Why are Criminal and DUI Cases Very Different in Ventura and Los Angeles Counties?
I have long joked that Ventura and LA are right next door to each other yet worlds apart. What does this really mean and how does it affect your criminal or DUI case? The answer is complex so I thought I might write an article (or two) about it.
First, Ventura is a very small county although there are still multiple law enforcement agencies in the county. On the West side of the County there are the Ventura Police Department and the Oxnard Police Department. On the East side of the County, we have the Simi Valley Police Department and, of course, throughout the County we have the Ventura County Sheriff and the California Highway Patrol. The sheriff services all the unincorporated portions of the County as well as specific contracted cities including Thousand Oaks and Camarillo.
Los Angeles County is a monster by comparison. I will not get into the list of police agencies in the County, but I will say that the two largest agencies are the Los Angeles County Sheriff and the Los Angeles Police Department. Some other larger agencies are the Santa Monica Police Department, the Airport Police Department at LAX and even UCLA has its own actual police department.
Los Angeles County statistics show that their police to population ratio was about 2 police officers to every 1,000 people back in 2021. By contrast, Ventura County, which seems much more tight-lipped about their stats had almost 3 police officers for every thousand people back in 2017. I’m sure there are more cops in the county in 2025 than there were back then. That’s almost 50% more cops in Ventura County than in LA County.
Ventura County and its population of 830,000 residents encompasses about 2200 square miles and 10 incorporated cities. Los Angeles and its population of almost 10 million, at 4084 square miles has 88 incorporated cities and the largest population of any county in the United States. It’s larger than the states of Delaware and Rhode Island combined.
If you think for a second that these numbers don’t affect the way things work in court, you really need to think again. The reason why Ventura County can be so hard on crime is not only political, but it is also very practical. Ventura County has the time and resources to be tougher on crime. It’s really that simple. Their jails are less crowded. Their officers have less miles to police and less people upon whom to enforce the law. Their courts are not as crowded and, as a consequence of all these things, their punishments seem to be harsher than in Los Angeles.
What does this mean in your case? In Los Angeles, prosecutors are overwhelmed with their huge caseloads. Trial courts are backlogged with heavy calendars and cases needing to go to trial. The Los Angeles County District Attorney is massively understaffed. In some cases, they have to postpone case because they do not have the manpower to conduct the trials that are stacked up in the courts. This could result in a favorable settlement for the defense. This could also result in very little time to talk to a prosecutor or a judge about a case resolution or about the particular nuances of any one particular case.
In Ventura County, things work a bit differently. For the last few decades that I know of, we have been able to sit down with a DA and a judge to talk about resolving cases. We may not have tremendous amount of time, but we actually get to have a meaningful conversation about the case and whether or not it can be resolved at the early stages of the proceedings. The problem after that is a bit different in Ventura. In LA we may not have a sit-down with a judge at the early stages. But, if a case is gearing up for trial, we will usually have some opportunity to talk settlement, and it could be a good shot at resolution.
In Ventura, if the case doesn’t settle at the early settlement stages or “EDC”, there may not be another chance for settlement unless the DA’s case is really falling apart. In LA, the early settlement process or “EDP” is all but a joke and often is a worthless court setting with no discussion about the merits of the case.
Another big difference between the two counties has to do with the charges themselves. All prosecutors have certain duties when assessing cases and filing charges. They are not supposed to file cases unless they believe they can prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt. Ventura takes this theory to the end of the case. Once they file a case, they seek a plea to one or more of the charged counts. If a judge wishes to offer a lesser sentence than the DA, as is often the case, that’s the way it goes.
In Los Angeles, prosecutors will regularly bargain with the actual charges as well as the sentence. It should be noted that only the prosecutor can change the charge itself. The judge cannot look at a case and say, “o.k. I’ll let you plead guilty to a lesser charge”. Only the prosecutor, normally the district or city attorney gets to decide the charges to file and whether or not to change them for purposes of a settlement.
Taking this back to where we began, how does all this shake out in your criminal or DUI case? It’s very important to know how things work in county where you are being prosecuted. It’s very important to know the policies and procedures for getting the best outcome for your client. If you practice “LA law” in Ventura, the client is going to get the short end of the stick. And by contract, if you don’t know how things shake out in LA, the client can suffer as well.
I grew up in the Valley and now live in Ventura County. I practice in both Counties, and I always have. I like it that way. It’s fun to see different people and work in different places and see the nuances of the way to work in the two very different jurisdictions.
If you or someone close to you has been arrested in LA or Ventura County and is facing criminal charges including DUI, call a lawyer who has spent over two decades getting good results for his clients in these two places. Please do not call the lawyer who sends you a letter in the mail or the one who pays the most to advertise on Google. The lawyers with the best websites are the lawyers who spend the most money on marketing, not the best lawyers for your case.
Call for consultation:
Attorney Jeffrey Vallens (818) 783-5700
www.4criminaldefense.com www.westlakecriminaldefense.com www.jeffreyvallens.com