Practice Areas

Whether you are facing serious felonies or a simple misdemeanor offense, the Law Office of Orchid Vaghti has the experience and expertise to work with you to the end and get you the results you are entitled to.

The Law Office of Orchid Vaghti provides zealous representation to clients, in and out-of-custody, in a wide range of criminal cases including drug and marijuana offenses, DUIs, theft offenses, financial crimes, sex crimes, and domestic violence offenses as well as representing clients in violations of probation, DMV actions, Proposition 47 petitions, and expungement petitions. 

DUI and other driving offenses

Driving under the influence or alcohol with a BAC of .08 or above is against the law in the state of CA, but that doesn’t mean you should suffer to the fullest extent of the law. Many DUI cases are defensible, but you need someone who knows the law and who can get you results. The Law Office of Orchid Vaghti specializes in this area of criminal defense and will represent you in the DMV proceedings as well as the superior court proceedings.

Driving under the influence of drugs may be more subjective, as it is dependent officer’s opinion that the driver was under the influence of a drug at the time of driving.

Marijuana related offenses

The Law Office of Orchid Vaghti is here to answer any questions regarding an arrest for a marijuana crime, execution of a search warrant on your property or any marijuana related questions. This area of law is regularly changing, often times providing additional protections for those who use, grow or distribute medical marijuana. You need an attorney who keeps up with the relevant laws and issues; someone who feels strongly about the wrongful prosecution of medical marijuana patients and collectives and who will vigorously defend medical marijuana patients who were falsely accused of violating the law, the Compassionate Use Act.

Drug charges

While possession for personal use of methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin, and other drugs are misdemeanor offenses, sales or the possession for sales of drugs, including marijuana, are felony offenses.

Often times, felony and misdemeanor drug offenses can carry a lesser sentence or a possible dismissal, but you need someone who knows the law and will aggressively advocate for you.

Domestic violence charges

Most criminal cases are not black and white, however, domestic violence offenses are particularly grey. CA law encourages officers responding to a domestic dispute or domestic violence call to arrest to person who is the most aggressive of the parties or the one who first initiates the physical aggression. Bottom line; someone is going to jail.

Whether bail is posted or the judge releases you on your own recognizance, much needs to be determined in order to have proper representation as soon as you are released from jail. Is there an emergency protective order? Is the alleged victim filing for a temporary or permanent restraining order? If so, you need to know how this affects you and what your restrictions are so you do not violate the order. Also, does the other party involved wish to cooperate with the District Attorney? If they do not wish to cooperate and choose not to testify, your charges could be significantly reduced or even dismissed. This is not automatic however, which is why you need an attorney who will stand beside you and who knows the ins and the outs of the law when it comes to domestic violence charges.

Probation and parole violations

Probation grants are either formal or informal, depending on the conviction. Informal probation is unsupervised and the convicted party is given guidelines to follow for a term usually lasting 12-36 months. A violation of probation typically happens when the probationer is contacted by law enforcement for violating a term of their probation, whether or not a new law violation has occurred.

Formal probation is similar to informal probation, however, the probationer is supervised by a probation officer who they will be required to regularly check in with. They may be required to submit to drug and alcohol testing, attend counseling or drug treatment, pay various fines or fees, pay any victim restitution, and submit to search of their person and home without a warrant, along with other various terms.

If a person violates their probation, they may face additional sentence requirements, which could include serving time in jail. However, depending on the violation and the circumstances surrounding it, the court may allow you an additional to remain on probation without having additional sentence requirements.

Parole is the period of supervised release that occurs after a person has been released from the state prison on a felony case. The term of parole is usually 3 years. However, persons who do exceptionally well on parole are oftentimes discharged from parole in shorter periods of time.

If a person is accused of violating their parole, they are entitled to a hearing before a Department of Corrections hearings officer. At this hearing, the parolee is entitled under certain circumstances to have an attorney present. These circumstances include when the parolee is accused of violating his parole by committing a new serious crime.

Expungement and Proposition 47 petitions

Have you been convicted of a felony or a misdemeanor and completed your probationary period? Well there are many ways to minimize the legal effects of that conviction by petitioning for an expungement of your record. Felony convictions may be eligible for a reduction to a misdemeanor and under certain circumstances, be expunged from your record.

You may also be eligible for relief under Proposition 47, which passed in November 2014. Prop 47 reduces simple drug possession charges from felonies to misdemeanors. [Health and Safety Code sections 11350, 11377, 11357(a)].

There are certain qualifications that must be met before petitioning, which is why you need a competent attorney who can tell you what you need to do in order to qualify for this relief from the court.

Juvenile offenses

Getting the call that their child has been arrested is a parent’s worse nightmare. The most important thing a parent can do when their child has been arrested or accused of a crime is to call an attorney who has experience in handling juvenile cases and who can show compassion for what their family is experiencing. You will have a lot of questions surrounding your child’s case and recent arrest and the Law Office of Orchid Vaghti is here to help you through this difficult time while providing the highest level of representation for your child.

Other criminal charges

The Law Office of Orchid Vaghti covers a wide range of specialty areas  in addition to what has been highlighted above, including sex crimes, theft and property charges, white collar and embezzlement offense, gang cases and many more. We are here to get you back on track and help you to know your rights. Call today to schedule an appointment and begin to feel at ease.