.  The investigation was kept secret for years in order to avoid tipping off suspects. 

Investigators were able to infiltrate the ring after taking over the online profile of a member who was arrested in Alabama as part of a separate case.  More than 50 people have been arrested in several states since the 2008 start of the investigation.  Prosecutors said 35 ring members have been convicted of various child pornography distribution charges. Some of them have received sentences of up to 20 years in prison.

Besides Indiana and Louisiana, suspects came from California, Alaska, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Maryland, Michigan, Virginia and Florida.  The government is also working with police in several countries, including France, Germany and England, to investigate other suspects. Investigators also believe the group had members in Asia, Africa and South America.

The U.S. is working to extradite the group's alleged ringleader, Delwin Savigar, who is serving a 14-year prison term in England for sexually assaulting three underage girls.  Savigar created and ran a password-protected website from which members could access collections of sexual images - some including as many as a million files - share their fantasies about having sex with children and give advice to each other about how to build their collections and avoid getting caught.

If you are under investigation or have been charged with possession of child pornography in either state or federal court contact criminal defense attorney Robert M. Bernstein for a free consultaion.

Food Network's former Calorie Commando host, Juan-Carlos Cruz, was arrested last Thursday for hiring homeless men to murder his wife, attorney Jennifer Campbell. 

Cruz allegedly approached three homeless men in Santa Monica and offered them $1,000.00 to commit homicide for him.  Cruz gave the men ten $100.00 bills that had been ripped in half, saying he'd give the other halves of the bills when the job was finished.  Cruz also gave them a cell phone, which has texts from Cruz saying that he has backup hit men lined up if the three of them were to back out. 

The three men informed the city's homeless liaison officers of the solicitation, giving a detailed description of how, where and when the homicide was to take place.  Investigators launched a weeklong undercover operation in which one of the homeless men, nicknamed Big Dave, agreed to wear a wire while speaking with Cruz regarding the hit.  The investigation ended with Cruz's arrest in a Cheviot Hills dog park on Thursday.

Cruz has been charged with two felony counts including one count of attempted murder and one count of solicitation to commit murder.  He has plead not guilty to both counts and will be back in court on June 23 for the preliminary hearing.  His bail has been set at $2 million.

President Barack Obama nominated Solicitor General Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court last Monday to replace liberal retiring Justice John Paul Stevens. At 50, Kagan would be the court's youngest justice and give it three female members for the first time.  If confirmed by the Senate, she would become only the fourth female justice in history.

Kagan would be the first justice without judicial experience in almost 40 years. The last two were William H. Rehnquist and Lewis F. Powell Jr., both of whom joined the court in 1972.  Currently, the other justices all served previously as federal appeals court judges.  Kagan was named to a federal appeals court by President Bill Clinton, but the Senate never brought that nomination to a vote. This means that Kagan has a smaller paper trail than other recent nominees since there are no prior decisions to scrutinize.

Kagan holds a bachelor's degree from Princeton, a master's degree from Oxford and a law degree from Harvard.  She was the first female dean of Harvard Law School and the first woman to serve as the top Supreme Court lawyer for any administration. Kagan has clerked for Thurgood Marshall and worked for Bill Clinton. In her current job, Kagan represents the U.S. government and defends acts of Congress before the Supreme Court and decides when to appeal lower court rulings.  

Last year on Oct. 12, Oscar-winning actor, Sean Penn, attacked a photographer on a residential street in Brentwood, California. The actor was caught on video, which showed him breaking the photographer's camera and kicking him in the legs.

Initially, Penn was charged with battery and vandalism and was facing a maximum of 18 months behind bars if convicted.  Penn's Los Angeles criminal defense attorney was able to establish a plea deal with prosecutors and end the battery case against him.  On Wednesday, May 12, 2010 the actor pleaded no contest to a vandalism charge as part of the plea deal.

Penn has been sentenced to 36 months of probation and 300 hours of community service. He will also have to undergo 36 hours of anger management classes and stay at least 100 yards away from the victim, Jordan Dawes.

If the actor successfully completes all of the terms of his sentence, he will be able to reduce his criminal charge of vandalism to disturbance of the peace, which is considered a less severe crime.

If you or someone you know has been charged with Battery or Vandalism, contact Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Robert M. Bernstein today.

Los Angeles Police arrested 63-year-old Calixto Marcellana Nitro in connection with six sexual assaults in Westwood near the UCLA campus, spanning from March 8 through April 7.  Nitro was allegedly caught just as he was about to strike again and arrested immediately. Police Officers observed Nitro reach out and touch someone and took him into custody without incident.

Nitro was booked on one misdemeanor count of sexual battery and was released on his own recognizance. He is due in court on May 12. Between now and then investigators will be working on connecting him to the six previous sexual attacks which occurred on or near the UCLA campus.

If you or someone you know has been charged with a sex crime, contact Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Robert M. Bernstein today.

A Westminster, CA Police Detective, Anthony Orban, and a CA Corrections Officer, Jeff Jelinek, have been charged in the alleged rape and kidnapping of a 25-year-old female restaurant worker.

The victim was walking to her car in the parking lot of Ontario Mills Mall when she was confronted by the two men.  Jelinek stood by as Orban allegedly got into her car, pointed a gun at her and forced her to drive to a commercial complex in Fontana, where he raped her in the parking lot.  The woman managed to escape after about two hours and contacted police.  Orban had left his service revolver in the victim's car, allowing authorities to connect him to the crime.

In the felony complaint, Orban is charged with kidnapping, rape, forced oral copulation, penetration with a foreign object, forced sodomy and making criminal threats.  Jelinek is charged with kidnapping, rape, and being an accessory after the fact.  Even though Jelinek did not rape the woman, his actions aided the crime, and he can therefore be charged.  If convicted, both men face 25 years to life in prison on the rape charge alone.  

If you or someone you know has been charged with a sex crime, contact Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Robert M. Bernstein for a free consultation today.

A Hollywood personal trainer who has worked with many celebrities, 49-year-old Gregory Isaacs, was arrested by the Los Angeles Police Department for the sexual assault of a 27-year-old female.  Isaacs had been employed at the gym in the victim's apartment complex.  Isaacs is a well known professional trainer who facilitates weekend training retreats and trains actors to prepare them for acting roles.   The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office has filed felony charges against Gregory Isaacs and he is currently released on bail.

If you or someone you know has been charged with sexual assault, rape, or sexual battery contact Los Angeles Defense Attorney Robert M. Bernstein for a free consultation today.

Attorney Robert M. Bernstein was hired to defend Danny Delgadillo. Delgadillo was charged with several drug offenses, including possession of cocaine for sale, possession of methamphetamine for sale, and possession of marijuana for sale. Because Delgadillo was arrested the previous year after being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, he stood to face 16 years in prison if found guilty.

After a two-week jury trial, Delgadillo was acquitted of all charges, and was found not guilty of each offense.

If you have been arrested for your alleged involvement in a drug crime, it's important to ensure your charges are aggressively defended. Los Angeles criminal defense attorney Robert M. Bernstein has been defending clients against both felony and misdemeanor charges for over two decades. You can trust Mr. Bernstein to vigorously fight your charges and provide you with the dedicated defense representation you need during this unsettling time.

Contact the Law Offices of Robert M. Bernstein today if you are looking for an experienced, dedicated, and driven criminal lawyer to defend your case.

Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Robert M. Bernstein was hired to defend a client, David Brown, who had been charged with seven counts of armed robbery. Brown was accused of robbing medical marijuana dispensaries throughout Los Angeles several times. If he had been found guilty of the charges, he would have faced up to 20 years in state prison, in addition to a number of other penalties, such as probation, drug counseling, large fines, license suspension and more.

Mr. Bernstein argued that Brown has been misidentified, and that he was not involved in the robberies. He was able to effectively argue this point even though there were several witnesses and a video tape of the alleged robbery. Knowing that incorrect eyewitness identification is one of the leading causes of wrongful convictions in the U.S., Mr. Bernstein made sure to argue this point.

After a two-week jury trial in Los Angeles County Superior Court, Mr. Brown was acquitted on all charges. He was found not guilty of all seven counts of armed robbery.

If you have been arrested or charged with armed robbery or another theft crime in the L.A. area, consider contacting Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer Robert M. Bernstein. Mr. Bernstein has extensive criminal defense experience, and is prepared to work diligently on your behalf to help you overcome your charges!

Pop star, Natalie Mejia, of the girl band called Girlicious, was arrested and charged with a felony count of possession of cocaine with intent to sell.  Her driver was pulled over for speeding and after police found that he was driving on a suspended license, they performed a vehicle search which revealed over a dozen plastic bags of cocaine in Mejia's purse. 

Mejia has stated that she did not know the drugs were in her purse and does not know how they got there.  She was released on $30,000.00 bail and is ordered to appear in court on April 15^th.

If convicted, Mejia could receive 3 - 5 years in state prison.  Penalties for possession with intent to sell can be greater if the accused is a repeat offender, was caught selling drugs to a minor, or the transaction occurred in a certain public area such as a school, church, synagogue, daycare, or youth center.

A former teacher at David Starr Jordan Middle School in Burbank who admitted that she had sex with a 14-year-old, pleaded no contest on Thursday to charges of unlawful sex with a minor.

Amy Beck now faces up to two years in state prison as part of her plea deal.  She'll also have to register as a sex offender because of the unlawful sex with a minor conviction. Ms. Beck was originally charged with four counts of unlawful sex with a minor and one count of oral copulation with a minor, yet all but one of these charges were dropped through the plea deal.

The former middle school teacher turned herself into the Burbank Police earlier this month for allegedly having sex with one of her students.  She is expected to return to the Superior Court on May 7 for her sentencing.

If you or someone you know has been charged with a sex crime, contact Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Robert M. Bernstein today.

On March 6, 2009, Santa Monica Firefighters were called to put out a vehicle engulfed in flames on 9 ^th Street.  Once the flames had been extinguished, officers found a gas can in the car and a lighter just a few yards away and concluded the incident to be an act of arson. 

In May of 2009, detectives arrested the vehicle’s owner, Sidney Porter of Santa Monica, due to fingerprints found at the scene and cell phone records revealing he was just leaving Santa Monica at the time the fire.  The cell phone records proved that Porter’s statements regarding his location at the time of the fire were false.  Sidney Porter had set his2006 Dodge Magnum on fire in an attempt to commit insurance fraud.  In January of 2010, Porter was convicted on one count of  arson and sentenced to three years in state prison.

If you, or someone you know has been charged with  Arson or Insurance Fraud,  contact Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Robert M. Bernstein for a free consultation today.

United States District Judge Cormac J. Carney dismissed all charges against Broadcom Corp.'s former Chief Financial Officer William J. Ruehle, who was charged with 14 counts of Fraud, Conspiracy, falsifying Broadcom's books and lying to securities regulators, based on the Judge's finding that that there had been prosecutorial misconduct in the case.

Federal prosecutors allege that Ruehle conspired with the Irvine chip company's co-founders, Henry Samueli and Henry T. Nicholas III, to backdate employee stock options -- making them more valuable -- without disclosing the compensation in regulatory filings.

The judge acquitted Ruehle after determining that prosecutors tried to influence the testimony of three key witnesses, improperly contacted witnesses' attorneys and leaked information about grand jury proceedings to the media.

Judge Carney also dismissed the government's narcotics case against Broadcom's co-founder and CEO, Henry T. Nicholas. It was alleged that Nicholas hired prostitutes for himself and customers, drugged business associates, kept a warehouse to store illicit drugs and distributed cocaine, methamphetamine and ecstasy to his clients, co-workers and friends. The indictment stated that in 2001, Nicholas smoked so much marijuana on his private jet that his pilot was forced to don an oxygen mask.

Tatiana Khan, the 69-year-old owner of Chateau Allegre gallery on La Cienega Boulevard, has been accused of allegedly hiring an artist to draw a copy of a 1902 pastel drawing by Picasso called "The Woman in the Blue Hat."

Kahn then advertised that the copy was the original Picasso from the estate of Malcom Forbes and sold the painting to an art prospector for $2 million. The FBI began investigating last year after the buyer learned that the painting was a fake. Khan told the artist of the copy not to disclose any information about the fake Picasso.

Kahn was charged this week in the United States District Court with several Federal crimes including; wire fraud, making false statements to the FBI and witness tampering. While serving the summons, the FBI also seized a painting by Willem de Kooining, which they believe was purchased by Kahn with $720,000 of the proceeds from the sale of the fake Picasso. If she is convicted of all charges, she faces up to 45 years in Federal prison.

If you or someone you know has been charged with a Federal Crime such as wire fraud, false statements to authorities or witness tampering, contact Los Angeles Criminal Defense Lawyer Robert M. Bernstein as soon as possible. As a former prosecutor, Attorney Bernstein knows both sides of the courtroom and uses this knowledge to create winning defense strategies. Call for a free consultation today.

Christopher Thompson, a 60-year-old physician, was arrested on July 4, 2008 after driving his car in front of two bicyclists and slamming on his brakes; causing one to break his teeth and nose on Thompson's car, and leaving the other with a separated shoulder after hitting the sidewalk. According to police reports, Thompson had stated that he had caused the accident in order to "teach them a lesson."

In November of 2009, Thompson was convicted in Los Angeles Superior Court of several felony charges including reckless driving, assault with a deadly weapon, battery and mayhem. The Judge noted that Thompson had not shown sufficient remorse for his act of violence throughout the trial. He subsequently sentenced Thompson to 5 years in prison.

If you or someone you know has been charged with Assault, Battery or Mayhem, contact Robert M. Bernstein today. Attorney Bernstein and his staff will thoroughly review the circumstances of your arrest to determine exactly how to best defend your case. Call for a free consultation today.

A 20-year-old man from Yorba Linda has been charged with raping three women - two of whom he had met on MySpace. Jason Erpinar allegedly invited an 18-year-old MySpace "friend" to a party where he raped her in a bathroom after she became too intoxicated to resist. Three weeks later he met another 22-year-old MySpace "friend" at a Newport Beach motel. She was also raped by Erpinar once she was too intoxicated to defend herself and woke up to find scratches on her face as well as a chipped tooth. The third victim is Erpinar's ex-girlfriend who came forward as a result of the investigation, and claims he raped her several times throughout the course of their relationship.

Erpinar is charged with two counts of using drugs to commit rape and one count of forcible rape, with a sentencing enhancement for sex crimes against multiple victims. If convicted of all charges, Erpinar faces a 45-year-to-life prison term. He is currently being held at the Orange County jail on $1 Million bail.

Don't let a conviction for a sex crime ruin your life and destroy your future. If you, or someone you know has been arrested　or is under investigation for a sex crime,　Contact Los Angeles sex crimes defense lawyer Robert Bernstein for a free consultation. As a former prosecutor, Attorney Bernstein has the experience with both sides of the criminal process to provide you with most effective, aggressive representation　in all aspects of your criminal case.