For local police departments not listed here, simply go to their respective websites and search for “police report requests” to find information on obtaining a copy.

Bay Area Sheriff’s Department & Local/City Police Departments

• Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Department
  • Milpitas Police Department
  • San Jose Police Department
  • Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety
• Alameda County Sheriff’s Department
• San Mateo Sheriff’s Department
  • South San Francisco Police Department
• San Francisco County Sheriff’s Department
  • San Francisco Police Department
• Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Department

Santa Clara County Sheriffs Department

REPORT RELEASES /REQUEST FORM – No fee (reports fewer than 50 pages) All Photos & CDs – $5.00-Printed Additional Fee

Click here for a Request Form

The public may request a copy of an incident report taken by the Sheriff’s Office. They may fill out the request form online and bring it to the Sheriff’s Office for processing or come in and fill one at the Records window. They will need to indicate their involvement in the incident. For people representing involved parties they must bring a business card or a notarized letter of representation. All requests are reviewed by the Detective Division and can only be released upon their approval. There may be exceptions on non-injury accident reports where they may be released at the time of request. No fee will be collected for a copy of a crime report with fewer than 50 pages. A fee of 10 cents a page will be charged for reports of 50 pages or more.

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Milpitas PD

Police reports are generally available 3 to 5 working days after the report was taken. You may pick up a copy from our office from 8:00 am to 11:30 PM Monday to Friday. Please call to make sure the report is ready. The number is (408) 586-2400 and ask for Records. There is a charge for copies of reports: $6.00 for the first 10 pages, and $1.00 per page after that; fingerprinting is $10.00 for ink cards; photocopies of traffic citations are $1.00 per; and, if your case includes audio cassette or video cassette tapes – there is a fee structure to duplicate these.
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San Jose PD

Records Unit

Records Unit staff provide incident, arrest and accident reports to the general public, media and police personnel internally and nationwide.

Police reports and records may be obtained from the SJPD Records Unit located at:

201 West Mission Street
San Jose, CA 95110
Records Unit: (408) 277-4261

Click here for Records Unit hours of operation and additional contact information.

Depending on the type of report, requests for reports may be made in person, by U.S. mail or by telephone. Report costs are listed on the Fee Schedule.

All requests for information are processed in accordance with State of California data privacy laws and department policy.

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San Francisco PD

How do I get a copy of my police report?

Fill out a REPORT REQUEST form and send it with a self-addressed stamped envelope to:

Hall of Justice
Records Bureau
850 Bryant St. #475
San Francisco, CA 94103

If you are unable to print this form, you may go to your nearest police station to pick one up.

You may also go in person to the Records Bureau; Monday thru Friday, 8am to 3pm to obtain your report if available.

You will be required to present valid identification.

Obtaining a copy of your police report is FREE.
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Santa Clara County Sheriffs Department

REPORT RELEASES /REQUEST FORM – No fee (reports fewer than 50 pages) All Photos & CDs – $5.00-Printed Additional Fee

Click here for a Request Form

The public may request a copy of an incident report taken by the Sheriff’s Office. They may fill out the request form online and bring it to the Sheriff’s Office for processing or come in and fill one at the Records window. They will need to indicate their involvement in the incident. For people representing involved parties they must bring a business card or a notarized letter of representation. All requests are reviewed by the Detective Division and can only be released upon their approval. There may be exceptions on non-injury accident reports where they may be released at the time of request. No fee will be collected for a copy of a crime report with fewer than 50 pages. A fee of 10 cents a page will be charged for reports of 50 pages or more.

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South San Francisco PD

How can I obtain a copy of a Police report?

You may request a copy by mail by sending the required fee and a self-addressed stamped envelop and a copy will be mailed to you, generally within 2-3 days of receipt of the request. You should phone the Records office at (650) 877-8900 (have the report number handy if possible) to find out how much a copy will cost and whether the report is ready to be released. Or, you may come to the Police Department, provide identification, and purchase a copy of the report. The cost is 25-cents per page. Please allow a minimum of 5 working days for traffic accident reports to be completed.

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Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety

Release of Information

Department personnel shall be responsive and helpful in providing information and documents that may be requested by individuals, members of the public or private agencies whenever possible, provided the service is not contrary to existing law.

In order to obtain information from a police report, the requestor is asked to submit an Application for Record Information. To download an application for release of information click here [PDF link]. [No link provided on website]

An application is not required however, the application is useful to staff in assisting members of the public with handling the request.

The fees for obtaining the report are set forth in the City of Sunnyvale Fee Schedule in accordance with the California Government Code.  Victims of a crime are not subject to the fee.

Requests made by application will be submitted: in person, by mail*, or FAX (408-730-7705).  The California Public Records Act allows up to 10 days for a response. *Records Unit 700 All American Way, Sunnyvale, Ca. 94086.

Photograph Requests

An application to obtain copies of case photographs or a written request must be submitted to the Records Unit.  A processing fee must be included at time of request- see City of Sunnyvale  Fee Schedule.

• Can my employer search me as I leave work for the day?
• Can my employer install cameras in the workplace?
• Can my employer fire me just because of my personal beliefs?
• Can my employer require me to take a psychological test before giving me a promotion to management?
• Can my employer read my email?

Discussion

Your criminal history is a record of your arrests and convictions.  Often, a criminal history may prevent you from obtaining a desirable job, voting rights, rights to own or possess firearms, or even prevent obtaining U.S. citizenship.  Therefore, it may be wise to clear your record whenever possible to obtain relieve from the negative effects of a criminal record.

Can my employer ask me about arrests or use information about past arrests to fire me (or to not hire me)?

Generally not. Under California Labor Code § 432.7, if you are applying for a job, or being considered for promotion, termination, or placement in a job training program, your employer cannot ask about any arrests that don’t result in a conviction, or any arrests that led to participation in a diversion program (such as drug rehabilitation). Your employer is also prohibited from trying to find out from other sources whether you have been arrested. If your employer somehow learns of your arrest record, § 432.7 prohibits him or her from considering any arrest that did not lead to a conviction, or any arrest that led to a diversion program, in making decisions regarding your hiring, firing or promotion. There are some important exceptions to this general rule regarding: arrests pending trial, law enforcement positions and health facility positions.

Resources regarding Record Clearances

1. Criminal Court Record Clearance: guide to record clearance from Santa Clara County’s Superior Court.  This is where you need to go to find instructions to clear your record.
2. Record Clearance – Probation Department: for those who want to clear their records without hiring an attorney, this is where you’ll find an application to do so: (Application for Record Clearance).
   1. FOR MOST CASES (I’d say 4 out of 5 cases) – you do not need to hire an attorney to clear your record.  You can generally clear your record by filling out an application and paying the fee of $120.00.
   2. FOR THOSE of you who didn’t save any of your paperwork regarding the case you want cleared, you can get a complete rap sheet of your criminal history from the Sheriff’s Department or if you need information for just one case, you can get that from the Court Clerk’s Office where the case was adjudicated.
3. Clearing Your Records (Expungement):  good summary of requirements for record clearance  from the Santa Clara County Public Portal.

Curious What the Law States?

For those of you who are interested, California Penal Code § 1203.4 states

(a) Every defendant convicted of a misdemeanor and not granted probation shall, at any time after the lapse of one year from the date of pronouncement of judgment, if he or she has fully complied with and performed the sentence of the court, is not then serving a sentence for any offense and is not under charge of commission of any crime and has, since the pronouncement of judgment, lived an honest and upright life and has conformed to and obeyed the laws of the land, be permitted by the court to withdraw his or her plea of guilty or nolo contendere and enter a plea of not guilty; or if he or she has been convicted after a plea of not guilty, the court shall set aside the verdict of guilty; and in either case the court shall thereupon dismiss the accusatory pleading against the defendant, who shall thereafter be released from all penalties and disabilities resulting from the offense of which he or she has been convicted, except as provided in Section 12021.1 of this code or Section 13555 of the Vehicle Code. The defendant shall be informed of the provisions of this section, either orally or in writing, at the time he or she is sentenced. The defendant may make an application and change of plea in person or by attorney, or by the probation officer authorized in writing; provided, that in any subsequent prosecution of the defendant for any other offense, the prior conviction may be pleaded and proved and shall have the same effect as if relief had not been granted pursuant to this section. This subdivision applies to convictions which occurred before as well as those occurring after, the effective date of this section.

(b) Subdivision (a) does not apply to any misdemeanor falling within the provisions of subdivision (b) of Section 42001 of the Vehicle Code, or to any infraction.

(c) A person who petitions for a dismissal of a charge under this section may be required to reimburse the county and the court for the cost of services rendered at a rate to be determined by the county board of supervisors for the county and by the court for the court, not to exceed sixty dollars ($60), and to reimburse any city for the cost of services rendered at a rate to be determined by the city council not to exceed sixty dollars ($60). Ability to make this reimbursement shall be determined by the court using the standards set forth in paragraph (2) of subdivision (g) of Section 987.8 and shall not be a prerequisite to a person’s eligibility under this section. The court may order reimbursement in any case in which the petitioner appears to have the ability to pay, without undue hardship, all or any portion of the cost for services established pursuant to this subdivision.

(d) Any determination of amount made by a court under this section shall be valid only if either (1) made under procedures adopted by the Judicial Council or (2) approved by the Judicial Council.

Between Storms - San Francisco Bay Area Attorney

Contact Information

You can still reach me at

Quincy Hoang
San Jose, California
(408) 728-6130
quincy@lawyer.com

Right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures

Probable Cause to Search

The Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution provides a right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures (an arrest is considered a seizure.) Therefore as a general rule, law enforcement agents must have a warrant or probable cause to search or arrest a person.

However, there are many exceptions that allow police officers to search a person without probable cause. These include: (1) being on probation or parole, (2) limited pat-down search to ensure police officer safety, (3) and consensual searches.

Consenting to a Search

There is no law which requires a person to consent to a search. However, you should be aware that you may have already consented to a search or that you may need to trade consent. One such exception includes being on probation or parole – which subjects such a person to being searched at any time and place. Another exception is being in certain places. For example, entrance into an airport or jail facility provides consent to search by law enforcement agents. You can always refuse to be searched in these circumstances, however, you will be denied the opportunity to be free from incarceration and denied entrance into the airport or jail facility, respectively.

Contrary to popular belief, refusing to consent to a search is not probable cause to search. This is an area where many people, in an attempt to be law-abiding citizens, waive their rights to privacy. You should politely inquire why the police officer wishes to search for, so that you can evaluate whether his or her request is reasonable by using common sense. If the officer’s request does not seem reasonable, politely decline that request.

Miranda Protects Only Statements

There is a lot of confusion surrounding the meaning of Miranda and the 5th Amendment right to remain silent. Miranda basically states that a person has a right to remain silent, and once arrested, the police must inform you of that right against self-incrimination and they must not elicit any incriminating statements from you. It should be noted that if a police officer fails to give this warning, only statements made by an accused after an arrest will be excluded from use as evidence. Physical evidence is not a statement and not within the scope of Miranda.

However, law enforcement agents will commonly ask questions and elicit incriminating statements from a person prior to actually arresting that person. Thus, Miranda protections are inapplicable. So when faced with questioning by police officers, you should ascertain whether or not you are under arrest. If you are, obviously do not make any statements. If you are not under arrest, politely inform the police officer that you are in a hurry and must leave.

September 8, 2007 by Quincy Hoang.

Disclaimer

The information contained in this web site is provided as a service to the Internet community, and does not constitute legal advice. Attorney Quincy Hoang tries to provide quality information, but makes no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to this web site. Since legal advice must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case, and laws are constantly changing, nothing provided herein should be used as a substitute for the advice of competent counsel.

Attorney Quincy Hoang is not seeking to represent anyone based solely on a visit to this web site, therefore no attorney-client relationship is created by such a visit. If you do wish to retain legal representation for a specific matter, an agreement in writing must be executed.

What rights are involved?

The Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution places limits on the power of the police to make arrests, the power to search people and their property, and the power to seize objects and contraband (such as illegal drugs or weapons). These limits are the bedrock of search and seizure law. This article covers the basic issues that you should know, beginning with an overview of the Fourth Amendment itself.

In the context of being pulled over, there are several societal interests that come into play. The more important interests are, first, the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution provides the right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures. Second, society has an interest in enforcing the vehicle code and other state laws.

The Fourth Amendment: Protecting Your Privacy

The Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution reads as follows:

“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.” Fourth Amendment, U.S. Constitution.

The search and seizure provisions of the Fourth Amendment created an individual’s right to privacy. To effectuate this right, the Fourth Amendment protects against “unreasonable” searches and seizures by state or federal law enforcement authorities. The flip side is that the Fourth Amendment does permit searches and seizures that are considered reasonable.

In practice, this means that the police may override your privacy concerns and conduct a search of your home, barn, car, boat, office, personal or business documents, bank account records, trash barrel, or whatever, if the police have probable cause to believe they can find evidence that you committed a crime, and a judge issues a search warrant, or the particular circumstances justify the search without a warrant first being issued. In sum, police may search your vehicle if they have probable cause to do so.

THE PURPOSE OF A TRAFFIC STOP

It usually happens when you least expect it, but suddenly there are flashing red lights as well as a solid red light on the patrol vehicle following you. Obviously, when a marked patrol vehicle has its flashing red lights on, the officer in that vehicle is attempting to get your attention and is ordering you to pull over. You should pull over immediately when safe to do so. It is a good idea to extinguish that marijuana cigarette if yours is still lit.

Always drive with a valid license and registration, since any violation of the California Vehicle Code gives police officers the right to pull you over. It’s amazing how many people are pulled over and their vehicles searched because their registration tags are not current. You should always drive a vehicle that is properly registered and maintained so that the police have no reason to pull you over. Also, you should always obey the traffic laws. Even when you have not violated a law, a police officer may still pull you over if he has reasonable suspicion to do so. For example, you may match the description of a bank robber, or a police officer sees you smoking what obviously appears to be a “joint.”

DURATION AND SCOPE OF A TRAFFIC STOP

A traffic stop can be no longer than necessary to enforce the purpose of a traffic stop. In other words, police must diligently pursue their investigations in such a way that will confirm or dispel their suspicions quickly.

Therefore when a driver has produced a valid license, proof of insurance, and proof of entitlement to operate the vehicle (i.e. the driver states that the car is borrowed with verification that the car is not reported stolen), the officer may issue a warning or a citation, but then must usually allow the driver to proceed without further delay or questioning.

TIPS to avoid unnecessary delays

The following are things that you can do which will hopefully shorten any detention or traffic stop. Never get out of your car unless the police officer asks you to do so. Try to keep your hands where an officer can see them. Wait until you have asked and the police officer agrees for you to reach into the back seat for your wallet inside of your jacket, thus avoiding sudden movements. You get the idea. In essence, police officers must feel safe during a citizen encounter and will more likely believe your explanation if they are immediately at ease. For example when you say, “I didn’t see that stop sign” or “I didn’t know I had a taillight out.”

You may hate police officers when they’re issuing that fifth speeding ticket or when your vehicle from head to toe, but when you’re getting robbed or victimized in some other way, they are somehow now your best friend. So remember, police officers are people just doing their jobs, so show them a little courtesy. And hey maybe, just maybe they’ll let you off with a warning.

February 11,, 2006 by Quincy Hoang.

Disclaimer

The information contained in this web site is provided as a service to the Internet community, and does not constitute legal advice. Attorney Quincy Hoang tries to provide quality information, but makes no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to this web site. Since legal advice must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case, and laws are constantly changing, nothing provided herein should be used as a substitute for the advice of competent counsel.

Attorney Quincy Hoang is not seeking to represent anyone based solely on a visit to this web site, therefore no attorney-client relationship is created by such a visit. If you do wish to retain legal representation for a specific matter, an agreement in writing must be executed.

[While] reading the fine print many consumers are surprised to learn they lost their right to sue when they signed contracts and must submit to binding arbitration instead, reports John Blackstone.

With hundreds of minutes included in her cellphone plan, Hoa Nguyen spoke freely. But, as CBS News Correspondent John Blackstone reports, at the end of her one-year contract her bill went through the roof.

She was “shocked,” she says, to learn her $39.99 month bill had soared to $476.

Nguyen and her son, Quincy Hoang, an attorney, figured AT&T Wireless had made a billing error.

But, as Hoang says, it wasn’t a mistake.

“We were basically told, ‘Well, we informed you in a little clause in the statement, the prior month or the month before that,’” says Hoang.

With collection agencies coming after her, Nguyen decided to sue. But she then discovered her contract said she couldn’t go to court and had to use binding arbitration.

“The courts are there to ensure fairness,” says Hoang. “With arbitration, you don’t get all the protections of the courts.”

In the past decade, the fine print in almost every contract a consumer faces has a clause requiring binding arbitration. Cingular, which has taken over AT&T Wireless, insists arbitration serves consumers.

“It’s fair, it’s fast, and oh, by the way, because arbitration would typically take weeks; litigation months or years,” says Mark Siegel of Cingular.

In arbitration each side presents its case to a neutral arbitrator whose decision cannot be appealed. Since arbitrations are confidential, it’s hard to tell how consumers fare.

“For competitive reasons and legal reasons we do not release the number of cases we handle or their disposition,” says Siegel.

Among the few statistics available are those obtained in a lawsuit against credit card giant First USA. Of more than 19,000 arbitrations for debt collection, consumers won just 87 cases.

A more recent, but small study for the American Bankers Association, found consumers prevailed more than half the time.

Arbitration clauses can help companies avoid class-action suits like the one Nguyen tried to file against the cell phone company.

“It’s just appalling, actually, that they can just change the terms and just say, ‘Hey, these are the new terms and you’re stuck with them,” says Hoang.

Nguyen is now filing for arbitration.

© MMV, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer

This article was taken from CBS. Original copy may be found at .

The information contained in this web site is provided as a service to the Internet community, and does not constitute legal advice. Attorney Quincy Hoang tries to provide quality information, but makes no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to this web site. Since legal advice must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case, and laws are constantly changing, nothing provided herein should be used as a substitute for the advice of competent counsel.

Attorney Quincy Hoang is not seeking to represent anyone based solely on a visit to this web site, therefore no attorney-client relationship is created by such a visit. If you do wish to retain legal representation for a specific matter, an agreement in writing must be executed.

I was born in Saigon, Vietnam in 1971 as one of five children of an Army Captain, Mr. The Ke Hoang, and a schoolteacher, Mrs. Hoa Thi Nguyen. My family immigrated to the United States in 1975 due to the end of the Vietnam War. I was three years old at the time.

Initially, we settled in Bradenton, Florida for approximately five years where I fondly remember an idyllic childhood spent exploring the beach areas of Bradenton (near Tampa). From there, my family and I reached the San Francisco Bay Area where I spent the majority of my life growing up. In 1983, my parents gave birth to my younger brother, thus giving me two sisters and two brothers, one older and one younger of each. I was the middle child.

I’ve lived in San Jose, Berkeley, Oakland, and San Francisco graduating from the University of California at Berkeley in 1993 with a Bachelors of Arts in Political Science and graduating from the University of San Francisco School of Law in 2001 with a Juris Doctorate degree.

FEE AGREEMENT BASICS

An attorney is required to have a fee agreement in place when an attorney-client relationship is formed, or soon thereafter. In criminal cases, there are generally two types of billing methods available to govern fee agreements – flat-fee and hourly billing. Contingency fee agreements are prohibited in all criminal cases; therefore, an attorney cannot be paid based on the outcome of a defendant’s criminal case.

FLAT-FEES

The flat-fee is a fee agreement which compensates an attorney for all legal services for a specific matter or a specific phase of a matter, regardless of the amount of time involved, for example $2,500.00 for all pretrial proceedings in a drunk driving case.

PROS AND CONS

The attractive characteristic of the flat-fee is that it’s fixed and does not change. Therefore, for a fixed sum, a client has complete representation for a specific pending legal matter. After all, one never knows when a case may drag out, having the case prolonged, while legal fees continue to mount.

However, most attorneys who use flat-fee agreements are well aware of how long a case will take and set their fees accordingly. So even if a case has taken a bit longer than expected, chances are that attorney has still made a small profit. But when a case ends quickly, that attorney has made a huge profit.

In sum, if you think that your case will drag on, it may be wise to enter into a flat-fee agreement. But remember, if you’re not an attorney, can you be confident that your case is going to lengthy?

HOURLY BILLING

Hourly billing fee agreements compensate an attorney for his or her legal services on an hourly basis, for example $200.00 per hour.

HOURLY IS BETTER IF YOU HAVE LEGAL EXPERTISE

In my opinion, the hourly billing fee agreement is better than the flat-fee arrangement because it is fairer in that you get what you pay for. However, this assumes that the client is well aware of the time commitment involved, and the level of legal expertise needed. Two rather big assumptions that are not likely to be met unless the client is himself or herself an attorney.

The problem with the hourly billing fee agreement is that there are a few attorneys out there, and you know who you are, that will charge their clients unscrupulously. They tack on extra hours knowing that the client could not and would not complain. Most individuals simply are not familiar with the average costs and fees of similarly situated cases.

WHICH ONE IS BETTER FOR ME

In conclusion, the best course of action is to find an honest attorney, someone who will charge you fairly for legal services regardless of whether the fee agreement is a flat-fee or by hourly billing. Do your homework and check out your prospective attorney. Get a referral from a close friend who has retained that attorney before or who will “vouch” for that attorney’s integrity.

May 13, 2003 by Quincy Hoang.

Disclaimer

The information contained in this web site is provided as a service to the Internet community, and does not constitute legal advice. Attorney Quincy Hoang tries to provide quality information, but makes no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to this web site. Since legal advice must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case, and laws are constantly changing, nothing provided herein should be used as a substitute for the advice of competent counsel.

Attorney Quincy Hoang is not seeking to represent anyone based solely on a visit to this web site, therefore no attorney-client relationship is created by such a visit. If you do wish to retain legal representation for a specific matter, an agreement in writing must be executed.