Murder Charges at the Central Justice Center: What to Expect
Nearly every murder case in Orange County runs through the Central Justice Center in Santa Ana. It is where the Orange County District Attorney’s homicide unit files its charges, where arraignments and preliminary hearings are held, and where most homicide trials take place. If you or a family member has been arrested for murder, or […]
Federal Sentencing Departures vs. Variances After the 2025 Changes
For twenty years, every federal defendant heard two words at sentencing, departure and variance, and almost nobody, including some lawyers, could explain the difference. Then, on November 1, 2025, the United States Sentencing Commission did something dramatic: it eliminated departures from the operative text of the guidelines almost entirely, collapsing federal sentencing from a three-step […]
Federal Plea Agreements in the Central District: Read Before You Sign
More than nine out of ten federal convictions end in a guilty plea, which means the most important document in most federal cases is not the indictment. It is the plea agreement, a dense contract drafted by the United States Attorney’s Office that will control your conviction, shape your sentence, waive rights you may want […]
Federal Public Corruption & Bribery Charges in Orange County
Orange County has learned in recent years that federal corruption prosecutions are not something that happens elsewhere. In June 2025, a former Orange County Supervisor was sentenced to five years in federal prison at the Federal Court in Santa Ana after pleading guilty to a bribery conspiracy involving more than $10 million in county contracts. […]
Federal Tax Evasion Charges in Orange County: IRS-CI Investigations
Two people in suits appear at your business or your front door. They identify themselves as special agents with IRS Criminal Investigation, show you gold badges, and say they’d like to ask a few questions. For most business owners and professionals in Orange County, that moment is the first visible sign of an investigation that […]
Federal Healthcare Fraud Charges in Orange County
In June 2026, the Justice Department announced its National Health Care Fraud Takedown: 455 defendants charged nationwide, roughly 90 of them doctors and other licensed medical professionals, in schemes alleged to involve more than $6.5 billion in false claims. Ten of those defendants were charged in the Central District of California — among them physicians […]
Federal Computer Fraud (CFAA) Charges in Orange County
The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act was written in 1986 to punish hackers breaking into government mainframes. Four decades later, it is the statute federal prosecutors reach for against a very different population: the software engineer who downloaded files before resigning, the IT administrator whose credentials still worked after termination, the founder whose company scraped […]
A New Chapter: The DA’s Review of the Menendez Brothers’ Convictions
The case of Lyle and Erik Menendez, convicted of the 1989 murders of their parents, José and Kitty Menendez, has once again captured public attention due to the recent release of Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story on Netflix. Over 30 years later, the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office is now reviewing their convictions, […]
