Juvenile Defense

Practice Areas

Speak With Juvenile Defense Attorney, Patricia Hattersley, With Offices In Pasadena, California

Accusations of involvement in criminal activities could land a juvenile youth in serious trouble with the authorities, especially if they face charges for serious crimes. While a juvenile may find it quite challenging to raise defenses when charged with a felony, finding an experienced juvenile defense lawyer can significantly reduce the penalties. Juvenile Defense Attorney Patricia Hattersley will provide a FREE TELEPHONE CONFERENCE and will provide you with important information concerning the defenses available depending on your case.

Having Juvenile Defense Attorney Patricia Hattersley on your side will make an important difference in the outcome of your case. Patricia has many years of experience in defending minors in the Juvenile Court System with many good and outstanding results. Ms. Hattersley appears in all Juvenile Courts within Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Orange Counties.

Involvement in criminal activities could land a juvenile youth in serious trouble with the authorities, especially if they face charges for listed serious crimes. Regardless of the case’s circumstances, the juvenile may stand in a disadvantaged position and receive severe penalties for breaking the law and engaging in a strike felony. The three-strike law applied in California incorporates stringent measures extended to any defendant engaged in previous felony convictions. While a juvenile may find it quite challenging to raise defenses when charged with a felony, finding an experienced criminal defense lawyer will significantly reduce the penalties. Speak with Immediate Juvenile Defense Attorney Patricia Hattersley in Pasadena, Los Angeles County, California Before beginning the trial, you need to get into contact with Juvenile Defense Attorney Patricia Hattersley who will provide a FREE CASE REVIEW and provide you comprehensive and detailed information concerning three-strike laws and the defenses available depending on your case. At Immediate Criminal Defense Law Offices of Patricia Hattersley, we are committed to providing immediate and quality juvenile defense legal services to all our juvenile clients who face criminal charges within the three-strike law. Since 1983, we have work outed negotiations with prosecutors to ensure that our juvenile clients do not receive harsh and unwarranted penalties derived from the improper use of the three-strike laws.

Having Juvenile Defense Attorney Patricia Hattersley on your side will made an important difference in the outcome of your case. Juvenile Defense Attorney Patricia Hattersley has extensive criminal trial experience in adult court and has many years of experience defending minors in the Juvenile Court System.

Strikes for Juvenile Crimes Committed

A defendant who first received a felony strike conviction when he/she was younger may evade receiving punishments based on the three-strike laws. However, there is an age limit for juvenile crimes committed during that period. You must have been at least sixteen years at the time of committing the crime. In other words, if you committed any serious felonies beyond this age, but were still a minor, you cease to be protected by the juvenile restrictions that exclude you from a three-strike sentencing policy.

Serving Consecutive Sentences

A defendant involved in a serious or violent crime often engages in two or more offenses to cover up for the wrongful actions, or to coerce any witnesses at the scene of the crime. Depending on your case’s circumstances, you may be set to receive more than one strike in a single trial, if the prosecution can prove your engagement in multiple serious crimes.

If the prosecutor is successful, you will be found guilty of two or more criminal offenses, warranting three strikes by the end of the proceedings. Afterward, you will receive a sentence that relies on the evidence presented against you directly. You will, therefore, receive consecutive sentences for all the criminal activities you involve yourself in. As an example case, if you carjacked a motorist and drove off with the vehicle to commit first-degree burglary, the crimes attract two separate jail terms to be served consecutively. Speak with Los Angeles Juvenile Defense Attorney Patricia Hattersley Direct for a Free Case Review. 

The Legal Definition of Three Strike Laws

Before determining the defenses you will apply to your case, you need to understand what three-strikes laws are and the consequences they bring to you as a defendant. The California Penal Code gives a broad and elaborate definition of these laws under section 667. Overall, a three-strike law seeks to enhance punishment given to a previously convicted offender who has faced prior felony convictions. The section also states that the crime has to be listed as a violent or severe felony to apply the three-strike laws to the defendant facing the sentence.

For example, anyone who has committed two previous severe or violent felonies is likely to face a double sentence for the new charges.

Section 1192.7 of the Penal Code lists all the felonies that amount to serious crimes in California based on the gravity of the effect they have on the victim of the crime. Murder tops the list as one of the most serious crimes. Secondly, manslaughter also appears on the list of severe felonies for the grave effects caused when a suspect causes the death of another because of undue disregard for human life. Besides these two felonies, the list also includes crimes like:

If your charges involve any of the listed crimes, your conviction will undoubtedly attract a felony strike.

Additionally, Section 667.5 provides a list for all offenses that amount to violent felonies, similarly attracting a strike upon conviction. Usually, violent crimes involve using excessive force to effect an unlawful action on a crime victim. Therefore, you may be included in a forceful and illegal invasion of personal space or property. Moreover, crimes that involve exposing minors to inherent threats also fall under this category. Committing grand theft in possession of a firearm is one of the criminal activities that fall under the category of violent felonies. The violence caused while engaging in the theft amounts to a violent felony charge. Other crimes under the category are:

Despite the general classification of the felonies, you will face convictions depending on the strike level. It is crucial to learn of the consequences of facing charges as a second or third striker because you and your defense attorney will be prepared for the outcomes that await you.

Serving Consecutive Sentences

A defendant involved in a serious or violent crime often engages in two or more offenses to cover up for the wrongful actions, or to coerce any witnesses at the scene of the crime. Depending on your case’s circumstances, you may be set to receive more than one strike in a single trial, if the prosecution can prove your engagement in multiple serious crimes.

If the prosecutor is successful, you will be found guilty of two or more criminal offenses, warranting three strikes by the end of the proceedings. Afterward, you will receive a sentence that relies on the evidence presented against you directly. You will, therefore, receive consecutive sentences for all the criminal activities you involve yourself in. For example, if you carjacked a motorist and drove off with the vehicle to commit first-degree burglary, the crimes attract two separate jail terms to be served consecutively. However, your actions must have taken place at different times, giving rise to various sets of facts linked to you.

Convictions in Another State

You also need to know that facing a sentence for a serious or violent felony in another state does not exclude you from receiving sentences under the threes trike law. The prosecutor gets reports and records from databases like the Federal Bureau of Investigation and uses the information obtained to compare the California Penal Code’s rules with the elements of the crime you engaged in. Therefore, if your actions amounted to the commission of a serious crime, records will include your offense as a strike felony.

Adult defense

Practice areas

Attorney Patricia Hattersley and her law partner, Ray Fountain, have decades of experience in defending adults in all kinds of criminal cases ranging from misdemeanors such as theft and domestic violence charges to serious felonies including murder. They appear on all adult criminal cases filed within Los Angeles County