Miscellaneous Crimes
There are certain crimes that don’t fit neatly into the usual categories. Among these are serving as accessory after the fact to a crime, being an accomplice to a crime, aiding and abetting a crime, providing false statements to police officers, evading arrest, committing perjury, and possessing fake identification. These charges can carry serious consequences. It’s important to obtain a strong defense. Call seasoned Orange County criminal defense lawyer William M. Weinberg about the charges. Mr. Weinberg has nearly 30 years of legal experience.
Miscellaneous CrimesMr. Weinberg represents clients in cases:
- Accessory after the fact
- Accomplice liability
- Aiding and abetting
- False statements to police officers
- Gang crimes
- Evading arrest
- Perjury
- Possession of fake identification
- Resisting Arrest.
There are two kinds of parties that facilitate a crime. You can be charged as a principal or accessory. Under California Penal Code 32 PC, an accessory after the fact is someone who conceals, harbors or helps in a felony after it has been committed by a principal with the intent of assisting a principal with escaping from arrest, conviction or penalties.
This crime can be charged as a felony or a misdemeanor. You should not assume the charges carry mild penalties; you should call our offices for a consultation.
Accomplice LiabilityWhen you help with committing a crime, you can be charged with aiding and abetting or with serving as an accomplice to the crime. You may be charged if you provided help by aiding, facilitating, promoting, encouraging, instigating the perpetration of a crime.
If you planned to carry out a crime with another person or a group of people, you could be charged as an accomplice, but you could also be charged with a conspiracy. You can face the same charges as a principal actor even if you were merely an accomplice; it is critical to call our attorney William M. Weinberg if you are being accused of any aspect of a crime, including providing some sort of assistance in carrying it out.
Evading ArrestMr. Weinberg also represents clients who are charged with evading arrest. These crimes can arise in different ways. One common way is willfully fleeing from a police officer who is driving a car. This crime is charged under Vehicle Code Section 2800.1(a). However, it’s also illegal to evade an officer on a bike or in other situations.
In order to hold you responsible, the prosecutor will need to prove: (1) the officer was pursuing you, (2) you were also driving a car and willfully fled or tried to elude the officer meaning to evade the officer, (3) that there was a lit red lamp that could be seen the lamp, that you could reasonably see it, that a siren was being sounded from the officer’s vehicle, the vehicle was marked, and the officer was wearing a uniform that distinguished him or her as an officer.
You can be charged with a misdemeanor for evading an officer. But you could be charged with a felony if you acted recklessly while fleeing, such as by running red lights or crashing your car and injuring people in the course of fleeing.
Defenses to Miscellaneous CrimesOur experienced Orange County criminal defense attorney can look at the unique facts of your situation to develop a defense strategy. In some cases, we can argue that no crime was committed or that you didn’t know there was a crime committed, though you are being charged as an accessory or accomplice. Sometimes people pressure others to join in wrongdoing, and in that case, it might be appropriate to explore a duress defense, one in which we argue that you were forced to join in the crime through force or threats. Sometimes bystanders are drawn into crimes or associated with a crime simply by being present but were not part of it and should not be charged.
Consult a Criminal Defense Lawyer in Orange CountyIt can be terrifying to have your freedom at stake because you were pulled into criminal activity or were present at the scene of a crime. If you have been charged with a crime, contact Orange County criminal defense lawyer William Weinberg for a free, confidential consultation by filling out our contact form or calling our Irvine office at (949) 474-8008.