Los Angeles petty theft cases are often curious — not just because of the legal complexities and the “drama” — but also because of the fascinating “stuff” people choose to steal. 
For instance, in 2012, it suddenly became very popular for people to steal bottles of Tide and then sell the detergent on the black market.
Because of the diversity of items that people steal — and the diversity of schemes pulled off — every theft defense case is different.
Even “straightforward” Los Angeles Medicare fraud schemes often become surprisingly dynamic.
Perhaps you and an associate billed the state or federal government for wheelchairs that you never delivered to patients. Or maybe you constructed a scheme to collect Social Security numbers and patient data and then use that information to purchase pharmaceuticals to sell to a third market supplier.
Even the most carefully wrought, well-protected plans have a funny way of coming undone and leading to surprises not only for investigators but also for defendants themselves.
In all likelihood, your Los Angeles petty theft charges are pretty dry and mundane. 
Maybe you shoplifted some clothes or jewelry from an open market shop in Venice Beach or the Promenade; or maybe you accrued a petty theft charge on top of other charges, like robbery, assault, and fraud.
You understand that your situation is serious: you need a good Los Angeles criminal defense attorney to help you solve your mess and move on with your life.
The trickiest things about facing a Los Angeles lewd conduct charge (or sex crime charge anywhere) is breaking the news to friends and family. 
A criminal charge is always embarrassing and unpleasant to discuss. But some charges are worse than others. Consider, for instance, the very serious charges facing 35-year-old Courtney Reschke. She stands accused of making illegal sexual contact with eight different teenage boys. All told, she faces 20 criminal counts, including 11 lewd conduct charges. In the state of Idaho, a lewd conduct charge with a minor can be punished by a lifetime behind bars.
Here’s the sordid story, courtesy a local Idaho TV station, KBOI.
Not to alarm you, but every second that ticks by, your Los Angeles lewd conduct defense gets harder and harder.
Whether police arrested you for fornicating in a bathroom on a Santa Monica beach, or you have been investigated for internet-related Los Angeles sex crime charges, time is against you. This ticking clock ticks down in a non-linear fashion, too. That’s an important and poorly appreciated point.
Let’s explore this further — you need to understand this.
Whether you were arrested in a Manhattan Beach bathroom on lewd conduct charges or charged with some other sex crime in Los Angeles, you nevertheless still think of yourself as a pretty decent guy (or girl) who made a misjudgment. 
You almost certainly resent being categorized among other more serious sex offenders. To that end, you want to do everything possible, legally speaking, to prevent the “sex offender” label from following you around forever, a la the scarlet letter A on Hester Prinne’s chest.
That drive makes sense. After all, consider this Southern California lewd conduct case (that’s equal parts sad and disturbing) as an object lesson.
A new study shows that the federal government’s vigorous campaign against Medicare fraud in Los Angeles and beyond is paying off — big time. 
Over the last three years, the government has returned $7.90 for every $1 invested into the anti-fraud mission. This marks the highest ever return for the Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control Program, a nearly two decade old program, and federal officials are crowing about the numbers. Kathleen Sebelius, the secretary of Health & Human Services, said “our historic effort to take on the criminals who steal from Medicare and Medicaid is paying off. We are gaining the upper hand in our fight against healthcare fraud.”
The antifraud initiative is a collaboration between the Department of Justice and HHS. The Obama administration has lent lots of help to soup up this program and deliver more results. Over the past four years, federal officials recovered nearly $15 billion from scam artists, executives, doctors, pharmaceutical companies, vendors, and others who masterminded or acted complicit with fraudulent schemes. That’s nearly double the amount recovered over the previous four-year period.
As a defendant (or soon-to-be defendant) in a Los Angeles Medicare fraud case, you’re deeply confused and concerned about how your situation will play out.
Maybe the government will overwhelm you with powerful evidence and testimonies. Or maybe surprising witnesses will come forward to “blow the whistle” on your activities.
Sometimes, blowing the whistle can pay off significantly. Consider a case out of Tampa, Florida, where a local physician, Dr. Alan Freedman, just collected $4 million for his part in blowing the whistle on an illicit kickback arrangement between Florida Pathology Laboratory and a dermatologist. The scheme apparently ran for over 15 years. Dr. Steven Wasserman, the dermatologist implicated, settled his case by paying over $26 million.
If you stand accused of a charge like grand theft or petty theft in Los Angeles, pay attention to the following analysis of two recent news stories: their lessons could prove valuable as you construct your defense.
Our first case concerns 36-year-old Veronica Niko of Lancaster, who recently pled guilty to Los Angeles identity theft and tax fraud in federal court. The former L.A. County worker allegedly stole $357,000; she could face 15 years behind bars. The Internal Revenue Service accuses Niko of stealing the SSN numbers and names of 64 people while working for the City of Lancaster. She then used that information to submit false refund claims to the Internal Revenue Service. Niko conspired with her husband and three other people, two of whom have trials pending. Niko’s husband and one other person have pled guilty to the conspiracy charges, and both await sentencing.
This real life Los Angeles identity theft case comes at a relatively ironic time — just as Universal Pictures’ “Identity Theft” is hitting the theaters.
This is a follow up on our recent post regarding Terminator III actor Nick Stahl’s Los Angeles lewd conduct case.
If you recall from our report several months ago, the young actor got arrested after a police officer saw him committing a “lewd act” at a private booth in an adult store in Hollywood. The same squad that busted Stahl for Hollywood lewd conduct also nabbed comedian Fred Willard. Based on lack of sufficient evidence, prosecutors are dropping the charges against Stahl, per reports from TMZ.com.
The actor has been embroiled in troubles over the past year or so. After going through rehab, Stahl went missing multiple times.
Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Blog