Recent Posts in Methamphetamine Category

An Anaheim, California man has been arrested and charged with manufacturing methamphetamine in the living room of his 87-year-old bedridden aunt. The methamphetamine lab was discovered by police while conducting a welfare check on the elderly woman after her granddaughter to say she had not heard from her grandmother in three months, according to a statement by the Orange County district attorney's office.

Police arrested Thomas George Hogue, the caretaker of his aunt, who was confined to her bed in another room. He is being charged with one felony count each of manufacturing methamphetamine and elder and dependent adult abuse. If convicted, he faces a maximum of eight years in state prison.

A methamphetamine manufacturing conviction can be produce severe consequences. Therefore, it is critical that you discuss your case with an aggressive Los Angeles methamphetamine manufacturing criminal defense lawyer immediately. If you are facing any type of drug crime, you will need an experiences lawyer to take immediate action and to represent you at a bail hearing. Criminal defense lawyers Donald Marks and Anthony Brooklier have been able to successfully challenge evidence obtained improperly and have methamphetamine manufacturing criminal charges reduced, or even dismissed. When you retain Marks & Brooklier as your criminal defense lawyers, you can be assured you will have the best legal counsel representing you. Contact our office today for your free consultation.

A man identified as a drug kingpin and a key defendant in a federal gang sweep was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for overseeing the racketeering and drug activities of the Varrio Hawaiian Gardens street gang. George Manuel Flores was arrested in 2009 as part of Operation Knockout, one of the nation's largest gang sweeps. He was labeled a leader in the Hawaiian Gardens gangs and was accused of ordering gang members to collect taxes from drug dealers in this Los Angeles county city. He pleaded guilty to five counts including racketeering conspiracy, being a felon in possession of ammunition and other drug charges. Flores was sentenced by a United States District Judge, who is presiding over the 57-defendant racketeering indictment. Prosecutors portrayed Flores as a drug lord.

As part of his guilty plea, he admitted to distributing mass quantities of drugs, including more than 30 kilograms of heroin, more than 4.5 kilograms of crack cocaine, more than 1.5 kilograms of pure methamphetamine, more than 15 kilograms of narcotics that contained methamphetamine, and more than 100 kilograms of marijuana.

The investigation began after Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputy Jerry Ortiz was murdered in 2005 by a gang member he was attempting to arrest. In 2009, about 170 gang members were taken into custody in the massive operation. Flores is the last defendant to be sentenced in this federal prosecution. Marcos Romero was sentenced last November to 291 months in federal prison for being a primary wholesaler of narcotics. Brian Viramontes was sentenced in September to 210 months in federal prison for distributing narcotics. This case also revealed a link between the Nazi Low Riders and the gang. Frank Wayne Henley, a member of the Nazi Low Riders gang, was sentenced last November to 262 months in federal prison for supplying members of the Hawaiian Gardens gang with methamphetamine and heroin.

Federal crimes can be labeled as such by falling under federal legislation of Title 18 of the United States Code. A federal crime is defined as a crime that is either made illegal by falling under this legislation, or because of occurring on federal property. Federal crimes are normally investigated by the FBI and are tried in the Federal Court system. Federal courts have their own governing rules and regulations which are different from California State laws. If you are facing federal criminal charges, you will need to discuss your case with a federal criminal defense lawyer who has the special knowledge of this area of the law. At Marks & Brooklier, we have qualified Los Angeles federal criminal defense attorneys to represent you.

Federal criminal defense attorneys Donald Marks and Anthony Brooklier are uniquely qualified to represent you in court. They have represented defendants in virtually every major organized crime case prosecuted in Southern California. In 1980, Marks & Brooklier was lead counsel in the "Los Angeles Mafia" case in a major RICO conspiracy case. Conact our office anytime, 24/7, for a free case evaluation. All consultations are strictly confidential.

The investigation into the home on the 13700 block of Polk Street began with a tip received by narcotics detectives at the Los Angeles Police Department's Foothill division. Foothill detectives went to the home and found nine people there. Eventually bomb squad and Special Weapons and Tactics officers were called out, along with several Los Angeles fire trucks. Officers seized a rifle, a silencer and a stolen car and were beginning to search an evacuated part of the property.

Because of the severity of the sentencing that can occur with a methamphetamine conviction, it is important that you consult an aggressive Los Angeles methamphetamine criminal defense lawyer immediately. If you have been arrested for any type of drug crime, you will need an attorney to take immediate action on your behalf to represent you at a bail hearing and proceed with the necessary actions to move your case forward. Criminal defense lawyers Donald Marks and Anthony Brooklier have been able to challenge evidence obtained improperly and have charges reduced, or even dismissed. When you retain Marks & Brooklier as your criminal defense attorneys, you can be assured you will have the best counsel representing you. Contact our office today for your free consultation.

A United States Attorney in San Diego, California announced that Augustin Jaime Lopez-Ceballos was sentenced to serve 181 months in prison after his guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, distribution of methamphetamine, and possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense. United States District Judge Jeffrey T. Miller, who imposed the sentence, previously ordered Lopez-Ceballos to forfeit his interests in ten firearms, including handguns, shotguns, and rifles, and ammunition that were seized in connection with the offense.

The sentence imposed on Lopez-Ceballos resulted from an investigation begun in 2008 by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department and the East County Regional Gang Task Force. The investigation identified Lopez-Ceballos as a methamphetamine distributor operating out of Spring Valley, California. According to court documents, Lopez-Ceballos used conspirators, including a juvenile, as couriers to distribute methamphetamine in east San Diego County.

Lopez-Ceballos is the final defendant to be sentenced from this investigation. The court previously sentenced co-defendants Dianne Lynn Pinal to serve 48 months in prison; Rafael Gaspar-Alvorado to serve 48 months in prison; and Felipe de Jesus Lopez-Lopez to serve 30 months in prison.

Federal criminal defense lawyers Donald Marks and Anthony Brooklier have been representing clients on drug conspiracy and distribution crimes for over 30 years. We are well aware of all the issues and complexities that can arise from such drug charges and have successfully handled hundreds of cases. When faced with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine charges you need an experienced Los Angeles and United States drug conspiracy and distribution criminal defense lawyer with experience in representing clients for federal drug crimes. If you have been charged with a drug distribution crime in California, we recommend you contact us in order to begin to prepare your case for a successful defense.

According to a 26-count indictment filed on October 7, 2010, Amador Eli Rosales aka Eli Rosales, 32; Tony Rosales, 29; Albert Vasquez, 40; Adrianna Cano, 33; Jonathan Gonzalez, 32; Michael Leonard Lovato, 44; Michael Valentino Lovato, 21; Andre Kovacs, 44; Nicole Garcia, 32; Derick Noble, 27, all of Sacramento; and James Murphy, 55, of Elk Grove, are charged with conspiring to distribute methamphetamine, the distribution of methamphetamine, and the unlawful use of a communication facility. Bryan Perez, 33, of Sacramento was indicted separately for two counts of distribution of methamphetamine. According to court documents, during the course of this investigation, Eli Rosales and others sold methamphetamine to a confidential source.

This case is the product of an extensive investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Safe Streets Task Force, which includes the Sacramento Police Department, the California Highway Patrol, and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, assisted by the Sacramento HIDTA (High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area) team. 

Nine defendants appeared for arraignment and entered not guilty pleas before United States Magistrate Judge Dale A. Drozd. Albert Vasquez and James Murphy have not yet been arrested. Derick Noble is in state custody on other charges and will be transferred to federal custody at a later date.

U.S. Attorney Wagner said, “Methamphetamine is a highly dangerous drug infecting our communities. Targeting methamphetamine distributors is an effective way to combat the spread of this drug, while also reducing the violence and other criminal activity associated with meth trafficking.”

Special Agent in Charge Parenti said, “The FBI has a long and successful history of utilizing the Safe Streets Violent Crime Initiative with our law enforcement partners across the country to combat violent crime. The indictments and arrests related to this case offer further proof that this approach to rooting out the criminals plaguing our neighborhoods is working.”

The statutory penalty for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine is a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years up to life, a fine of $4 million or both; the maximum penalty associated with the distribution of methamphetamine is 40 years in prison depending on the quantity and purity levels; the penalty for unlawful use of a communication facility is up to four years in prison or $250,000 fine or both. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

Criminal defense attorneys Donald Marks and Anthony Brooklier have been representing clients on drug trafficking matters since 1976. We are well aware of all the issues and complexities that can arise from such charges and have successfully handled numerous cases for our clients. When faced with drug trafficking charges you need experienced Los Angeles drug trafficking criminal defense lawyers with extensive experience in representing clients for drug crimes. Such charges could include offenses for drug possession, drug trafficking and other drug related charges. If you or someone you know has been charged with a drug crime, we recommend you contact us in order to begin to prepare your case for a successful defense.