Federal Crimes Blog

Learn the Best Defenses Against Federal Credit Card Fraud Related Charges Under 18 U.S.C. § 1029. There are a lot of crimes being prosecuted that they are characterizing as access fraud.  It really has to do with some sort of credit card fraud under 18 U.S.C. § 1029 or taking someone's personal in...

What Should You Do if Federal Authorities Raided Your House with a Search Warrant? This is a common thing where the feds will get a search warrant and they'll come in and take certain property, and believe it or not, they won't arrest the person. If you're reading this before that happens to you,...

Why do Defendants Get Taken into Custody In Federal Criminal Cases and Cannot Bail Out? This is a common question and I see where people are being detained in federal cases and cannot get out.  People aren't used to this, because in state cases, a person is almost always entitled to some sort of ...

Is it Possible to Resolve a Federal Criminal Case Before Charges Are Actually Filed in Court? The answer to this question is yes.  I have engaged in many prefiling negotiations with prosecutors.  Of course, the circumstances have to be right for this. Typically, the prosecutors will contact the...

When people think of tax fraud, they often think of the federal government. If you are being charged with a federal criminal case, the federal government is probably the entity that will prosecute your case. If you are being charged with tax fraud related to the EDD or the...

This is a big issue that I've had to deal with over the course of the last 26 years that I've been a federal criminal defense attorney.  A lot of people or their families have been arrested and they're in custody and they're trying to find a lawyer. Sometimes, they are even the actual person them...

What Determines Whether a Child Pornography Prosecution Is Dealt with by the Federal Government or the State? This is a big question because a lot of times what's happening is, someone is coming to a person's house or business, arresting that person or simply searching their house. They are...

A lot of people nowadays are getting entrapped in the government's net of prosecuting the so-called Ponzi schemes.  Basically, it is where people are purportedly involved in some sort of a legitimate business venture and they end up taking investors. Those investors pay money in hopes of getting ...

People working in the medical or health industry often take money from the government for various reasons, whether it be through Medicare or Medicaid. This person cannot be giving kickbacks to anyone in order to get that person to perform any type of medical services. An example would be a doctor...

One of the big stings about all the drug laws that were changed and passed in the 1980s during the Regan administration had to do with 10-year mandatory minimums being placed on some drug offenses. Really what they're looking at is the type of drug that's being sold, trafficked, transported for p...

I've been practicing federal law now for over 25 years and have handled numerous cases around the nation, many jury trials, and I believe that the first thing you need to win a federal criminal case is a solid argument that strikes at the heart of the prosecution's theory against you. In other wo...

Any time you're indicted for a federal case in Los Angeles, or anywhere in the nation for that matter, typically you will appear for your post-indictment arraignment.  You will eventually be assigned a judge and then the prosecutors will be ordered to give all the discovery related to the case to...

These cases are prosecuted more and more at the healthcare level and we're seeing a lot of physicians and doctors being charged both civilly and criminally where they're facing thousands of dollars of fines at the civil level and then the criminal prosecutors get their hands on the case and then ...

For the last 25+ years, I've handled gang-related cases at both the state and federal level.  The feds got involved with prosecuting gangs approximately 15 years ago, especially here in Los Angeles, but not just Los Angeles — across the country. They really have found themselves more suitable to ...

What Are Some Examples Of Charges Brought Under Health Care Fraud By A Consumer, Patient, Or A Doctor? When it comes to health care fraud, especially at the federal level, the government is sending a benefit to somebody that shouldn't be getting that benefit. For example, maybe a doctor is billin...

What Can You Be Prosecuted for By the Federal Government if You're Caught With Child Pornography on Your Computer or Other Device? I've represented these cases since they came into existence and what ends up happening a lot of times is somehow the feds become aware that you are involved with chil...

I call this the modern federal drug conspiracy because I've been doing drug conspiracy cases now for the last 26 years and I've seen them develop in a lot of different ways. The federal government has to keep pace with those individuals who are moving drugs throughout not just California or the U...

What Exactly Is Identity Theft? Is This A Federal Offense? Identity theft can come about in different ways. It can come up at the federal level or filed at the state level. At the federal level, you're usually going to see a level of sophistication involved where somebody is using someone else's ...

In my experience, bankruptcy fraud is usually prosecuted at the federal level. Of course, it has to do with individuals who are trying to utilize the bankruptcy system in a fraudulent manner. For example, making claims that they are not receiving money, don't have money, or filling up paperwork t...

This is an important aspect of any federal case and that is, what the federal government agents are doing before the case is even filed.  I get a lot of clients who come to me pre-filing at the investigative stage and they're really not sure what to do.  They know that the feds are investigating ...

Should I Wait To Get A Federal Defense Attorney Until This Is All Over Or Should I Hire One Now? You should not wait to get a federal defense attorney until Covid-19 is over. We are available if you have a federal case. If either you or a loved one is under investigation, or there is a federal ca...

What ends up happening is somebody gets arrested and then the US Marshals or the FBI or whoever is doing the arresting is typically going to take them into court.  In Los Angeles, they usually get you into court the same day in the afternoon for the 2:00 calendar. Then what happens is the...

I've handled a lot of out of state cases, even though I'm based out of Los Angeles, if people want me to go and represent them, obviously, as long as they can financially afford me and it's the type of case that I enjoy defending. It really doesn't matter whether your attorney is from in or out...

This is an important question because a lot of times people don't want to plead guilty.  They don't want to go to federal prison and serve 85% of the time and the bottom line is, they don't feel like they've done anything wrong. So, they're thinking about taking their case to trial, and obviously...

This is a big question on a lot of people's mind, because once they get arrested and they're either released on a signature bond, a property bond, or even detained — which is horrible while you wait for your case to end — then you want to know how long is this case going to take in order to be fi...