Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Blog

Published on: May 2, 2012

Reflections on the Riots – Los Angeles Petty Theft, L.A.’s Grand Disaster and Progress (ot Lack Thereof)

It’s been over two decades since the L.A. riots shook our fair city; and the Southland is still rife with everyday crimes, like Los Angeles petty theft. This town can be a dangerous place to live and work for reasons that transcend the bad air quality and insane traffic. Fortunately, we’ve managed to get through over 20-plus years without our city exploding again in paroxysms of racial violence. But what have we collectively learned since those dark days of the early 90s? And what lessons have we failed to learn? More importantly, how can we understand how the changing dynamics of our city might influence you or your family member, if you’re dealing with a charge like petty theft in Southern California, credit card fraud, or the like?

Let’s start with the big picture level. Historians often focus on the LA riots of the early 90s because they serve as spectacular examples of what happens when our civil society malfunctions. It’s easy to sort of look at the riots and contextualize them as an “LA problem.” After all, Los Angeles was and is a strangely gerrimandered entity, racially and culturally speaking. Also, the city has some pretty staggering income disparities. On top of that, it’s the second largest city in the United States, so “stuff” that happens here tends to inflate larger just by default. We have more traffic, we have more people, we have more crime than, for instance, Cheyenne, Wyoming.

Thus, while racial resentments seethed in many different cities and towns across the United States in early 90s, Los Angeles proved to be a flashpoint. Was LA’s structure partially to blame? Sure. That makes sense. Were the riots also part of a broader shift in our society – yet more “growing pains” as America continued to process its long legacy of slavery and racial segregation and discrimination? That also sounds very plausible.

Published on: April 30, 2012

Why Your Los Angeles Lewd Conduct Charges Are So Scary and Unnerving…

by Michael Kraut

You recently got arrested for lewd conduct in Southern California. Perhaps you were the hapless victim of a police sting operation at a men’s room. Perhaps you face a battery of charges, including other Los Angeles sex crime counts. In any event, you are almost certainly intimidated by your legal challenges – by all the “stuff” that’s gone wrong in your life recently. And you’d like some clarity.

What might you be able to expect? Will you go to jail? Will you, much like Hester Prynne in The Scarlet Letter, be condemned to ostracism for the rest of your life, thanks to the affixation of the “sex offender” label to your name? Will you ever be able to “live down” your charges or “get over” all the trauma associated with the events leading up to and after your arrest?

These are all key questions to think about. And Southern California can treat sex offenders harshly – particularly when they commit violent crimes and/or have a past criminal history (“priors”). A Los Angeles lewd conduct attorney at the Kraut Law Group Criminal & DUI Lawyers, Inc. can provide a free consultation and help you understand and deal with your various legal difficulties. But the challenge of dealing with the anguish of your situation is going to remain for quite some time – and could even remain after you’ve served your punishment and/or exonerated yourself.

Published on: April 27, 2012

Will Your Los Angeles Medicare Fraud Charges Cost You $43 Million, Too?

by Michael Kraut

If you have been hit with a Los Angeles Medicare fraud charge, you are probably frightened about the penalties that potentially lie before you. But no matter what your outcome, you will almost certainly pay less than the bill just handed to Tenet Healthcare for overcharging Medicare – a whopping $42.8 million.

According to the Federal government, the nation’s second biggest for-profit hospital chain overbilled Medicare for a variety of services between 2005 and 2007. All told, 50 hospitals engaged in processes of moving patients from normal hospitals to pricier facilities after patients had undergone certain procedures. A Tenet spokesperson actually said that the chain was “proud of” providing extra care for patients who really probably didn’t need it.

Interesting.

Published on: April 25, 2012

Los Angeles Petty Theft — Literally! — Someone Stole Tom Petty’s Guitars!

by Michael Kraut

The vast majority of stories about Los Angeles petty theft have nothing to do with the famous singer and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, Tom Petty. But on April 12, someone allegedly stole five of Petty’s guitars! Technically, the crime is not considered Los Angeles petty theft. After all, the value of the five guitars no doubt way exceeds the $400 mark that caps the boundary between petty theft and more serious theft charges.

That being said, we have to at least acknowledge the wordplay.

The guitars stolen from the Culver Studios served as the heart and soul of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ operation for years. They include:

Published on: April 23, 2012

Massive Lewd Conduct Arrest in Manhattan Beach – Los Angeles Lewd Conduct Law Firm Reports

by Michael Kraut

Eighteen men were arrested last week on Los Angeles lewd conduct charges, after officers cracked down on activity going on in a Manhattan Beach restroom.

Local lifeguards had noticed men entering the bathroom and remaining inside for a long amount of time. They alerted police that they suspected the public restroom might be a meeting place for sexual activity. According to a Daily News report, men sometimes stayed in the restroom for longer than an hour, and the same people would return often. Lifeguards also found graphic sexual images on restroom walls and holes drilled through stall partitions.

The Manhattan Beach Police Department conducted surveillance of the bathroom and began to make arrests. They also used the web to survey what was being said about the bathroom online. Six police officers went undercover, pretending to be men looking for sexual activity. The sting ultimately resulted in the arrests of 18 suspects, who were slapped a battery of charges including:

Published on: April 20, 2012

Alert Parents: Is Los Angeles Petty Theft a “Gateway Crime”?

by Michael Kraut

If you are a parent of a teenager or young man or woman who was recently arrested on charges of Los Angeles petty theft crime, you are probably sad, depressed, and anxious about your child’s future.

What caring parent wouldn’t be?

The state of California considers both petty theft and shoplifting to be serious crimes. Individuals convicted on two separate occasions for petty theft can be actually slapped with a felony charge and compelled to spend over a year behind bars!

Published on: April 18, 2012

Will You Ever Practice Again After Your Los Angeles Medical Fraud Charges?

by Michael Kraut

The Obama Administration is “on the hunt” for doctors, chiropractors, dentists, and other providers who violate Los Angeles Medicare fraud laws.

If you or someone you care about recently got swept up into that dragnet – or if you have come under investigation – you are obviously panicked about your potential punishments:

• The lifestyle changes that you inevitably will have to make;

Published on: April 16, 2012

Arrested for Lewd Conduct in Los Angeles… and Everyone Thinks You “Did It”

by Michael Kraut

Getting arrested for lewd conduct in Los Angeles can be a harrowing experience.

Yes, getting arrested for any crime in Southern California is scary. You face the specter of jail time, massive fees and fines, insurance related problems, professional reputation issues, logistical headaches, and on and on.

But lewd conduct charges are particularly vexing! Defendants are often “prejudged” by friends, family members, peers, and the community at large. For some reason, getting a lewd conduct charge often feels like being tarred and feathered. First of all, if you are convicted, you may be saddled with the “sex offender” label for decades, if not for a lifetime. You do not need to be reminded about what this negative label can do in terms of restricting where you can live, wreaking havoc on your personal and professional life, and potentially destroying your self-esteem – not to mention teeing you up for massive trouble if you ever break the law again.

Published on: April 13, 2012

Life After Southern California Medicare Fraud – Start Planning Now

by Michael Kraut

If you are a physician who has recently been arrested for Los Angeles Medicare fraud due to double billing or overbilling — or as an accomplice to a larger and more sophisticated scheme that spanned several years — you’re probably terrified. How will the arrest (and potential conviction) impact your career, your freedom (jail time or not?), your finances, your relationships with the people closest to you, and your professional reputation (or what’s left of it)?

Odds are, in fact, that you are overwhelmingly focused on the potential negatives of the situation. In some ways, this makes sense. Now is a good time for reflection and sober strategic thinking, particularly if you did commit criminal activity. A Southern California Medicare or Medi-Cal fraud lawyer can help you devise and execute an intelligent response to the charges against you. And you should certainly introspect and analyze how you got into the situation in the first place. But you might also find it extremely resourceful to focus on potential positive outcomes.

The brain works in mysterious ways. Since the 1950s, neurologists have studied an activity center in the brain called the reticular activating system (RAS). This is a region of our brain that helps to manage and process attention and focus. Obviously, the neurology of the RAS is too complicated for this blog to address, but the takeaway is pretty profound. Science suggests that how and when and where we hold our focus can color not only our perceptions of our experiences but also our strategies for dealing with crises.

Published on: April 11, 2012

Los Angeles Lewd Conduct Update: Teacher in Photo Scandal Denied Bail Reduction

by Michael Kraut

It’s been called one of the most disturbing and high profile cases of Los Angeles lewd conduct in history: 61-year-old Mark Berndt allegedly blindfolded children and then “spoon-fed his semen to them” at his elementary school classroom in Miramonte.

Last month, Berndt pled not guilty to 23 counts of Los Angeles lewd conduct, but the justice system does not seem to be in the mood to give him much leniency. His initial bail – $23 million – remained intact last Wednesday, when a judge denied his request for a reduction. The former teacher was arrested at the end of January following a long investigation (over a year). Investigators discovered 40 photos of children blindfolded with their mouths taped. Some pictures showed cockroaches on these children’s faces. Others showed other remarkably disturbing images.

One of Berndt’s co-workers, 49-year-old Martin Springer, has also been accused of a sexual crime – molesting a female student. In the wake of the revelations about Berndt and Springer, the district fired the entire workforce at the elementary school. Many of teachers’ victims have said that the abuse gave them nightmares.