California DEA Defense Lawyers

California DEA Defense Lawyers

Operation Hotline Bling. 15 arrests. Inland Empire. 600,000 fentanyl tablets, 376 pounds of methamphetamine, $1.6 million seized. Maybe you’re one of the 20 defendants charged in Central District for fentanyl deaths this year. Twenty years mandatory minimum. Or DEA’s OD Justice Task Force investigating your pharmacy. Your medical practice. Your prescription history. Four federal districts prosecuting simultaneously. Thanks for visiting Spodek Law Group – a second generation law firm with over 50 years of combined experience. Our managing partner, Todd Spodek, has many, many, years of experience defending federal drug cases across all four California districts. Todd has represented clients in high-profile cases covered by NY Post, Newsweek, Fox 5, and other major outlets – including Anna Delvey and juror misconduct allegations in the Ghislaine Maxwell trial. DEA coordinated across Central, Northern, Eastern, Southern Districts. California ended mandatory minimums 2021? Doesn’t matter. Federal court still enforces 20-year minimums for fentanyl deaths. 15.6 million seized pills. Four districts different from any other state. RIGHT NOW.

Federal Drug Charges in California

Twenty years minimum. Distribution causing death in California federal court. Jesus Erick Casillas in Lancaster. Macey Delynn Putnam in Torrance. Roberto Alexis Perez in Palmdale. All facing 20 to life. Central District alone filed 20 death cases this year. Unlike other law firms who are more focused on their relationship with prosecutors and judges, Spodek Law Group focuses on protecting you from these catastrophic sentences.

Federal mandatory minimum sentence? Number the judge cannot go below. No matter your circumstances. California state court ended mandatory minimums 2021 for non-violent drug crimes – irrelevant in federal court. Under 21 U.S.C. § 841(b), 40 grams fentanyl triggers base offense level 26, roughly 70-87 months before enhancements. Four hundred grams? Five-year mandatory minimum. Four kilograms? Ten years mandatory. Death resulting? Twenty years minimum, life maximum. Not guidelines – mandatory. Operation Hotline Bling shows the scope. Started early 2023, culminated April 2024 – 15 arrests, 600,000 fentanyl tablets, 37.4 pounds powder fentanyl, 376 pounds methamphetamine, 1.4 kilograms cocaine, 7 firearms. Each defendant faces different minimums based on drug weight.

The firearms? 18 U.S.C. § 924(c) adds five years consecutive minimum. That Los Angeles County ring with 1,739 pounds meth and 257 pounds fentanyl? Each defendant looking at 10 years minimum just for the fentanyl. Operation Fraud Street Mafia – 40 pounds meth, 14 pounds fentanyl smuggled into Kern Valley State Prison. Many, many defendants don’t understand California’s four federal districts coordinate. Central District (Los Angeles). Southern District (San Diego). Northern District (San Francisco). Eastern District (Sacramento). They share information. Transfer cases. Stack charges.

California state law versus federal law – confusion destroys defendants. January 2021, California stopped mandatory minimum sentencing for non-violent drug crimes. December 2024, Proposition 36 created new “wobbler” offenses for possession with priors. State enhancements for fentanyl – three years for one kilogram, up to 25 years for 80 kilograms. Many, many people think this helps them. It doesn’t. Federal court doesn’t care about California state reforms. Does California have mandatory minimums? Not for state charges. Federal mandatory minimum for drug trafficking? Devastating. Central District maintains 95% conviction rate. Southern District prosecutes border crossing cases – automatic federal jurisdiction. Northern District handles Bay Area tech wealth drug markets. Eastern District covers Central Valley trafficking corridors.

What Triggers Federal Trafficking Charges

Any amount crossing state lines. Any amount at ports. Los Angeles. Long Beach. San Diego. Any amount on I-5, I-10, I-15 corridors. DEA assumes interstate commerce for everything near borders, ports, highways. Mexican border crossings San Diego and Imperial County – automatic federal. Container ships Port of LA/Long Beach – federal. Distribution networks Bay Area to Nevada – federal. Central Valley to anywhere – federal.

OD Justice Task Force changed everything. DEA agents establish “collaborative relationships” with local police across Central District’s seven counties. Every overdose death triggers federal investigation. Pharmacy dispensing patterns monitored. Medical practices audited. Death resulting prosecutions surge. Twenty cases filed this year alone Central District. Bryan Kim Bullard and Cameron William Fulston. Charged for Carlsbad woman’s death. November 2022, San Diego. Four overdoses, two deaths. Federal charges filed. Many, many healthcare providers don’t understand legitimate prescriptions trigger federal trafficking charges if DEA claims you “should have known” about diversion.

Wrong questions. Can drug trafficking charges be dropped? Safety valve under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(f) offers one escape. No priors. No violence. No leadership. Complete disclosure. California’s multi-defendant cases make this nearly impossible. Operation Hotline Bling’s 15 defendants? First to cooperate gets safety valve. Rest get mandatory minimums. 95% plead guilty. Mandatory minimums force cooperation.

Your Defense Timeline

Can drug trafficking charges be dropped? Almost never California federal courts. Pre-trial diversion barely exists. Deferred prosecution? Rare. Your only real options: cooperation, safety valve, trial with 95% conviction rate. Unlike other law firms who promise miracles, Spodek Law Group tells you the truth. Federal drug charges in California require aggressive defense from day one.

Timeline compressed. DEA’s been investigating months before arrest. Operation Hotline Bling ran early 2023 to April 2024. Over year surveillance before arrests. Wiretaps. Financial records. Co-defendant statements. Multi-district coordination. Evidence from San Diego supports charges Los Angeles. Connects to San Francisco. Ties to Sacramento. Four districts, one prosecution strategy. Every day you wait, more co-defendants flip. We are available 24/7. Federal arrests happen dawn. Weekends. During raids.

Todd Spodek, second-generation attorney. Handled federal cases across all four California districts. Central District’s death prosecution focus. Southern District’s border enhancement. Northern District’s tech wealth targets. Eastern District’s corridor enforcement. California’s unique four-district challenge requires attorneys who understand each district’s priorities. Each judge’s sentencing patterns. Each AUSA’s negotiation style. Many, many defendants hire local attorneys who only know one district. Federal charges don’t respect district boundaries. Neither should your defense. Risk-free consultation. Four districts watching. Twenty years minimum. 15.6 million pills seized.

888-299-5571.