Results

Mr. McCann’s client was arrested and charged with DUI with a blood alcohol level of .24 (three times the legal limit). Mr. McCann moved to suppress the evidence in court because the client’s vehicle was stopped without reasonable suspicion. The arresting officer alleged that the client had been driving his vehicle at night without his headlights on. Mr. McCann showed receipts and called the client and several friends to the stand to testify that, in fact, the client and his friends had just fixed the headlights that night, and the friends watched the client turn on his headlights and drive off just minutes before being stopped for allegedly not having his headlights on! The judge found the officer not credible and ruled that the client was stopped without reasonable suspicion. The judge ordered all the evidence suppressed. The district attorney was forced to dismiss their case. In the client’s DMV hearing, Mr. McCann successfully argued that the DMV’s only exhibit demonstrating any evidence of DUI—known as the “DS 367” form—was inadmissible as not having proper evidentiary foundation under Evidence Code § 1280. Consequently, the DMV hearing officer would not receive the document into evidence and was forced to set aside the action against the client.

Mr. McCann’s client and two neighbors were charged with felony Assault With a Deadly Weapon (Penal Code § 245(a)(1)) with a special allegation that great bodily injury was inflicted thereby making the charge a “strike”. The client had come home and found his girlfriend moving out and several strangers (one of whom included the complaining witness, a 300 lb. violent methamphetamine addict with a long rap sheet) removing the client’s property. The client, with the help of his two neighbors, asked the man to leave. When the man reacted violently, a scuffle ensued, leaving the man with serious facial lacerations and bruising. Mr. McCann was able to locate, and bring into court, witnesses and victims from the complaining witness’s prior arrests to show his violent character and history of methamphetamine use. In addition, Mr. McCann brought in character witnesses and evidence to show his client was a peaceful, law-abiding person who acted in self-defense. The jury came back quickly and acquitted all three defendants.

Mr. McCann’s client was a 19 year-old who was pulled over for weaving within his lane and straddling between lanes. The client was found to have a blood alcohol level of .06%. The client was charged in court with being a minor driving with a blood alcohol level over .05%, and he had his license suspended by the DMV until a hearing was held for violating the DMV’s “zero tolerance” law of being a minor with a blood alcohol level of .01% or higher. Mr. McCann filed a motion contesting the legality of the stop in court. Mr. McCann brought in witnesses to testify against the officer and show that the client was not weaving or straddling lanes and the judge dismissed the case. Mr. McCann also brought in numerous witnesses to the DMV hearing and showed through calculating speed, distance and time, that the client was not weaving or straddling lanes and, under current case law, the period of time during which the officer’s observations occurred was insufficient to support the officer’s alleged observations of weaving and lane-straddling necessary to justify the stop. The DMV set aside the suspension order and re-instated the client’s driving privileges. As a result of the dismissal by the court and the DMV, the client was able to keep his license and his job.

Mr. McCann’s client was a 24 year-old man on juvenile probation for attempted murder when he was arrested for Criminal Threats (Penal Code § 422) against his neighbor. Just prior to the client’s arrest, the neighbor’s son had recently been stabbed by the client’s son during an altercation. After that incident, the neighbor had called the police but the client’s child was not been arrested. The neighbor, though she had previously been friends with the client’s wife, never liked the client, and she was particularly upset at him for what his child had done to her child. Several days after the incident between their children, the neighbor alleged that the client approached her alone in a dark alley and said he would kill her for calling the police on his kid. The neighbor had the client arrested for allegedly threatening to kill her. The client was charged with the criminal threat as well as violating his juvenile attempted murder probation. Despite the fact the judge allowed the jury to learn the client was on probation for attempted murder, Mr. McCann showed that the neighbor was convicted thief who could not be believed, particularly because of her anger at the client for the incident involving her children. Mr. McCann then called witnesses to show that the threat could not have happened when the neighbor alleged it happened because the client was reading to his children at the time. Though before the trial the judge stated, “Mr. McCann, I don’t see how you have a defense to this case,” the jury came back and acquitted the defendant and the judge reinstated the client on probation.

Mr. McCann’s client was charged with multiple counts of fraud through the use of stolen credit cards. Due to the ineptitude of the federal investigator working the case, the case was not filed until 9 months after the incident, leaving the client with no memory of where she was the day the alleged fraud occurred. After a thorough investigation, Mr. McCann uncovered how a merchant mistakenly connected the client’s computer records to one of the fraudulent purchases. In addition, Mr. McCann was able to show through medical and pharmacy records that the client had a doctor’s appointment for her sick baby, and thus had an airtight alibi for the times during which the fraudulent purchases were made. After presenting this evidence to the district attorney, the case was dismissed.