Misdemeanor vs Felony Evading Arrest in Los Angeles
These evading arrest cases are very serious in Los Angeles because people could be killed on the highways. It puts not only citizens in jeopardy but also the police in jeopardy because they have to deal with these cases.
They take them seriously. If they have a legitimate felony evading case under California Vehicle Code 2800.2, they'll typically try to put somebody in prison.
A number of different factors really decide whether a case will be filed as a felony or a misdemeanor when it comes to an evading case in Los Angeles.
For example, the length of the chase is one of the big factors they look at, whether or not the person ran a particular number of red lights or stop signs because that's looking at the dangerousness level of the evading.
I had a case recently that was certainly an evading case because the client ran from the police. She had gotten into a fight with a family member, and then she drove around the block and just moved right back to the house.
It was less than a mile. If you need an example of a misdemeanor evading case, that's going to be a misdemeanor under California Vehicle Code 2800.1.
The extreme example of a felony evading case is: You run six red lights, you're dangerous, it's a 10-mile chase, and they have to get a helicopter involved—obviously, that will be a felony evading case.
That gives you a pretty good feel for the extremes in felony versus misdemeanor evading cases.
It gets a little more murky in these cases where something in between happens. The chase may be only a mile or two, and the person only runs a few red lights. You'll need to sit down and talk to your defense attorney about these things.
Prosecutors Make Filing Decision on Evading Arrest Case
The prosecutors will make their filing decision when they get the case. The police might book you for felony evading and give you a $30,000 or $50,000 bail, and then you go to court, and the prosecutor decides not to file a felony evading charge against you.
Or, they decide to file a felony evading charge, and somebody like me, who has a lot of experience, can convince them to give you a misdemeanor evading case.
Really, if you want to try to get a feel for it—and the idea of felony versus misdemeanor—look at the length of the chase, how many lights or stop signs are run, and whether there are pedestrians out on the road.
Look at how dangerous the situation was for the police and society, and also look at the person's criminal record. Suppose you have a horrible driving record and a prior evading case. In that case, you can bet your bottom dollar that the prosecutor will do everything they can to file and convict you of a felony evading charge.
So, the first thing you need to do when evaluating felony versus misdemeanor evading is talk to a criminal defense attorney. I've been doing this for so long that I will be able to see the fact pattern.
You're going to tell me what happened, and I'll give you an idea of whether or not I think it should be filed as a felony. I've seen somebody just try to avoid getting a ticket, so they quickly skirt down a street and go a couple of miles away. The police end up finding him, and they try to charge him with felony evading. That's ridiculous.
The police didn't even see him run any stoplights or do anything crazy to jeopardize anybody. They're just mad at the person because they tried to get away and avoid a traffic ticket. That's not a felony evading. That should be filed as a misdemeanor.
An experienced criminal defense attorney should be able to convince the prosecutors that the case is not worth a felony. Depending on the circumstances, it may not even be worth evading.
So, there's no exact science when it comes to criminal defense and evading in Los Angeles. The factors—the one main factor the prosecutors are going to look at—are how dangerous your behavior was to the community and police.
The more dangerous the charge, the more likely they are to file it as a felony. The less dangerous, the less likely it is to be filed as a felony, and the more likely you'll be able to avoid that felony conviction with the evading charge in Los Angeles. So, pick up the phone now. We can discuss your evading case, and I can see what I can do to get you the right result.
