Theophilus “Theo” Lacy,  was a farmer, stable operator, and former Santa Ana town treasurer. He was also Orange County’s second (1891-95) and fourth (1899-1911) sheriff. Because the county was principally agricultural and sparsely populated, however, Lacy didn’t have much to do other than chase vagrants, look into an (infrequent) fight or robbery, and oversee the simple… Continue reading The History of Theo Lacy and Orange County’s Jails

Is it a crime to be poor?   by Scott Miner Lightnin’ Hopkins, the most heavily recorded blues musician once wrote a song entitled “It’s a sin to be rich, it’s a low-down shame to be poor”. The United States Justice Department recently issued a ruling stating that holding defendants in jail is unconstitutional based on… Continue reading Is it a crime to be poor? (We don’t think so)

When seeking bail bond services in Orange County, you should understand how much it will ultimately cost you and how this process works. Generally speaking, you will be charged a rate of between 8 and 10 percent on any bail bond in California. This rate is applied to the amount of money that it costs… Continue reading Orange County Bail Bonds Payment Plans and Financing

When dealing with a bail bonding company, it is best that you are aware of the procedure and the steps that you must follow in order to complete this transaction. The goal here is to help you or your loved one get out of jail while awaiting a court date and bail bonds companies are… Continue reading How Does a Bail Bond Work in Orange County?

We frequently hear in the news that a certain politician, entertainer or business executive is being accused or charged with some type of sexual impropriety, misconduct or sex crime.  What are the consequences of being charged with a sex crime and what can you do?   Being charged with a Criminal Sexual Conduct (CSC) crime or… Continue reading Criminal Sexual Conduct Charges and the Law

Overcrowding has long been a problem in California’s prisons and jails.  In 2006, Gov. Schwarzenegger declared a Prison Overcrowding State of Emergency Proclamation because of the severity of the problem.  As a means to deal with this problem, voters approved Prop. 47 in 2014, downgrading certain drug and property related offenses from felonies to misdemeanors. The… Continue reading Early Release of Prisoners in California and What it Means for the State

California’s Proposition 47 was hailed as a fix for the state’s burdened criminal justice system before its passage in November. Only a few months later, it’s looking like the proposition is in need of repair itself. Its passage was supposed to decriminalize the least serious offenses and reduce the state’s crowded prison populations. Law enforcement… Continue reading Proposition 47 Votes in Unexpected Trouble

A Bureau of Justice Statistics special report estimates that more than half of all prisoners and jail inmates have or had some form of undiagnosed or diagnosed mental health problem. This is compounded by rampant substance abuse issues already facing many of these inmates. California prisons and jails have become homes for people with mental… Continue reading Orange County California Jails Turning into Mental Hospitals as the Number of Mentally Ill Inmates Increases

Pressure has continued to build up in local jails in Orange County after changes which were introduced in order to reduce the population in state prisons. The state law which is referred to as AB109 required non serious and low level offenders to be sentenced to county jails instead of state prison in order to… Continue reading Orange County Jails More Dangerous Than Ever

A plan that was designed to reduce prisoners’ population in state prisons has had very negative effects on county jails in Orange County. According to the new state laws passed a few years ago, lower level criminals are transferred from state prisons to local jails in order to serve the remainder of their sentence. This… Continue reading Violence is on the Rise in Orange County Jails