In California, child abuse refers to willfully inflicting cruel and inhuman punishment or injury on a child. This can include shaking, hitting, burning, pushing, kicking, or choking a child. In most cases, spanking is considered a reasonable disciplinary action and doesn’t qualify as child abuse. If you’ve been accused of child abuse it’s important that you don’t simply roll over. You can fight your charges and Law Offices of Torrence L. Howell is here to help.

The nuances of child abuse can be complex

Keep in mind that when it comes to child abuse, when the court refers to willfully inflicting injury, this doesn’t mean that you must have intended for the result to happen. It only means that you intended to do whatever it was that you did that led to the injury.

Consider this example: A child is acting up and their caregiver yanks their arm. They happen to get the child just right and their shoulder is dislocated. This could be considered child abuse even though the injury wasn’t intended. On the other hand, if someone accidentally elbowed a child, then it wouldn’t be abuse because the act wasn’t willful.

The consequences of a conviction can be serious

Child abuse can be charged as either a misdemeanor or a felony. It largely depends on your criminal history and the evidence in your case. Being tough on child abuse serves prosecutors well, which is why they will typically try to charge these cases as felonies if they can.

A misdemeanor conviction is punishable by up to a year in county jail. If you’re convicted of a felony, then you could be facing up to six years in prison plus the possibility of an additional four years if you’ve been convicted of child abuse in the decade prior to this conviction. Both misdemeanors and felonies can result in fines of as much as $6,000.

Remember that if you’re in the middle of a child custody battle, a conviction for child abuse can affect your case. It could lead to you being prevented from getting joint custody and could even go as far as preventing you from having unsupervised visits with your children.

There are defense options for child abuse in California

The sad truth is that many child abuse allegations aren’t true. In some cases, they’re made up because the child or someone with ulterior motives is feeling angry, jealous, or wants revenge. When you choose Law Offices of Torrence L. Howell as your criminal defense attorney, you can count on us to consider every possible avenue for a rigorous defense.

We will get expert testimony to uncover if the injuries were caused by a normal accident, or we can prove that you were acting within your legal rights to punish your child, or perhaps we’ll show that you didn’t intentionally harm your child. It all depends on the specifics of your case. Call Law Offices of Torrence L. Howell today at 909-920-0908 for your free case evaluation and we can discuss your options.

Many people who don’t work in the legal profession believe that assault and battery is a single offense. In reality, there are two separate crimes. In short, assault refers to an attempt to injure someone, while battery is the actual use of force or violence against someone. The main difference is that a charge of assault doesn’t require physical contact while battery does.

An example of an assault charge

Consider this example. A man is very angry while driving and a women cuts him off on the freeway. He’s so mad that he decides he’s going to ram his car into hers. He speeds up, swerves closer, and acts as though he’s going to hit her. The woman sees what he’s doing and swerves out of the way. Even though that man’s car didn’t actually collide with hers, he can still be charged with assault because he attempted to hit the woman’s carry.

An example of a battery charge

Let’s continue with the example above. If the man had actually hit the woman’s car, then he could be charged with assault and battery. That said, assault is a lesser charge compared to battery, and he’s only able to be convicted of one charge or the other. In some cases, the prosecutor may start out charging battery and we may be able to argue them down to assault – the lesser charge.

Possible consequences of a battery conviction

A person who is convicted of battery could be facing significant consequences, including spending some time in jail. The maximum sentence is a fine of no more than $2,000, up to 6 months in county jail, and / or anger management classes. Remember that a judge can sentence a person to more than one of these options. It’s also important to keep in mind that a prosecutor may add additional charges, which is why it’s important to hire a criminal defense attorney with a wealth of experience.

Defense options

The best legal defense for your case will depend on a number of factors, including your previous criminal record, the evidence against you, and how the prosecutor has chosen to charge you. Your best bet is to contact Law Offices of Torrence L. Howell for your free case evaluation. We can help with a number of possible defense including:

• Showing that you weren’t capable of actually inflicting harm, force, or violence on the person.
• Proving that you were action in self-defense.
• Proving that you were defending someone else who was in danger.
• We can show that you didn’t act willfully. In otherwise, you didn’t have the intent that the law requires.
• You were accused wrongfully.

In some cases, we may try to get the prosecutor to drop the charges. In other situations, if the evidence is against you, then we may work to get a plea deal with lesser charges. If necessary, Law Offices of Torrence L. Howell will take your case to court. Call us today at 909-920-0908 to learn more.

Being charged with a crime of any magnitude can feel devastating. Many people assume if they’re arrested that the best thing to do is to strike a plea deal. In fact, many police and prosecutors make it clear that this is their best bet. The truth is that the right move is always to contact a California defense attorney. At Law Offices of Torrence L. Howell we have the experience to help you through this process and work toward the best possible outcome.

The possible consequences of a drug conviction

Any consequence for any crime can be serious. At Law Offices of Torrence L. Howell we’ve worked with a wide range of cases and can help to reduce the consequences or have the charges dropped altogether. When you call us for your free consultation, we’ll discuss the possible consequences of your specific charge.

However, here are a few examples. A person who’s charged with possessing less than an ounce of marijuana cannot be fined more than $100 and there is no jail time. Possession of other controlled substances can lead to prison terms as long as three years. In many cases, we can work toward getting you into a Prop 36 or PC 1000 drug diversion program and help you avoid prison time altogether.

Keep in mind that the worst consequences are applicable to those who’ve been convicted of manufacturing drugs. In the state of California, if you’re convicted of cooking meth or turning marijuana into hashish, you could be facing as long as seven years in prison. Prosecutors will also often add additional charges for related crimes to extend the sentence even longer.

You do have defense options

The good news is that none of these sentences are set in stone and they all require you to be convicted. With the right drug charges defense lawyer, you may have many other options. The right strategy for your particular case will be largely dependent on the type of drugs involved and the severity of what you’ve been charged with. In some cases, we can get a misdemeanor marijuana possession settled with an informal diversion so it won’t even show up on your record.

In the event of more serious charges, we’ll look closely at the evidence for any mistakes made during your arrest. For example, if there were any rules violated during the search and seizure process, then the resulting drugs found on you or your property will not be admission in court.

If you’ve been arrested or have been questioned about drug possession or manufacturing then your next call needs to be to Law Offices of Torrence L. Howell at 909-920-0908. We will carefully assess your case and provide expert legal advice on your case. Together we’ll come up with the best way to proceed that involves the best case scenario for you.

Due to high-profile cases in which celebrities were stalked, California today has the toughest stalking laws in the country. According to California law, harassing, following, or threatening someone to the point that they are fearful for their safety or the safety of their family is classified as stalking.

These activities don’t have to take place in person. Stalking laws also apply to phone harassment and internet stalking. The majority of stalking cases occur between people who know each other. Unfortunately, false stalking claims are sometimes made. In some cases it’s a former dating partner, in others it’s a former spouse, and sometimes it’s a colleague. When you work with Law Offices of Torrence L. Howell, you’ll be working with an attorney who will fight tirelessly to defend you against the charges against you.

The consequences of a stalking conviction can be significant

A person who’s convicted of misdemeanor stalking could be looking at probation and up to a year in jail, while a person convicted of felony stalking could spend as much as five years in state prison. If the person being stalked was injured while they were being stalked, then more jail time may be in play. The person who’s convicted of stalking will be under a court-issued restraining order and may be required to complete counseling.

The difference between a misdemeanor or felony charge depends on several factors, including whether or not the person convicted was violating a restraining order and whether or not they have a prior conviction for stalking.

There are legal defenses for stalking

Generally speaking, at Law Offices of Torrence L. Howell we begin your case by assuming that the charges are false. We move forward with our case accordingly. The truth is that people make false accusations and say someone is stalking them for a number of reasons, whether they’re trying to get the upper hand during a custody battle or they’re trying to win points in a domestic dispute.

We will consider that possibility. Another strategy is to argue that the threats made weren’t credible or that they were protected under your constitutional right to free speech. In some cases, the best strategy is to get the best possible plea bargain. We are excellent negotiators and will fight to ensure you the optimal outcome.

Call our offices today for your free case evaluation

When you work with Law Offices of Torrence L. Howell, you’re working with a firm that has extensive experience defending clients who’ve been charged with stalking. We know where to begin and we know what evidence to compile to ensure you have the best possible defense. Read Attorney Howell’s attorney profile to learn more about his background and then contact us for your free initial consultation. No one wants to be charged with a crime but the best thing to do is to move forward by hiring a lawyer you believe in.

All criminal charges are serious and that is certainly true for a forgery charge. The legal definition is to knowingly fake a signature or handwriting in order to commit fraud. Other activities that may also be considered forgery include falsifying documents that relate to property or money in an effort to commit fraud. Some of the most common examples of forgery include:

• Adding forged pages to a will;
• Writing forged prescriptions;
• Forging a check.

Intending to defraud is an essential part of any forgery charge

Note that just faking a signature on its own isn’t forgery. It doesn’t become forgery unless there is some sort of fraudulent intent. For example, if someone forged their friend’s signature to sign a receipt for dinner, it wouldn’t be forgery as long as the credit card owner gave permission for the card to be used and signed for. On the other hand, if someone fakes a signature for a stolen credit card, it would be considered forgery.

The consequences of a forgery conviction can be significant

As with any other charge, the seriousness of the consequences for forgery depend on whether it’s being charged as a felony or a misdemeanor. The possible consequences for each include:

• Misdemeanor forgery can lead to up to a year in jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.
• Felony forgery can lead to up to three years in prison and a fine of as much as $10,000.

Note that convictions for both misdemeanors and felonies can lead to probation and restitution.

There are defenses for forgery cases

Though every case is different, the first step we’ll generally take when working with a client who’s been charged with forgery is to work with handwriting experts or other witnesses. They can testify that you weren’t responsible for creating the signatures in question.

That strategy is often successful on its own, but if isn’t applicable to your situation then we do have other methods. For example, another often successful defense against forgery is to show that you didn’t intend to use the documents fraudulently. Since intent is required to prove forgery, it’s possible that we could show the document or signature was created for a different reason, such as satire, or your own amusement. If we can prove that you didn’t intend to use the document to deprive a person or company from legal rights, money, or property, then we’ll likely have a successful case on our hands.

You have found the best forgery attorneys in Southern California

Note that forgery is generally considered under the umbrella of white color crime, and it’s frequently tied to workplace crime. At Law Offices of Torrence L. Howell, we are attorneys with expertise in all matters of business law. We can bring that experience and knowledge to your case to help get the best possible outcome. Call us today at 909-920-0908 for your free consultation. If you’re ready to fight your forgery charge, or get the best plea terms possible, then you’re ready to work with us.