Calabasas Criminal Defense Lawyer

Calabasas Criminal Defense Lawyer

Sheriff’s deputy pulls you over on Las Virgenes Road heading home to Calabasas from Malibu at 11 PM Saturday night—says you were weaving between lanes, asks if you’ve been drinking, you admit you had “a couple drinks” at Nobu with friends. Now you’re doing field sobriety tests on the shoulder, cars slowing down to watch, and you’re thinking “everyone I know drives this road after dinner.” Deputy asks you to blow into a Preliminary Alcohol Screening device, it reads 0.09%, and you’re in handcuffs in the back of an LA County Sheriff patrol car from the Malibu/Lost Hills Station. They transport you to the station for booking, take your photo and fingerprints, you post bail, and they hand you a citation with a court date at Los Angeles County Superior Court, Van Nuys, 14400 Erwin Street Mall six weeks away. You’re thinking “I need a lawyer” but you have no idea what this will cost, whether you can afford a private attorney or you’ll end up with a public defender, and whether paying $10,000 or $20,000 is worth it when you could just plead guilty and get it over with—except a DUI conviction means license suspension, SR-22 insurance at triple the cost for three years, potential jail time, and a permanent criminal record, and how much does a criminal defense lawyer cost in California? Hourly rates by experience level: entry-level defense attorneys charge $250 to $350 per hour, mid-level experienced attorneys charge $350 to $500 per hour, senior trial s charge $500 to $750 per hour, and top-tier Calabasas attorneys charge $750 to $1,200+ per hour. Flat fees depend on charge complexity—simple misdemeanor runs $2,500 to $7,500, complex misdemeanor like DUI or domestic violence runs $5,000 to $15,000, felony drug possession runs $10,000 to $25,000, felony theft or fraud runs $15,000 to $40,000, violent felony runs $25,000 to $75,000, and serious felonies like murder run $75,000 to $300,000+. What you get at each price point: at $2,500 to $7,500 you get basic representation covering arraignment and plea negotiations, at $10,000 to $25,000 you get full investigation including expert witnesses and suppression motions, and at $50,000+ you get private investigators, jury consultants, and aggressive pretrial litigation. The Los Angeles County Public Defender is free if you qualify based on income, but the average public defender handles 500 active cases—they have seven minutes to review your file before arraignment, they cannot spend 20 hours investigating your Fourth Amendment claim, they cannot hire a forensic toxicologist to challenge breathalyzer calibration. The Sixth Amendment guarantees you a lawyer, not an effective lawyer. The private attorney billing $500 per hour can spend 20 hours researching warrantless vehicle searches, file a suppression motion, force the prosecutor to defend the legality of the stop—and if evidence gets suppressed, case gets dismissed. Is that equal justice under law when access depends on your ability to write a $25,000 check?

How much is a retainer for a criminal defense lawyer? A retainer is an advance payment deposited into the attorney’s trust account—the attorney bills hourly against the retainer balance, sends monthly invoices showing hours worked, and either refunds unused portion or requires additional payment if the retainer runs out. Typical retainer amounts: misdemeanor cases require $5,000 to $15,000, felony cases require $15,000 to $50,000+, and murder or serious felonies require $100,000+. How billing works: you pay a $10,000 retainer, attorney bills 20 hours at $400/hour ($8,000), you get $2,000 refund. If attorney bills 30 hours ($12,000), you owe additional $2,000. Flat fees are predictable but higher upfront. Hourly retainers are cheaper if case resolves quickly but expensive if it goes to trial.

Read the retainer agreement carefully—some attorneys include non-refundable retainer clauses where they keep the entire retainer even if your case settles after one hour of work. California State Bar rules require retainers to be reasonable, but “reasonable” is subjective. The retainer system advantages wealthy Calabasas defendants who can pay $50,000 upfront. Poor defendants who cannot afford the retainer get appointed counsel—creating a two-tier justice system where access to investigation and aggressive litigation depends on wealth, not guilt or innocence.

Why are criminal defense lawyers so expensive? Investigation costs: private investigators charge $100 to $200 per hour, expert witnesses charge $300 to $500 per hour, specialized testing like blood analysis or digital forensics can cost $5,000 to $20,000 per expert. Motion practice requires hours of research—a suppression motion challenging illegal search requires 10 to 15 hours of case law research, briefing, and court appearance, a Pitchess motion to discover police misconduct requires 8 to 10 hours. Trial preparation for complex felony requires 100+ hours: jury selection, witness prep, exhibits, mock trials, cross-examination preparation. Opportunity cost—a private attorney can only handle 20 to 30 active cases if doing thorough investigation, compared to public defender handling 500+ cases.

The stakes justify the cost: criminal conviction means jail/prison time, permanent record on background checks, professional license revocation, deportation for non-citizens, sex offender registration, loss of gun rights. Training—attorneys graduate with $200,000+ student debt, pass the California Bar Exam, complete continuing education, spend years building relationships with prosecutors and judges at Van Nuys courthouse. Los Angeles County District Attorney has unlimited resources—dozens of prosecutors, investigators, crime lab, police witnesses all taxpayer-funded. The Constitution says government must prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt, but government outspends defense 1000-to-1. When the DA has a $1 billion budget and your public defender has 7 minutes per case, that’s not a fair fight.

What is the hardest crime to defend? Sex crimes, especially with child victims, are hardest because jury bias is overwhelming—accusation alone often leads to conviction, “believe the children” mentality, and even acquittal ruins life permanently. Defendant usually cannot testify without prosecution bringing up prior bad acts under Evidence Code Section 1108. Defense strategy: challenge forensic evidence with medical experts, challenge delayed reporting showing motive to fabricate, challenge suggestive interview techniques that planted false memories. Domestic violence with evidence—photos, 911 calls, witnesses—is nearly impossible to overcome. Defense strategy: argue self-defense, argue alleged victim was primary aggressor, challenge exaggeration of injuries, argue mutual combat.

Drug sales within 1000 feet of school under Penal Code Section 11353.6 carry mandatory minimums with no jury sympathy. Defense strategy: challenge whether it was “sale” or possession for personal use, challenge 1000-foot measurement, negotiate to simple possession. DUI causing serious injury/death—vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated under PC 191.5(a) carries 4 to 10 years prison, victim’s family in courtroom every day, media coverage, public outrage. Defense strategy: challenge causation showing accident was weather/other driver’s fault, challenge BAC testing with rising blood alcohol defenses, negotiate to wet reckless if injury minor. Crimes on surveillance video—body cams, security cameras, dashcams—leave little room for doubt. Defense strategy: challenge video quality/timestamp/angles, argue video doesn’t show intent, challenge chain of custody, argue Fourth Amendment violation.

The hardest crimes are where jury decides guilt before hearing evidence. Jury selection—voir dire—is critical to strike jurors who cannot be fair, but prosecutor gets to strike too. Presumption of innocence is beautiful theory, but reality in many cases is presumption of guilt until proven innocent. Defendant must overcome not just evidence but jury bias, media narrative, and natural tendency to trust law enforcement.

212-300-5196.