San Jose Criminal Defense Law Blog

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled at the end of June that it was unconstitutional to impose mandatory life sentences without the possibility of parole on juveniles convicted of murder. The justices said that mandatory life sentences are cruel and unusual punishment because they do not take into account extenuating circumstances around the crime or give the juvenile the chance to reform.

Children and teens are different than adults because their brains are still developing. The ruling by the Supreme Court does not say that judges cannot impose life sentences without parole on juveniles, but that these sentences cannot be mandatory. A judge can use his or her discretion in sentencing the juvenile following a murder conviction. Factors that could be taken into account include the juvenile's home environment and the possibility for rehabilitation.

As you celebrate Independence Day tomorrow, make sure to be safe and be aware that law enforcement will be on the look-out for aggressive and drunk drivers across Santa Clara County and all of California. To avoid being pulled over by police, obey the speed limit tomorrow and drive sober. Being convicted of a DUI can bring fines, probation and even jail time for repeat offenses.

In order to avoid aggressive driving, make sure to leave for your destination with plenty of time to get there and factor in road construction and heavy traffic delays to your expected travel time. In order to avoid distracted driving or using a cell phone while driving, put the cell phone in your glove compartment or in the back seat.

As discussed in the previous post, the amount of Americans who support legalizing marijuana use by adults or at least decriminalizing marijuana possession for personal use is on the rise. A recent Rasmussen Reports telephone poll found that three out of four Americans are in favor of using civil fines rather than criminal charges in punishing marijuana offenders. In addition, 74 percent of respondents said that they were in favor of alternative punishments to jail for marijuana possession.

A recent University of Southern California poll found that Californians are still slightly more opposed to rather than in favor of legalizing marijuana; 50 percent are opposed and 46 are in favor of legalizing marijuana use by adults.

A national movement has been underway to decriminalize recreational or medicinal marijuana use for adults in the U.S. In 2010, Proposition 19 failed to pass on the ballot in California. Proposition 19 would have made it legal for adults to purchase small amounts of marijuana for personal use and would have regulated the sale of the drug and taxed it. Some say that that was because it strayed too far into the rights of employers to create drug policies that prohibited marijuana use.

More and more Americans have been open to legalizing recreational marijuana use or at least decriminalizing it, according to a recent article in the Christian Science Monitor. Marijuana possession, growing, sales and distribution are still illegal federally, but pro-marijuana groups hope to eventually make marijuana possession by adults legal federally by winning marijuana legalization state by state until the federal government goes along.

The distribution and use of designer drugs has increased dramatically in
California and across the U.S. over the last two years. The use of drugs known as "bath salts" or synthetic marijuana have been reported to cause violent behavior, including the recent violent crime that involved a man reportedly high on bath salts eating the face of a homeless man.

Meanwhile, these synthetic copycat drugs can cause hallucinations and psychotic breaks as well as physical effects like high blood pressure, and calls to poison control centers rose from 303 in 2010 to more than 6,000 last year. For these reasons, federal lawmakers are trying to work quickly to ban the sale and use of the drugs.

The Food and Drug Safety Administration Safety and Innovation Act now includes a provision that will ban the substances most commonly found in synthetic marijuana and bath salts, including MDPV, mephedrone and possibly methylone. The bill has passed the Senate and is headed to the House for negotiation and possible approval.

As discussed in the previous post, federal lawmakers are working to more effectively ban the manufacture, distribution and use of designer drugs as reports of the use of these drugs has increased in California and around the U.S. The high associated with the "bath salts" designer drug and synthetic marijuana is reportedly most similar to meth.

Some people have experienced hallucinations and psychotic breaks as well as high blood pressure and rapid heart rate. Some people have also reportedly committed violent crimes while under the influence of the drug and teens have died or become extremely ill. For this reason, federal lawmakers want to outlaw the drugs.

The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) has brought charges against cyclist Lance Armstrong accusing him of doping in competitions. Armstrong is currently banned from competition as a result of the charges and will miss a triathlon in June. The USADA does not have the power to file criminal charges against athletes, but can ban them from competitions and strip them of titles. If found guilty, Armstrong could be stripped of his seven Tour de France titles.

The USADA accuses Armstrong of testing postive in 2009 and 2010 for using EPO and blood transfusions to enhance his bicycling performance. The USADA says that from 1998 to 2011 Armstrong and five associates, including three team doctors and a team manager participated in a doping conspiracy. U.S. attorneys in Los Angeles last February declined to pursue criminal charges against Armstrong after a two-year grand jury investigation.

Commerce Secretary John Bryson caused two car accidents in southern California over the weekend. Police are investigating the crashes and he could be charged with felony hit-and-run. The Commerce Department said yesterday that Bryson suffered a seizure, which is why he caused and left the scene of the accidents. He was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

It will be up to the district attorney's office to decide whether to charge him with hit-and-run after learning that the behavior was caused by the medical condition.