Warrants, as they relate to California sex crimes, can be dangerous.  For example, in Los Angeles County, where I do a lot of business, the police come in with guns-a-blazing when it comes to warrants for sex crimes.  They come in in force. 

When they're looking for people, they go into homes, businesses; it's dangerous.  You don't want to be in a position where you're not even armed, but the police have you down as a dangerous sexual predator, and they decide to take the law into their own hands.

So, suppose you or a loved one has a warrant for a sex crime in Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Orange County, Santa Barbara County, Riverside County. In that case, we go everywhere – Fresno, Visalia – I've been all over California defending people for sex crimes. 

Suppose you've got a warrant; you need to get it taken care of.  I know the strategy to do it.  We bring you into court.  You've come in and hired an attorney works to your advantage.  The judges see that you want to take care of the case. 

It takes the prosecutor's argument away that you're a flight risk because if you were a flight risk, why would you be here with a hired attorney ready to turn yourself in and deal with a warrant?

The next obstacle to try to overcome is whether or not you're a danger to the community. Of course, that's done by looking at the facts of your case, your criminal record, and having one of the best attorneys related to sex crimes in California. Our sex crime defense lawyers will cover this topic in more detail below.

What are the Most Common Sex Crime Charges in California?

• Penal Code 311 PC – child pornography,
• Penal Code 647.6 PC – child molestation,
• Penal Code 288 PC – lewd acts with minor,
• Penal Code 288a PC – oral copulation with minor,
• Penal Code 290 PC – failing to register as a sex offender,
• Penal Code 314 PC – indecent exposure,
• Penal Code 647(b) PC – prostitution and solicitation,
• Penal Code 243.4 PC - sexual battery,
• Penal Code 261PC – rape,
• Penal Code 261.5 PC – statutory rape,
• Penal Code 266h PC – pimping,
• Penal Code 266i PC – pandering,
• Penal Code 288.4 PC – arranging a meeting with a minor,
• Penal Code 288.2 PC – harmful material to seduce minor,
• Penal Code 288.3 PC - contact minor to commit a felony,
• Penal Code 288.5 PC - continuous sexual abuse of a child,
• Penal Code 289 PC - sexual penetration with a foreign object,
• Penal Code 647(a) PC – lewd conduct in public,
• Penal Code 647(J)(4) PC – revenge porn,
• Penal Code 653.22 PC - loitering for prostitution,
• Penal Code 653.23 PC - supervising or aiding a prostitute.

How Does a Judge Set Bail?

Every California county has a local bail schedule for specific crimes. After your arrest for an outstanding warrant, your family can examine the bail schedule or ask a bail bondsman to determine the bail amount.

If arrested for a misdemeanor sex crime warrant, such as a sexual battery, you will have the chance of getting released with no bail after getting booked at the jail. If the sex crime is listed on the bail schedule, you will usually be required to post a bond. The judge will typically continue with the original bail or modify it at the first court appearance.

Your criminal defense lawyer can request a bail hearing to challenge it within two days after your arraignment. After the bail hearing, the judge has options to leave the bail amount, increase it, decrease it, or release you on your own recognizance (OR).

If it's a severe sex crime, the judge will set a higher bail amount.  When deciding the bail amount, they will review:

• Type of sex crime you are charged with,
• flight risk,
• risk to society,
• bail schedule,
• prior criminal record, and
• any failures to appear in court.

The two primary factors are whether you are a flight risk and a danger to the community. A judge will review whether you have family, children, or property in California you don't want to leave behind on the flight risk issue. The judge will also examine the possibility of committing additional crimes if you are released on bail.

See related: Child Pornography Search Warrants

Contact the Hedding Law Firm for Help with a Warrant

You've come to the right place.  I've been doing this for 30 years.  I worked for the DA's office early in my career; then, I worked for a Superior Court Judge. Finally, I became a criminal defense attorney defending people for sex crime cases, walking people in on warrants in the early 1990s.

If you or a loved one has a warrant, pick up the phone.  Make the call.  Let's talk about your warrant.  If you're serious, we'll get a strategy together so you can avoid possibly getting hurt or even killed as they try to catch you in a sex crime case with a warrant.

Another wrong move is just to bury your head in the sand and do nothing is, when they finally do catch you, you're going to have a real difficult time getting out because the judge is going to be of the mindset that they would have never got you if they didn't catch you the way that they did. 

In other words, you were never going to turn yourself in.  You were never going to deal with the warrant.  So, why would they let you out now?  They might as well hold you no bail while dealing with the case, especially on a serious sex crime.

You've come to the right place if you're looking to hire the best attorney possible for your sex crime case and all the bad things with a conviction for sex crimes.  Now is not the time to go cheap.  Now's the time to hire the best.  It's raining, and you need the best criminal defense attorney on your side.

Make the call.  Ask for a meeting with Ron Hedding.  We can meet via zoom or on the phone or have you come into the office in privacy and put together a plan. The Hedding Law Firm is located in Los Angeles County and helps people across Southern California. Call us for a free case review, or you can fill out our contact form.

See related: Search and Seizure of Computers in Sex Crimes Cases