Once again, at the Los Angeles Superior Court- Criminal Justice Center in Downtown Los Angeles we represented a client previously convicted of violating Health and Safety Code section 11351.5 - Possession of Cocaine for Sale. This, of course, was a felony charge and since it is a controlled substance offense the Federal Government considers the charge an “Aggravated Felony” which will lead to deportation, exclusion and denial of naturalization.
We filed a motion under Penal Code section 1473.7(a)(1) alleging (and proving) that our client failed to meaningfully understand the immigration consequences of his plea. Of note, the case was initially calendared in front of a judge that does not look kindly on this type of motion or its litigants. Thus, we filed a motion under the California Code of Civil Procedure 170.6 call a Peremptory Challenge to have the judge removed from the case because of the judge’s “prejudice against the defendant or attorney”. This is a “one time” per case right to remove a judge that is believed or perceived to be biased against the moving party. There are time constraints and ethical rules in the filing of such a motion. We complied with both and we were successful in removing the judge. Ultimately, the judge and Deputy District Attorney where the case was heard both agreed with the assertions made in our motion and they agreed to the relief we sought. The motion to vacate was granted per Penal Code section 1473.7(a)(1) and the case was completely dismissed under Penal Code section 1385 - in the interest of justice. Fantastic victory!
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