The Challenge
A California Highway Patrol officer was accused of a lewd act (Penal Code 288) and sexual battery (Penal Code 243.4) involving a teenage neighbor. The alleged conduct occurred while he was off duty. The charges carried mandatory sex offender registration and a jail sentence. For a peace officer, a conviction also meant decertification and the end of his law enforcement career. The accusation alone had already placed that career on hold.
Our Strategy
We took the case to a jury trial. Through cross-examination, we challenged the prosecution’s evidence and the credibility of the accusations. After a full presentation of the facts, the jury could not reach a verdict, and the court declared a mistrial. A hung jury does not end a case. The District Attorney has the right to retry it. After seeing its evidence tested at trial, the prosecution instead dismissed all charges. Our client left with no conviction and no registration requirement.
The Result
ALL CHARGES DISMISSED
Your Case Belongs at the Southwest Justice Center.
Your Defense Belongs Here.
If you were arrested in Temecula, Murrieta, Menifee, Wildomar, Lake Elsinore, Winchester, or French Valley, your future will likely be decided at the Southwest Justice Center (SWJC) on Auld Road. In these courtrooms, local knowledge is the ultimate advantage. Since 1999, Nic Cocis has been a weekly fixture in the SWJC, appearing before the same judges and negotiating with the same Riverside County prosecutors for over 25 years. We don’t just know the law — we know the specific nuances, procedural quirks, and judicial tendencies of the Southwest District. Whether you are facing a felony or a misdemeanor, you need a firm that treats the Southwest Justice Center as its home turf.
