Cases we handle
Practice areas
Felony, misdemeanor, and federal matters across Stanislaus County.
DUI defense
A DUI arrest sets two cases in motion: a criminal case in Stanislaus County Superior Court, and a separate action against your license at the DMV. Each runs on its own track and its own timeline.
Learn moreDrug-crime defense
California prosecutes drug offenses under the Health & Safety Code. The same conduct can be charged as simple possession, possession for sale, transportation, or manufacturing — with very different consequences. The way the case is charged is often as important as whether the case can be won at trial.
Learn moreDomestic violence defense
Domestic-violence cases move fast at the front end. Within days of an arrest, a Criminal Protective Order (CPO) is usually in place, you may be barred from your own home, and decisions made at arraignment shape what the rest of the case looks like.
Learn moreAssault and battery defense
Assault and battery cases in California cover a wide spectrum — from a misdemeanor shoving match to a felony with a deadly-weapon allegation and great-bodily-injury enhancement that adds years. The labels matter: a charge under one Penal Code section can be a "strike" for life; the same conduct charged differently may not be.
Learn moreSex crime defense
Sex-crime cases are unlike any other category of criminal defense. The investigation typically begins long before an arrest. The decisions made during that quiet window — who's spoken to, what's said, what's preserved — often determine whether charges are filed at all.
Learn moreFederal criminal defense
A federal investigation is not a bigger version of a state case — it's a different system with different rules, different timelines, and very different consequences. If a federal agent has reached out, or if you've received a target letter, subpoena, or grand jury notice, the moment to engage counsel is now, not after charges are filed.
Learn moreHomicide defense
Homicide cases are the most consequential criminal cases there are, and they are won and lost on the work that happens long before trial — the investigation, the experts, the motions, and the jury work that begins at jury selection.
Learn moreWeapons charges
California has one of the country's most layered firearm regulatory schemes. The same conduct can be a misdemeanor for one person, a felony for another, and a federal case for a third — and all three can apply at once.
Learn moreWhite collar defense
White-collar cases unfold differently from street crimes. By the time a client realizes they are a target, investigators have usually been working on the case for months. There may be no arrest, no warrant, and no immediate court date — just a subpoena, a target letter, or a quiet phone call from an agent.
Learn moreTheft crime defense
California groups a wide range of conduct under "theft" — from a $40 shoplifting case under Prop 47 to a felony robbery with a firearm enhancement that carries decades of state-prison exposure. The line between charges is often more about the dollar amount, the location, and the presence of force than about what the client actually did.
Learn moreJuvenile defense
A juvenile case in California is not a small adult case. It runs in a separate court, on a separate calendar, under a separate code (the Welfare & Institutions Code), and with consequences that can reach well into adulthood — even when the case ends without a "conviction" in the criminal-court sense.
Learn moreProbation violations
A probation violation hearing is not a new criminal trial. The standard of proof is lower — preponderance of the evidence rather than beyond a reasonable doubt — and the rules of evidence are looser. Hearsay is admissible in many circumstances. The same conduct that wouldn't lead to a conviction at trial can still result in revocation.
Learn moreExpungements and record clearing
California's record-clearing law is broader than most clients realize. A criminal record is not a single document; it's a stack of records held by different agencies, each with its own rules for what gets reported and when. Several different statutory remedies apply to different parts of the stack. The right path is usually a combination, not a single filing.
Learn moreTalk to an attorney
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