Recently in Other Misdemeanors Category

Attention all business owners and store clerks in the city of Los Angeles:

Make sure that you do not sell a knife, blade, or any other stabbing weapon to anyone under the age of 18, if you want to avoid the possibility of developing a criminal record.

That's right, it is actually illegal to sell knives and daggers to a minor in Los Angeles. The law went into effect in 1993, when it was unanimously passed by the Los Angeles City Council and signed by Richard Riordan, who was the city mayor at the time. The Los Angeles Times reported that the city council passed the law in hopes of reducing injuries and deaths amongst youngsters.

Uninvited guests that show up to the Oscars, Golden Globes, Screen Actors Guild Awards, or any other glamorous Hollywood event might be able to walk away with just a slap on the wrist for the sin of party crashing. However, the Los Angeles Times reports that Assemblyman Anthony Portantino (D-La Canada Flintridge) hopes to change this.

The Assembly member has proposed a new law, Assembly Bill 451, which would make the act of party crashing a misdemeanor crime that would be punishable with up to six months in jail and a fine up to $1,000. The law would simply expand California's definition of trespassing so that unauthorized entry to exclusive events can be clarified, giving law enforcers guidelines on how to handle such a situation.

The Los Angeles Times reports that Mitrice Richardson was arrested almost one year ago for not being able to pay an $89 dinner tab at a Malibu restaurant. California Penal Code Section 537 states that such an offense is typically a misdemeanor crime and is punishable with a fine of up to $1,000 and up to six months in jail.

Anybody accused of getting food without paying always has the right to be represented by a Los Angles criminal defense attorney. Yet Mitrice Richardson never got herself a lawyer and after her arrest, she mysteriously went missing.

Mark Hull and Carlos Fuentes are just two of at least 45 people that were arrested outside the Los Angeles Staples Center on June 17, the night the Lakers won the 2010 NBA championship in Game 7. The two men are among the first people to be sentenced for their involvement in the LA Lakers riot.

The Los Angeles Times reports that 20-year-old Mark Hull was arrested after he threw rocks through the window of a business on Olive Street. Carlos Fuentes, 22, was arrested for kicking and breaking the rear lights on a police vehicle. Both men entered a plea of no contest earlier this week to one count of vandalism. They were each sentenced to 12 months of probation and 90 days in jail. A Los Angeles judge also ordered that the two men stay away from the Staples Center for the length of their probation.

A movie producer, who was convicted of recklessly operating an aircraft in a manner that endangered life and property, was sentenced last week to 60 days in jail and fined $900 for the misdemeanor crime. The Los Angeles Times also reports that Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Harold Cherness placed the defendant, David Riggs, on three years' probation and ordered the man to clean city beaches for 60 days.

Some Los Angeles criminal defense attorneys may argue that this is a stiff sentence for a misdemeanor crime. David Riggs faced a maximum sentence of six months in jail and a $1000 fine, but the violation comes from a rarely used section of the state public utilities code.

Chants of celebration echoed throughout the Los Angeles area last week after the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Boston Celtics in Game 7 of the NBA Finals. However, those chants quickly turned into riots, leading to at least 42 arrests in the area last Thursday on suspicion of crimes that included arson, assault on a peace officer, battery, public drunkenness, resisting arrest, vandalism, and disturbing the peace.

The Los Angeles Times reported that as of Monday, 10 people were being charged with crimes by the City Attorney's Office. Prosecutors say that they're taking a very strong stand against the suspects and plan to impose the maximum sentence for the misdemeanor crimes, which is six months to one year in the county jail.

It's not just young teenagers that are arrested for vandalism. John Scott's case shows law enforcers that elderly people can be vandals too.

The Los Angeles Times reports that 74-year-old John Scott's no contest plea officially makes him the oldest man to be convicted of misdemeanor vandalism in Los Angeles County. The man placed orange and black bumper stickers that read "Who is John Scott?" on city buses. The stickers led people to the website WhoIsJohnScott.com, which gave a mini biography of the man behind the stickers.

More than one dozen protesters chained themselves together, locked themselves in a circle, and blocked downtown traffic for four hours in protest of Arizona's new immigration law. This demonstration shows that SB 1070, the new Arizona law that criminalizes illegal immigrants, has already caused a string of trouble in Los Angeles.

KTLA News reports that protesters blocked the front entrance of the federal immigration detention center on Thursday to show their opposition to Arizona's new immigration law. They said that the detention center symbolizes the incarceration and internment of immigrants in this country, as well as a symbol for the separation of families.

Many residents of Huntington Beach have been waiting a long time to see 45-year-old John Patrick Rogers go to jail. The Orange County Register reports that the autistic man has 37 restraining orders against him, some of which have been granted due to videotaping of children, taunting homeowners, and sending defamatory letters to neighbors.

The man was arrested on Sunday afternoon when he was running through community common areas, which are apparently in violation of at least one of his 37 restraining orders. He was booked at the Huntington Beach city jail on $15,000 bail. Court records show that John Rogers already has an established criminal record, which includes convictions of lewd conduct, kidnapping and assault with a deadly weapon.

Los Angeles has strict sign laws when it comes to installing supergraphics and now city officials are cracking down on the use of such unpermitted signs.

The Los Angeles Times reports that the use of supergraphics, which are vinyl or plastic signs that can be draped across one or more sides of a building, can be legally troublesome. Forty-nine year old Kayvan Setareh was arrested last week for illegally erecting a supergraphic on Hollywood Boulevard. He was accused of violating three misdemeanor city code violations; two of which related to the the city's sign law.