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Articles Posted in Felony (Criminal Defense)

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On Wednesday, May 25, 2016, a 76 year old driver was booked for felony hit-and-run and felony driving under the influence,  after he allegedly hit a CHP officer as she stood in the road directing traffic.  The driver then fled the scene.  The CHP officer suffered life-threatening injuries and was taken by helicopter to the hospital.

Responding CHP officers observed the driver, based on license plate information they had received from a tow truck driver, and pulled him over.  It was later determined that he was suspected of driving under the influence and he was arrested for DUI and hit and run.  The driver was apprehended several miles north of the hit-and-run collision location.

California law enforcement officers encourage people to not to drive after drinking and say that if you chose to drink then arrange for a designated driver or a safe ride home.  If a driver is arrested for a DUI a long and expensive process starts that can result in the automatic administrative suspension of the person’s driving privilege, probation, fines, possible jail time and mandatory attendance at a DUI school.

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On Monday, August 18, 2014,the Marin County Sheriff’s Department received a call for a domestic violence incident in Marin City.

On Tuesday, August 19, 2014, a Marin sheriff’s deputy saw the suspect driving in Marin City and a pursuit was initiated. Soon after, a California Highway Patrol officer joined the chase which continued for about a mile.

During the chase the suspect, who had a woman and 4-year-old boy inside his car, crashed into another car, lost control of his car, and crashed near Fred’s Place on Bridgeway in Sausalito. The suspect then got out of his car and fled on foot. Officers chased him onto the roof of Saylor’s where he was arrested.

Three customers at Fred’s Place attempted to jump out of the way of the suspect’s car as he crashed but one was pinned by debris until good samaritan’s were able to free him. He suffered minor injuries.

Police arrested the suspect for grand theft and domestic violence for assaulting the mother of his child on Monday night. He was also arrested for driving without a license, evading a peace officer, cruelty to a child, reckless driving, resisting arrest and committing a felony while out on bail for another felony.
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Forty seven year old Michael Helms from San Pablo and forty five year old Larry Hernandez from El Sobrante were arrested Tuesday when Detectives saw them taking a catalytic converter from a truck in Marin County. Helms and Hernandez were arrested last week in Sonoma County on possession of stolen property charges and were being watched by detectives from the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Property Crimes Investigation unit.

Mr. Helms and Mr. Hernandez are suspected of stealing at least three vehicles, breaking into a truck and stealing tools, along with stealing catalytic converters. Detectives conducing the surveillance of both men followed them from Rhonert Park to a park and ride lot in Novato where they observed Mr. Hernandez saw the catalytic converter off of a pick up truck in the lot.

Police officers approached both suspects who fled but were apprehended about a mile from the park and ride lot. Mr. Helms was arrested on charges of grand theft, conspiracy, possession of a controlled substance, possession of burglary tools, and driving on a suspended license. Mr. Hernandez was arrested for grand theft, conspiracy and possession of burglary tools. Both men were booked into the Marin County Jail.

Possession of a controlled substance can be charged as a misdemeanor or a felony depending on the drug, the quantity possessed and the suspects prior criminal record. Grand theft is also a wobbler offense punishable by up to three years in state prison as a felony and by up to one year in the county jail as a misdemeanor.
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Bruno Humberto Silvamieto, Cesar Antonio Rondon-Contreras, Ivan Alexander Vasquez-Aguilar and Luigi Renzo Dagnino-Arriaran were arrested on Tuesday, May 18, 2010, on suspicion that they stole wine from their employer.

San Rafael Police began a theft investigation after a wine distributor reported that approximately $30,000 worth of wine was missing from his warehouse in northern San Rafael. Some of the stolen wine showed up for sale on Craigslist and San Rafael Police officers set up a sting posing as buyers. Mr. Dagnino-Arriaran, a 33-year-old Novato resident, was arrested when he showed up to sell some wine to the undercover police officers.

Corte Madera residents Mr. Silvamieto, 19, and Mr. Vasquez-Aguilar, 30, and 44 year old Mr. Rondon-Contreras, all worked for the wine distributor according the the San Rafael Police Department. All there men were arrested in connection with the Marin County theft on May 18, 2010.

All four suspects were booked into the Marin County Jail on charges including embezzlement, conspiracy and receiving stolen property.
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26 year old Clinton Mark Dahms of Sonoma was arrested on Monday after driving his van through front yards and hitting a house in a Novato neighborhood.

Novato Police Officers said that Mr. Dahms drove his 1994 Pontiac through multiple lawns hitting shrubs, a tree, a parked car and retaining wall before smashing into a home on Rowland Blvd. Mr. Dahms ran from his Pontiac Van after hitting the parked car an pushing it into the residence.

It took three Novato Police officers to arrest Mr. Dahms after he ran through another home. He apparently did not cooperate with the officers and was booked into the Marin County Jail on a charge of resisting arrest. He was also booked for DUI, hit and run, being under the influence of a controlled substance, battery on a police officer and trespassing.

The case will now be reviewed by the Marin County District Attorney’s Office for a formal charging determination. The charges for which Mr. Dahm’s was arrested are mix of misdemeanors and felonies and if convicted he could be placed on probation with county jail time or he could be sent to the California Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections, prison. Being under the influence of a controlled substance in violation of Health and Safety Code section 11550(a) carries a minimum sentence of 90 days in jail. If convicted in this case Mr. Dahms may be required to attend a driving under the influence program, make restitution for the damages he caused, and attend drug treatment.
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A former Marin resident, Thomas John Clagett, 27, was arraigned in the Marin County Superior Court on Monday. Mr. Clagett has been charged with robbing a bank in Novato in 2007.

He was extradited to Marin County from Ohio last week after the FBI arrested him at his father’s home.

Bank robbery is a “strike” offense and is charged under Penal Code section 211. Being defined as both a serious and violent offense a conviction for a robbery carries a presumptive state prison sentence of up to 5 years.

Mr. Clagett will be back in the Marin County Courthouse on Thursday to enter a plea.
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A Daly City man and woman were arraigned in the Marin County Superior Court on Monday on a charge of possession of cocaine for sale. Marco Larrios, 32, and Carmen Roxana Gonzalez, 27 were arrested on April 15, 2010, in Ignacio. A third person, Wilfredo Umanzor, 24, of San Francisco, was also arrested and has been charged with being a lookout for Mr. Larrios and Ms. Gonzalez.

A plea hearing for all three suspects is pending and they remain in the Marin county jail with Federal Immigration holds.

Possession of cocaine for sale is a felony under the California Health and Safety Code and carries a maximum sentence of 4 years in state prison. Depending on a person’s criminal history, the facts surrounding her arrest and the amount of drugs possessed, it may be possible to have a drug sales charge reduced to a simple possession charge.

An experienced San Rafael criminal defense attorney will review the legality of the arrest and may run a motion to suppress evidence based on an illegal search or seizure in violation of the suspect’s rights under the 4th amendment to the United States Constitution. If a motion to suppress is granted the drug charges would likely be dismissed.
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55 year old Arron Joe Perry was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence, assault with a deadly weapon, corporal injury to a child, evading police and DUI on Monday night after leading police on a pursuit from Solano County to Downtown Oakland.

Police responded to a residence in Suisun City after receiving a call from a woman indicating that Mr. Perry was assaulting a family inside the home. Mr. Perry drove away from the residence prior to officers arriving. Local police officers pursued him from Highway 12 to Interstate 80 and through Solano County to the Carquinez Bridge in Vallejo. CHP officers flattened the tires of Mr. Perry’s Hummer with a spike strip just west of Vallejo but that did not stop him. He continued to drive with officers in pursuit until he reached downtown Oakland in Alameda County.

Mr. Perry was arrested without further incident and booked into the Solano County jail on allegations of domestic violence, assault with a deadly weapon, corporal injury to a child, evading police and DUI. The Solano County District Attorney filed a felony complaint against him on Wednesday. If he is convicted of a felony he could be placed on probation with possible county jail time or he could be sent the state prison. A conviction for a domestic violence charge, misdemeanor or felony, would require that he complete a 52 week domestic violence counseling program.
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A Mill Valley woman who was accused in October 2009 of using her 13-year-old son as a designated driver entered a guilty plea to a DUI and felony drug possession on Monday. Her drug possession charges stemmed from an unrelated earlier arrest.

The woman was arrested on October 4, 2009, after she and her boyfriend had her son drive them home from dinner and drinks so as to avoid another DUI arrest. The couple both had prior drunk driving cases. Shortly after he started driving home from San Anselmo the 13 year old decided he could not continue and stopped the vehicle in the middle of Sir Francis Drake Boulevard. San Anselmo police were attracted to the parked vehicle and contacted the involved parties. The woman was subsequently arrested and charged by the Marin County District Attorney with DUI, contributing to the delinquency of a minor and allowing a minor to drive. In exchange for her guilty plea to the DUI the remaining charges were dismissed.

The driver returns to court on April 20, 2010 for sentencing. The sentence she receives will depending on the recency of any prior DUI convictions and will likely include punishment for the drug possession. On a second offense DUI alone she would be facing between ten days to one year in county jail, substantial fines and mandatory attendance at a DUI program. However, a conviction for a felony drug charge can carry punishment ranging from drug treatment or probation which may include county jail time, up to a state prison commitment. Her actual sentence will be based on numerous factors which will usually be discussed and provided to the judge in a pre-sentence report prepared by the Marin County Probation Department.
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