In this Hit & Run case out of Valencia, three witnesses testified that they saw our client rear-end and damage a vehicle in their neighborhood before fleeing the scene with his son. Mr. Cavalluzzi was once again able to challenge the eyewitnesses and strongly argue in favor of an acquittal for his client, a hardworking father of two with no criminal record. 11 of the jurors agreed with him and the judge dismissed the case in full after the trial!

In a battery case out of the Van Nuys Courthouse, the client was charged with attempting to choke and hit the victim at his North Hollywood home on Halloween, 2012. After Mike Cavalluzzi’s dramatic closing argument, eleven members of the jury, finding the testimony of the alleged victim and his sister to be unreliable, voted to acquit the defendant of all charges, leaving only one juror voting to convict. Following the hung jury, the judge dismissed all criminal charges. The client, who was facing immigration consequences if convicted, was ecstatic!

This case out of downtown Los Angeles involved accusations that the client embezzled over $20,000 from his employer. After a detailed and hours long preliminary hearing, the judge granted Mike Cavalluzzi’s request to reduce the felony charge to a misdemeanor. Furthermore, once the case was reduced, Mr. Cavalluzzi worked tirelessly to get the misdemeanor grand theft charged changed to a trespass, allowing the client to get all charges dismissed after a 9-month diversion program. Still not satisfied, Mr. Cavalluzzi also convinced the prosecutor to reduce restitution from a final loss of $11,000 all the way down to a mere $1,500!

This case out of West Los Angeles came to us during Christmas, 2011. In fact, Mike Cavalluzzi took time out of his holiday to meet with the client and his father on Christmas morning. The case involved a young man with a history of mental illness, who, during what Mr. Cavalluzzi effectively argued was a psychotic episode, drove his car into a Ralph’s Grocery Store parking lot and began ramming it into random vehicles and shopping carts, narrowly missing pedestrians, resulting in significant damage to numerous cars, as well as Ralph’s Grocery Store property. After a significant work up on the case, Mr. Cavalluzzi convinced the supervising DA to dismiss all serious felony charges of Assault with a Motor Vehicle, Vandalism, and Hit & Run with Injury in favor of allowing the client to plead to a single charge of disturbing the peace! By doing so, Mr. Cavalluzzi was able to avoid a lifetime revocation of his client’s driver’s license. Once the young man completes probation, the charge will be reduced to an infraction.

This case out of the LAX Courthouse involved serious felony charges of First Degree Burglary and Robbery involving a 20 year old client with a history of substance abuse. After Mr. Cavalluzzi presented compelling mitigating evidence to the DA, she agreed to immediately release the defendant from custody and allow him to complete a one year diversion program. The client’s family was especially grateful to know that when their son finishes diversion, he will have no criminal record!

Attempted Robbery and Assault with a Deadly Weapon charges in a case in which our client was accused of attempting to rob an individual with a knife and ultimately assaulting him with the knife. After a five day trial, a downtown jury acquitted the client of all criminal charges. The jury specifically pointed out to trial lawyer Mike Cavalluzzi that his cross examination of the victim led to their distrusting his testimony and finding the client Not Guilty.

In a high profile case out of Malibu involving a high profile celebrity’s nephew, Mike Cavalluzzi achieved an all around Not Guilty verdict on Assault by means of force likely to produce great bodily injury, including a great bodily injury (GBI) allegation. The case involved testimony accusing the client of viciously attacking the victim, breaking his nose and splitting his lip, requiring over 100 stitches. Mr. Cavalluzzi effectively argued to the jury that the defendant acted in self defense. After a 10 day trial, the jury returned a Not Guilty verdict in only 55 minutes!

If you know anything about OC prosecutors, you will fully appreciate how sweet this victory was for Mike Cavalluzzi! His client had been convicted of or accused of 4 DUI’s in the last 12 years (interestingly, Mr. Cavalluzzi had assisted the client in 2004 in getting DUI charges reduced to a “dry” reckless). However, with a blood alcohol level of over .10, and given the client’s spotty history with DUIs, the DA refused to consider a reduction or no jail time. After a one-week jury trial, Mr. Cavalluzzi was able to convince 10 of 12 jurors that the strong evidence against his client was unreliable. The DA then dismissed the DUI in favor of a reckless driving. The client was thrilled to avoid 60 days in the county jail!