My daughter is in jail for arson. She was living with her business partner who is a man. They lived in an apt. Her business partner was obsessed with my daughter. My daughter had no feeling for him. This man would sit naked in front of my daughter's room door with his laptop in his lap so when she opened her door she would see him naked. This man also looked at child porn.
The day my daughter was arrested this man was sexually harassing her and threatening her. He wouldn't let her use her own phone so she couldn't call the cops or anyone. She started the fire on her balcony in hope to get help. She managed to get a hold of her phone and called the cops. When the cops arrived she put out the fire. The fire was very small and easy to put out. The cops talked to her business partner first. When my daughter finally got to to the cops they arrested her for arson. Nothing she said mattered.
My daughter didn't know the law about starting a fire in an apartment. She didn't know how serious starting a fire was if she did she never would have started this fire.
The judge offered her 2 years, however, she is still pleading not guilty.
Her bail is so high ($117,000) we can't afford to bail her out. Her Public Defender said that at her next court date (Jan 5, 2012) she should be OR'd if not he will ask for her bail to be lowered. He also said her case should be dismissed.
my question is if my daughter's Public Defender thinks her case should be dismissed why are they keeping her in jail for this long? My daughter was arrested on 11/15/2011 to present. And what is the punishment for arson in Long Beach, California?
That your daughter "didn't know the law about starting a fire in an apartment" is irrelevant. What matters is whether her actions amounted to arson, not whether she *knew* they amounted to arson. It sounds like they did.
You say that the judge offered her a deal, but that's not how it works. Judges have no authority to do such things in California. Only the prosecutor can offer a deal; the judge can then say whether she will go along with it, which she usually will.
Whether the case will be dismissed is also primarily up to the prosecutor. He can ask the court to dismiss it, and again the court will probably grant such a request. But a prosecutor who successfully argued for a high bail is probably not eager to dismiss the case unless something significant has changed in the interim. Nothing you have written suggests that there has been such a change in your daughter's case. I sympathize with the PD's belief that the case *should* be dismissed or that your daughter should at least be released OR in the meantime, but that does not mean either of these things is likely to happen.
The best thing you can do for your daughter is get her a private lawyer. Most public defenders are very competent but also very overworked. They simply can't give enough time to their cases. A good private attorney is more likely to have ample time. Not all private attorneys are good, though, so don't just pick the first one you find that proposes a reasonable fee.
Good luck.
That your daughter "didn't know the law about starting a fire in an apartment" is irrelevant. What matters is whether her actions amounted to arson, not whether she *knew* they amounted to arson. It sounds like they did.
You say that the judge offered her a deal, but that's not how it works. Judges have no authority to do such things in California. Only the prosecutor can offer a deal; the judge can then say whether she will go along with it, which she usually will.
Whether the case will be dismissed is also primarily up to the prosecutor. He can ask the court to dismiss it, and again the court will probably grant such a request. But a prosecutor who successfully argued for a high bail is probably not eager to dismiss the case unless something significant has changed in the interim. Nothing you have written suggests that there has been such a change in your daughter's case. I sympathize with the PD's belief that the case *should* be dismissed or that your daughter should at least be released OR in the meantime, but that does not mean either of these things is likely to happen.
The best thing you can do for your daughter is get her a private lawyer. Most public defenders are very competent but also very overworked. They simply can't give enough time to their cases. A good private attorney is more likely to have ample time. Not all private attorneys are good, though, so don't just pick the first one you find that proposes a reasonable fee.
Good luck.
