Van Nuys DUI and Criminal Defense Lawyer
Growing up in the San Fernando Valley really does give me better perspective on my job of defending people charged with DUI or other criminal cases. I know where every police station in the Valley located. I know many of the spots where cops hang out looking to write tickets or make arrests. I know what bars are frequented by cops around closing time. I have even gotten to know many of the Valley Traffic Unit and DUI task force cops in the Valley. It’s actually kind of funny walking into court in Van Nuys and seeing the under-cover Valley Traffic cops waiting to see if their multiple offenders drive home from court.
The County of Los Angeles is a very interesting place to practice criminal law. It is both a huge geographical area and densely populated. There are many different Los Angeles Superior Courthouses spread throughout the county. In the San Fernando Valley proper there are two courthouses that handle criminal cases and DUI. North of Roscoe Boulevard the cases go to San Fernando Courthouse. South of Roscoe and all the way to Mulholland Drive, the cases go to Van Nuys Courthouse. This means that all the DUI’s on the 101 Freeway through the Valley are going to Van Nuys. This means that all the DUI’s on the 405 Freeway from Mulholland to Roscoe are going to Van Nuys. This means that all the DUI’s on the 170 Freeway in the South Valley are also going to Van Nuys. Ventura Boulevard, Sepulveda Boulevard, Topanga Canyon Boulevard, Burbank, Victory, Vanowen, Sherman Way and arrests from all the other streets in between go to Van Nuys Courthouse.
If your lawyer doesn’t know this, you probably have the wrong lawyer. If your lawyer spends his time doing television and radio ads and not practicing law, you probably have the wrong lawyer. If your lawyer advertises that he has offices in 87 different cities, you probably have the wrong lawyer. If you call your lawyers office and the person whose name is on the website is not the one you are talking to, you probably have the wrong lawyer.
My office is located on Ventura Boulevard in Encino, California. I don’t go to any court more than I go to Van Nuys, Courthouse. I did my first trial in Van Nuys as a certified law clerk, when I was interning for the Los Angeles City Attorney. I have sat as a volunteer judge in Van Nuys for 5 years. If the lawyer you are talking to about your criminal case can’t say these things, you may want to speak to another lawyer.
Van Nuys courthouse is an interest place. There are two different prosecutors in Van Nuys. The Los Angeles County District Attorney prosecutes all the felonies in the jurisdiction. They also handle the misdemeanor charges which occurred in the County of Los Angeles, but outside the city of L.A. This would be places like Calabasas and Agoura and Malibu. Since the closure of the Malibu Courthouse, Van Nuys has become an even more important court to the Valley area.
The Los Angeles City attorney prosecutes all the misdemeanors in the City of LA. This includes: DUI, domestic battery, theft, drugs, hit and run and many others. City Attorney Mike Feuer also has many special prosecution units. He hates guns and has unit in his office just to prosecute weapons related misdemeanors. These cases are normally sent downtown to the Central Courthouse or Clara Shortridge Foltz Courthouse at 210 W. Temple Street. The city also has a Neighborhood prosecutor who serves basically every courthouse within the city proper. They handle special prosecutions like neighbor disputes, code violations and other local problems.
Practicing DUI and criminal defense in Los Angeles has always been a very interesting job to me. I like going to work in Van Nuys, both because I good at it and I know the way the system works. They say that if you love what you do, you will never work a day in your life. I say that if I keep doing great work for my clients, it makes going to work in Van Nuys a lot of fun.
If you or someone close to you has been arrested for DUI, or any other criminal offense, And the court is going to be in Van Nuys, California. call a lawyer who knows how to pronounce Sepulveda, and who is a veteran criminal defense lawyer with a proven track record.
Jeffrey Vallens (818) 783-5700 Email me at: vallenslaw@yahoo.com
Visit my sites: www.4crminaldefense.com or www.westlakecriminaldefense.com