Difference Between Murder Charges And Other Criminally-Related Offenses
It's interesting because I do a lot of murder cases, and I've been doing criminal defense and handling all sorts of cases over the last twenty-five years. In general, there's no difference between murder cases and other offenses. In other words, it's a situation where someone is charged with doing something.
They either admit they did it and worked out some deal, or they said they didn't do it, and they go to trial and fight it. Then, it's a matter of the prosecutors proving the intent to kill for murder. They have to have malice.
There are several different ways to prove that. Then, they must prove that they committed whatever offense they are accused of. If it's a murder charge, they'll be accused of killing another person. Then, the prosecution will have to be able to block any defenses, like self-defense or defense of others.
So, it's not any different. I guess where the issue comes in is, number one, there's a lot on the line. If somebody committed a murder, a lot of times, they're looking at the rest of their life in prison, especially depending on how the murder was committed. Was a weapon used?
What were the circumstances of the murder? Are there any gang enhancements? A whole host of things can make the case more serious. The bottom line is that one big thing that makes murder cases different than other offenses is that there's a lot at stake.
Assigning a Specific Prosecutor
Another thing that I can put my finger on since I've done a lot of cases in Los Angeles that make these cases different from other cases is that the prosecutors will assign a specific prosecutor, which is not like other cases. Usually, the other cases go through the system.
Also, typically, whatever prosecutor is assigned to a murder case in Los Angeles probably just does murder cases, so they have a lot of experience. They have good connections with the police. They know how to investigate the cases and how to prosecute them. So, that definitely makes murder cases different from other cases in Los Angeles.
In handling many murder cases in LA, one thing I've seen is that the investigation is usually better than the investigation for other related offenses. For example, they will have seasoned homicide detectives—many years on the job—who know how to investigate these cases and have all the technology.
That's another little sub-category. They use a lot of technology in these cases. They do surveillance, wiretaps, and execute search warrants. They do all sorts of different things in these murder cases to get the result they want, which is a conviction. In my experience, the sophistication of the prosecutors and the investigation is better in LA than in any other crime.
Judges in Murder Cases
Another thing that differentiates murder cases from other cases — again, in my opinion — I'm just giving it to you from an insider criminal defense attorney — is that the judges are much more careful about what they do in these cases.
They're going to be more cautious about setting bail. The bail might get set higher than normal because when something goes wrong in these murder cases, judges will be held accountable if they didn't do what they were supposed to do related to the case.
I think judges are more scrutinized, so they will be much more careful about setting bail and ruling on the motions. That's another big thing because prosecutors often try to sneak in evidence in these murder cases. As a defense attorney, I will file a motion to block that evidence form from coming in if a judge is ruling in favor of the prosecution because they are worried that they will be perceived as too soft on crime.
It's going to get in the papers. There's a lot of political pressure on these judges in murder cases to make rulings that are acceptable to the public and acceptable to the powers that be, like law enforcement, the Police Association, etc.
Experienced Murder Defense Lawyer
You have to get an attorney who's done many of these cases. I've done a lot. I know how to handle these cases. I know what to do. I know how to angle the cases up, investigate them, and challenge the prosecutors.
The truth is, in a murder case in Los Angeles, there's just a handful of attorneys that try these cases. I've seen that many attorneys are afraid to try these cases. I've seen attorneys do Preliminary Hearings and try to negotiate instances. Suddenly, I got the case and asked the defendant, what happened to your other attorney?
And he said he doesn't take these cases to trial. Why is he even on the case in the first place? Would you be able to effectively investigate a case that you won't take to trial and don't have the ability, skill, and tenacity?
You've got to make sure you find the right attorney because if you don't, you or your loved one will be in a world of hurt, and sometimes, it can be too late to help yourself.
