RECENT CASE RESULTS*

Client receives misdemeanor and time served
for shooting unarmed man in back.

On the night the clocks turn back in October, Mr. Ramierz returned home after working the overnight shift to find another man in his house. His girlfriend and small child awake, cocaine laid out on the table. She was drunk, high and having an affair. Because of daylight savings, she didn’t not expect Mr. Ramierz home for another hour. Mr Ramierz then pulled out his legal registered firearm for his own safety and that of his daughter. He confronted the man whom he was thought was a danger to his family. The man,appeared highly intoxicated and angry, began to make threatening gestures to Mr.Ramirez, culminating in a statement to Mr. Ramierz that, “You got your gun, I’m going to get mine”. Mr Ramierz was not and did not wait for that to happen. He fired a single shot striking the man in back shoulder area. The wound proved not to be fatal. Mr. Ramierz then called 911 and told the arriving officers that he fired his gun in order to protect himself and his family. The DA decided to file several strike felonies against Mr. Ramierz. In spite his sustained claims of self- defense, he was continually offered eight (8) years in State Prison.

The Law Offices of Mark Anthony Raimondo, P.C. is so proud to report that we were able to secure Mr. Ramierz a misdemeanor with zero days in jail. Speaking of this disposition, Mr. Raimondo stated,” It may have taken years of preparation, and we were on the door steps of picking a jury, for the DA to understand that Mr. Ramierz was not going to waiver. Our trial preparation and his fortitude all either together to achieve these results. I’m so proud of Anthony for having the courage and trust in our law firm, and the fantastic results we were able to obtain. It’s clients like this that make this job so worthwhile”.

Not Guilty on All Felony charges. Client facing life in prison
released from jail immediately following verdict.

Mr. Jackie Smith was charged with two counts of attempted murder while armed with a firearm, two counts of assault with a semi automatic weapon, Ex-felon in possession of a firearm and felony child endangerment. He was facing multiple life sentences with a maximum of 38 years to life. After a 9 day jury trial, Mark Anthony Raimondo is proud to announce Mr. Smith was found not guilty of each and every felony charge. He was released the same day.

Mr. Raimondo commented, “The DA’s office sometimes refuses to listen to reason. Their lowest offer was 14 years in state prison. I’m so proud of Mr. Smith having the courage to trust me and my staff at getting him his full life back.”

Jury Finds Not Guilty Of Felony Charges
From Fight At Speedway – Client Released

A Kern County jury has found a man not guilty of two felony assault charges filed in connection with a fight at Bakersfield Speedway three years ago that left a man with serious head injuries.

The jury on Thursday acquitted Kyle Flippo of assault on a person with force likely to produce great bodily injury and battery with serious bodily injury.

Flippo’s attorney, Mark Anthony Raimondo, said Flippo was relieved following the verdict. He’s the sole breadwinner for his family and faced seven years in prison if convicted.

Kyle Flippo

As the storm starts to clear from my head I sit here thinking of the lessons to be learned from all this. The biggest thing is never lose faith in God. Things happen for a reason and we may never know why the full reason but always try to find at least one lesson or reason as to why. It maybe that you are missing someone in your life, it maybe to prepare you for something greater, it maybe that you just need a reset in your life, it maybe to make you stronger spiritually. When everything happened in my case I set down with a lot of lawyers to see who I wanted to represent me no of them feeling just right I had a friend that recommended that I go talk to Mark Raimondo after talking with him I kept getting little signs that were pointing me in the right direction. My case took over three years. We had a lot of conversation in that time and a lot of meetings. Him and his staff are great people and truly care about thier client's and there families. Mark did not back down at anytime and fought with every ounce of his soul for me and my family and would tell me I got you, have faith and remember you don't have to remember the truth. I got to sit in the hot seat and watch him fight for me and my family. In my opinion he is the best criminal lawyer in town and definitely 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 service. The other part that makes me happy is I no longer can call him my lawyer but instead I get to call him my friend and get to share my story with people about him. I look forward to getting to know more about my friend and his family. God bless him and his family and thank you for your time and in his own words after every conversation peace and love!

Jury Finds Not Guilty
All Felony Charges Dismissed – Client Released

Spencer Rhines shortly after his release from Kern County Jail. On Thursday a local jury found Mr Rhines not guilty of inflicting corporal injury on a spouse. He was facing up to eighteen years in prison. He was released the same day.

His attorney Mark Anthony Raimondo commented, “Sometimes a case just needs to be brought to trial. Mr Rhines was offered 14 years in state prison. It is the innocent that risks so much, and Mr Rhines was brave enough to trust us with his freedom and future.”

Murder Charges Thrown Out
Client Released

Jose Luna faced 50 years to life when the District Attorney’s Office filed First Degree Murder, attempted murder, and conspiracy charges against him on September 3, 2020. Video surveillance cameras from several different angles placed Mr. Luna at the scene just prior to the victim being brutally gunned down outside an illegal gambling casino. Mr. Raimondo’s office through a combination of diligent investigation, preparation, and perseverance convinced the prosecutor that Mr. Luna was innocent. The District Attorney dismissed all charges against Mr. Luna on March 29, 2021.

ATTEMPTED MURDER

COMMUNITY SERVICE NO JAIL TIME

Stephen Meda Jr., entered a plea today that will result in Felony Probation, along with 800 hours of Community Service. The attempted murder charge against him was dismissed as part of the plea. Mr Meda will receive no jail time. This case dates back to 2016, when Mr. Meda broke into his parents home armed with a knife, resulting in a stab wound to his father. Mr. Meda was charged with five felonies including attempted murder, burglary, assault and criminal threats. He was facing a maximum of life in prison. Mark Anthony Raimondo, attorney for Mr. Meda stated, ‘This is a fantastic result, for Mr. Meda and his family. It is a culmination of two years of hard work by Stephen, along with compassion from his parents and a DA with an honest desire to do the right thing for Justice”. He continued, “Mr. Meda made some mistakes, and has overcome a lot during the two years it took to bring this case to the doorsteps of trial. He has earned a second chance”.

TEEN PROSECUTED IN GANG MURDER NOT GUILTY
ON ALL COUNTS

Eighteen year old Saul Gonzalez was arrested on chargers of Murder in the First Degree along with various Assault and Gang Allegations. The prosecution of Mr. Gonzalez arose out of a late night fight that occurred between two groups of young men. During the fight several people were stabbed including a fourteen year old boy who was stabbed in the neck and pronounced dead at the scene. Mr. Gonzalez was tried as an adult for the murder of the young teen. He was tried under the theory of 1st Degree Murder with a Special Circumstance that the murder was done for the benefit of a criminal street gang. The mandatory sentence for such a charge is Life Without Parole.

After a five week jury trial, The Law Offices of Mark Anthony Raimondo is proud to announce that Mr. Gonzalez was found NOT GUILTY by the Jury on all counts as well as all of the enhancements. Mr. Gonzalez was released from the Kern County Jail shortly after the verdict was read.

Nancy Gonzalez, Saul’s Mother stated, “It all happened so fast, that I was not able to make it to the court in time to hear the verdict.” Mr. Raimondo called Nancy moments after the verdict was read. ” I just kept saying, thank you God, that you Mr. Raimondo, thank you, I have been praying for this for a long time, thank you.”

Saul and Mr. Raimondo enbraced each other as the unanimous verdicts were being read aloud in open court. “I was relieved after I heard the Not-Guilty Verdicts on all the Murder Counts, and very pleased to hear the Not Guilty Verdicts on all the remaining counts as well,” said Mr. Raimondo. He continued, “It has been a lot of hard work and Ihave really come to care for Saul and his family.”

Prior to the incident in 2011, Saul was an Honor Student finishing up his High School Studies while working full time to help support his mother and younger siblings. Mr. Gonzalez had recieved a National Scholastic Award in 2009 recognizing him for his creative writing talents. He also had no prior significant criminal history. Since his release, Saul has reunited with his family and is working towards entering college in the upcoming year.

Man who hired teen hit-men to kill his son
receives only 6 years

A father was sentenced Wednesday morning to more than six years in prison for his role in the alleged murder-for-hire death of his son. George Dean was arrested after his adopted son, 29-year-old Jonathan Dean, was shot in 2014 on Silver Dollar Way. A co-defendant, Timothy Lynn Hill, told police that George Dean paid another co-defendant, Gabriel Rodriguez who was 16 at the time, $20,000 to kill his son after some type of domestic incident. Rodriguez, Hill and another man Eric Gonzalez were all arrested.

A month ago, George Dean pleaded no contest to charges of oral copulation with a person under 18 and voluntary manslaughter. Charges of murder and conspiracy were dismissed.

“Some of the prejudicial external things were going on,” said Dean’s attorney, Mark Anthony Raimondo. “His chances of trial, his health, he decided to take the deal.”

The oral copulation charge was related to a sexual relationship Dean had with one of his juvenile co-conspirators, police said during the investigation in 2014. During Wednesday’s sentencing hearing, Dean was also ordered to register as a sex offender.

Probation was denied.

“The initial shooter that killed my brother, there was a lot of hostility between him and my family towards that time,” said Dean’s youngest daughter, Jessica Dean.

She went on to say the teenager accused of pulling the trigger, Gabriel Rodriguez, was really close with the Dean family for years.

“Basically almost part of the family,” she said. “Then he started getting into trouble. He didn’t like the fact that my dad wouldn’t stand by him as he got in trouble and did crimes he wasn’t supposed to do. He got really upset with the family and ended up hating us for it.”

Rodriguez and Hill were both under 18 when Jonathan Dean was killed in 2014.

George Dean will receive credits for the time he already served.

Child porn charge against
Vineland teacher dismissed

Prosecutors have dismissed a charge of child pornography possession against a Vineland School District teacher whose trial ended in a hung jury earlier this year.

A prosecutor said there was insufficient evidence to continue with another trial of Margarito Madueno after a jury hung 9-3 for not guilty in May. No additional evidence surfaced in the case between the mistrial and Monday’s dismissal of the charge, Deputy District Attorney Cole Sherman said.

Madueno was in possession of a SD chip that contained child porn. His attorney argued at trial that Madueno found the card and, not knowing what was on it, picked it up to use later.

An FBI search of Madueno’s computers and other electronic devices did not turn up additional child porn, attorney Mark Anthony Raimondo said.

“The FBI report comes back and it’s absolutely negative,” Raimondo said Tuesday. “Not only was that (chip) never in any of his devices, no files from any of his devices were on the chip.”

He said prosecutors tried to get Madueno to enter a plea to a lesser charge after the mistrial, but he refused.

“He said, ‘Mark, I didn’t do anything wrong,’” Raimondo said.

Upon the charge being dismissed, Madueno “cried like a baby and hugged me,” Raimondo said.

Madueno, 33 at the time of his arrest in October, was a teacher at the Vineland School District. Raimondo said he expects he will remain employed with the district, which he said was “100 percent behind (Madueno)” throughout his legal ordeal.

JUDGE ORDERS PROBATION
FOR ARMED ROBBERY OF PHARMACY

Yesterday Superior Court Judge Charles Brehmer Placed twenty-three year old Callie Feezell on five years of Felony Probation following her guilty plea to one count of Robbery pursuant to Penal Code Section 212.5(C), along with an enhancement of being armed with a firearm. She faced a maximum sentence of 15 years in State Prison.

Mrs. Feezell had entered the Walgreens Pharmacy on Chester Avenue last summer armed with her father’s 9mm firearm, walked up to the pharmacy and pointed the loaded weapon at the pharmacist while demanding “boxes of oxycodone’. She then returned to her parents and their car that was waiting outside and fled the scene. She was apprehended a few miles from pharmacy.

“This was an extraordinary disposition and opportunity afforded to Mrs. Feezell”, said her attorney Mark Anthony Raimondo following the Judge’s Ruling. He continued, “She was suffering from the opiate withdrawals which she severely underestimated, and in a moment of desperation she took her father’s gun and made this terrible decision. We are very grateful that no one was injured”. Mr. Raimondo also pointed out that Mrs. Feezell had no prior criminal record, and she was a junior at the University of Tennessee. In an attempt to break her addiction, Mrs. Feezell left Tennessee on a road trip with her parents without any pills. She was hoping to force herself sober. However, once the withdrawal symptoms intensified she made this desperate attempt to bring relief to herself.

The Court did note that Mrs. Feezell had successfully complete a long-term rehabilitation during the course of the last nine months while this case was pending and had a promising future ahead of her now that her addiction issues have been properly addressed.

We asked Mr. Raimondo about Mrs. Feezell’s future plans, and he stated she is very sorry for her actions and hopes that she can be an example to other young people struggling with opiate addictions.