Riverside Criminal Defense Lawyer

• DUI charges. The penalties for driving under the influence in California depend on the number of prior DUI offenses a suspect has committed and whether their intoxicated driving resulted in injury and/or property damage. DUI offenses typically lead to fines, mandatory drug and alcohol counseling, driver’s license suspension, and jail time for severe offenses or multiple offenses. These penalties increase with subsequent offenses and may ultimately result in permanent revocation of a driver’s license and several years in prison.
• Drug crimes. Legal punishments for drug crimes typically hinge on multiple factors, such as the type of drug, the quantity the suspect possessed, and whether the drugs were being prepared for illegal sale. Drugs such as cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, and illegal hallucinogens can lead to substantial penalties including multiple years in prison and tens of thousands of dollars in fines.
• Juvenile criminal charges. Minors who commit crimes in California have very different experiences in the criminal justice system than adults charged with criminal offenses. California law allows children as young as 14 to face criminal charges as adults for very severe offenses. Minor juvenile criminal charges may sometimes qualify for expungement from permanent records after the juvenile reaches legal adult age and meets various other criteria. An Inland Empire criminal defense attorney can often help an individual in this situation remove a damaging record for a mistake made when they were a teenager, preventing the record from interfering with qualifying for potential educational opportunities, scholarships, and job prospects.
• Burglary, fraud and insurance fraud. Crimes of deception such as breaking and entering into private property with intent to commit a felony and various types of fraud may qualify as either misdemeanors or felonies under the California Penal Code. These offenses could lead to penalties including several years in prison and substantial fines.
• Violent crimes, including assault. The state of California takes violent criminal offenses very seriously. The stakes are especially high for those who have previous convictions for violent felonies, and the California Three Strikes Law may come into play. Violent crimes require very careful and thorough defense as they can lead to imprisonment for many years, or even life.
• Weapons charges. California has some of the strictest gun laws in the United States, and weapons charges are prosecuted aggressively in the Inland Empire. Your Inland Empire criminal defense attorney can potentially prove that your weapons charges resulted from a misunderstanding or violation of your Second Amendment rights when applicable. Your attorney can also help you navigate your other potential defense options to avoid jail time, loss of your right to bear arms, fines, and other penalties.
• Sex crimes. Sex-related offenses can have a dramatic impact on your future. Even if you are innocent, simply being arrested on suspicion of a sex offense can have an enormous impact on your personal and professional reputation. Sex offenses may also lead to penalties including jail time, probation, fines, restitution, and permanent listing on a publicly available sex offender registry.
• Domestic violence charges. An Inland Empire criminal defense lawyer can assist those facing complicated domestic violence charges, navigating any associated protective orders or orders for injunctive relief, gathering exculpatory evidence and witness statements when available, and ultimately helping an individual charged with domestic violence to plead their case more effectively in court.
• Murder charges. Taking another person’s life is one of the most serious offenses a person can face. There are few possible defenses available to you if you are facing murder charges in California, aside from self-defense, mental illness, or other extenuating circumstances. Your Inland Empire criminal defense lawyer can help build the best available defense to help you avoid very large fines, long-term incarceration, life in prison, or even the death penalty.

If you need legal representation in the face of these or any other criminal charges, your Inland Empire criminal defense lawyer will be an essential asset as you navigate the criminal justice system. At the Law Offices of Kathleen G. Alvarado, our experienced legal team will work diligently to explore every potential legal defense available to you when facing criminal charges. As a former Deputy District Attorney of San Bernardino County with more than 30 years of experience, Attorney Kathleen G. Alvarado has the prosecutorial experience to handle complex criminal defense cases covering a wide variety of offenses.

The Penal Code of California has undergone major changes in the last several years, and some crimes have been recategorized and assigned different types of punishments. Ultimately, the more severe the offense, the more substantial the punishment sentencing will be. Once the police conduct an arrest with probable cause, they will gather as much evidence as possible against the arrested individual to build a case against them. If you find yourself in this situation, you need to know your legal rights to protect yourself from unjust penalties.

A criminal conviction in the Inland Empire could result in a combination of fines, restitution, probation, and incarceration. Depending on the severity of the charges you face, you could face years of prison and tens of thousands of dollars in fines. The police will be building a case against you as quickly as possible, so you need to act quickly to start building your defense.

The laws of the United States allow every arrested individual the right to remain silent, and the right to an attorney when speaking with the police. The right to remain silent is a measure to protect oneself from self-incrimination. Saying the wrong thing at the wrong time can have dramatic implications for your criminal case, even if you know you are innocent. It is the duty of the criminal justice system to build a case against you and speaking up at the wrong time only helps them. Your right to an attorney ensures you have legal guidance during your interactions with the criminal justice system, and this is not a right you should take lightly.