California Criminal Lawyers Blog

A Santa Barbara doctor has been charged by federal authorities in connection with several drug-related overdoses in recent years, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Painkillers have become the new drug charge in Los Angeles. While medical marijuana in California is always going to be a hot topic and cocaine, heroin, methamphetamines and other drugs are still problematic in society, pain pills have become a larger issue of late.

Experienced Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Vincent Howard has seen the trends change over the years and has followed how pain medication, which can be obtainable by many different people, has become a target for abuse.

But not every person who is charged in these new drug cases is guilty. These are more complex than a person setting up a meeting and selling drugs to another person on a street corner. The dynamic has changed and so have the players. Yet, particularly since the death of Michael Jackson, the emphasis of law enforcement has led to unfair or unfounded allegations.

In these new cases, many of which are being handled by federal agents because they involved interstate commerce, there are scores of people involved and in order to show that there was some type of organized crime going on, authorities must prove all the people they charge knew of the scheme. The penalties levied by federal prosecutors can be more stringent than in state-level courts, yet Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Vincent Howard is qualified to practice law in both venues.

In this case, authorities are charging a 63-year-old doctor with trafficking pain pills that resulted in the deaths of a dozen people. Federal agents allege that this doctor prescribed addictive and powerful painkillers and other drugs to patients who had no real need for the medications.

While the doctor isn't being charged with the deaths, authorities laid out instances in a 75-page affidavit of cases where people died after getting drugs from the doctor. In one case, doctors at a local hospital began keeping a spreadsheet of patients who said they got their medications from the doctor.

Twelve people -- ranging in age from 26 to 58 -- died after overdosing from drugs they got from this doctor, the newspaper reports. One of them died of natural causes, though drug abuse was listed as a contributing factor. Others who didn't die, but who were admitted to the hospital, told officials they would do sexual favors in exchange for drugs.

While there has been outrage from family members of the deceased, even other medical professionals have spoken out against the doctor, going to the state's medical board after treating patients who had gotten medication from this doctor.

The doctor said in previous interviews with the newspaper that he has dealt with angry family members for years, but said he has tried to assist patients whom he felt were in need of help. He said he feared that patients would go to the street to get drugs if he didn't provide them prescriptions.

This is certainly a sad situation all the way around and one that Vincent Howard believes will take a long time to sort out. This is a complicated matter and one that will require searching through medical records and examining all the facts. In this case, the case may come down to whether a jury believes the doctor or the family members of the patients who died. If the drugs were necessary, than it may be a tough case to prove. There are high stakes either way and a strong defense will be necessary.

Continue reading "Doctor Accused in Los Angeles Pain Killer Overdose Case" »

In early September, the rapper T.I. and his new wife, singer Tiny, were pulled over on suspicion of intoxicated driving in Los Angeles. Our Riverside drug possession criminal defense lawyers became interested because police found pills on the couple, even though neither ended up being formally charged with a DUI. Instead, both were charged with felony drug possession. On Sept. 17, the New York Daily News reported that court documents from T.I.'s arrest show that he had codeine and marijuana on his person in addition to Ecstasy pills, and tested positive for opiates in a court-ordered drug test. T.I., whose birth name is Clifford Harris Jr., was subject to drug testing because he is on probation from a federal firearms conviction. His probation may be revoked at a hearing not yet scheduled, exposing him to more prison time than the seven months he originally served.

Police in Los Angeles pulled over T.I. and Tiny, whose birth name is Tameka Cottle, after seeing their luxury car make a U-turn on Sunset Boulevard. Officers claimed a strong odor of marijuana was coming from the vehicle and suspected that he was driving under the influence of drugs. However, there was no DUI arrest. Instead, news reports say, officers found pills on both T.I. and Tiny, and arrested them for felony drug possession. The next day, T.I. tested positive for opiates, a class of drugs that includes codeine. Unconfirmed reports said he may have been drinking cough syrup. It was not clear how the marijuana was found. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, T.I.'s hometown newspaper, said his probation officer cited the Ecstasy and the codeine as potential probation violations. A third potential violation was also cited: association with Cortez Thomas, a convicted felon. A federal judge will decide whether T.I. should serve more prison time, and if so, how much, at the future hearing.

This case is a good example of why our Laguna Beach drug possession criminal defense attorneys tell clients to stay squeaky clean when they are on probation. If convicted of a probation violation, T.I. will serve more prison time for the firearms conviction. This is entirely separate from any drug possession charges he might face, which could carry serious prison time if the amount of the drugs is large enough. If the arresting officers are telling the truth, the couple was pulled over only because of the smell of marijuana -- suggesting that their driving was fine otherwise and not a cause for concern. Nonetheless, an experienced criminal defense lawyer should look closely into whether the officers are telling the truth. The smell of marijuana is a subjective judgment and difficult to prove, making it a good excuse for officers who might have had less savory reasons to make the stop.

Continue reading "Court Documents Show Rapper T.I. Tested Positive for Drugs After DUI Arrest" »

A few months ago, our Murrieta medical marijuana criminal defense attorneys wrote about a man who is facing federal criminal charges for running a medical marijuana collective in Vista, in San Diego County. James Stacy is not accused of violating state medical marijuana laws. Rather, he is facing federal charges of conspiracy to cultivate and sell marijuana, actually growing marijuana and a firearms violation. At a hearing this week, SanDiego.com reported July 16, the judge in Stacy's case dealt a blow to the defense by ruling that Stacy can't use an argument of "entrapment by estoppel." In this case, that means he can't argue that he should have been safe because the Justice Department had already said it won't prosecute people who are in compliance with state law.

Stacy was one of two dispensary owners charged last fall after an undercover sting by the DEA. The other such person, Joseph Nunes, pleaded guilty and will serve a one-year prison sentence. Stacy was offered the same deal, the article said, but rejected it because he does not feel that he has done anything wrong under state law. In fact, the DEA agrees as far as state law goes, but medical marijuana remains prohibited under federal law, which is the law being used to try Stacy. Stacy's case will be closely watched because he is expected to use his compliance with state law as a defense to federal charges. This strategy has been rejected in previous cases, thanks to the Supreme Court's ruling in Gonzalez v. Raich, but Stacy's case may be the first to go to trial since the Justice Department's statement. This ruling weakens his chance of using that statement as a defense, but may not remove the defense entirely.

As Chino Hills medical marijuana criminal defense lawyers, we're sorry the judge ruled the way he did. As someone quote in the articled pointed out, it's perfectly possible to be heavily prosecuted by the federal government for the same actions that are fully compliant with state law. The Attorney General's memo saying medical marijuana defendants will not be prosecuted is not legally binding on the DEA or U.S. attorneys -- as this case shows -- but it's the clearest guideline currently available for how the federal government intends to handle this discrepancy. It is unfortunate, to say the least, that federal agents and prosecutors are not willing to abide by that memo, and it's even more unfortunate that the judge won't admit evidence of this at trial. Stacy may still be able to appeal the issue, and we wish him the best of luck.

Continue reading "Judge Bars Entrapment Defense From Use at San Diego County Medical Marijuana Trial" »