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Last Modified on Apr 09, 2026
If you’re facing white collar crime charges in San Ramon, it’s important to understand the potential consequences of your charges and the laws behind them. A white collar crime conviction can damage your career, your life goals, and your entire future. Knowing the details of your case and connecting with an experienced San Ramon white collar crime attorney are two ways you can protect yourself.
White Collar Crime in San Ramon
California is a popular state for white-collar crimes, with residents reporting more than $16 billion in losses just from cybercrime in 2024. These cybercrimes include the use of the internet and technology to facilitate traditional white collar crime.
White collar crime is usually defined as non-violent, financially motivated crimes. Often, these crimes are committed by working professionals in offices, businesses, and financial institutions. This type of crime can cover many different criminal activities, but there are important ones to understand.
Financial Fraud
Financial fraud can be used to commit a variety of white collar crimes. Creating false documents, illegally accessing financial materials, falsifying accounting records, and withholding information could all be considered fraud. Lying about your identity in order to illegally gain financial resources is also a type of fraud.
Embezzlement
This crime involves taking advantage of your position or trusted relationships to illegally steal financial resources for your own gain. Often, embezzlement occurs with someone who has access to a business’s finances, often due to working in accounting or having a high-level role. This can play into San Ramon’s crime rate of 12.22 per 1,000 residents.
Extortion
Extortion is also known as blackmail. This involves leveraging power, information, or the threat of force to convince others to give you property, privileged information, or do specific acts for you. If actual violence is used to commit extortion, then you could also be facing violent criminal charges on top of white collar crime.
Forgery
A type of fraud, forgery is when one creates false documents for their own gain. This can mean creating entirely fake documentation, or falsifying signatures or other key aspects of a specific document. Forgery is used to deceive others so they believe they are handing over resources through a legitimate process.
Consequences of White Collar Crime
Part of why San Ramon can have so much white collar crime is due to the number of high-traffic events that occur in Contra Costa County. For example, our annual Art and Wind festival draws a lot of business, which can make it more tempting for individuals to commit white collar crimes for more financial gain.
Nationally, white collar crime is also fairly common, with 343 new convictions just in January 2025. Strict penalties are imposed for these crimes to help reduce their frequency. But when innocent people get falsely accused, these penalties can also do more harm than good.
Most often, a white collar crime case can mean expensive fines, often in thousands of dollars, and potential jail time. Many of these crimes can be charged as either misdemeanors or felonies, depending on the circumstances of the alleged crime.
But fines and jail time aren’t the only consequences of white collar crime. A conviction can also affect you in other ways, such as:
- Losing a valuable job
- Making it more difficult to find employment in the future
- Loss of access to critical information or resources
- Social ostracization
- Further consequences that come with felony charges
Trying to avoid these consequences is why many people choose to hire a white collar crime lawyer who can help them prepare a legally sound defense.
FAQs
What’s the Maximum Sentence for Embezzlement?
Under California’s Penal Code, embezzlement can be charged as Grand Theft. In this case, the maximum sentence is up to 1 year in prison, or up to three years in prison if the theft involved a firearm, which is less likely for embezzlement. Fines can also be charged depending on the nature of the crime.
What Is the Most Common Defense for White Collar Crime?
A common defense for white collar crimes is to show that the defendant did not hold the intent necessary to prosecute these crimes. Prosecutors must be able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the person intended to defraud or otherwise harm the alleged victim. If a defense attorney can show this wasn’t the case, it may make a successful defense.
Is Forgery a Felony Offense?
Like many white collar crime charges, forgery can be either a felony or misdemeanor offense. Generally, crimes that involve higher amounts of money are more likely to be tried as felonies. Previous forgery or other white collar convictions can also contribute to being charged with a felony, which carries heavier penalties like longer prison sentences if convicted.
What Is the Most Common White Collar Crime?
While there are many types of white collar crime, crimes that involve fraud are very common. The rise of cybercrime and internet fraud has made it even more common, and these can be considered white-collar crime, especially when they involve businesses. Fraud can be used to commit many types of crime, like embezzlement, extortion, and identity theft.
Hire a White Collar Crime Lawyer from Tully & Weiss
White collar crime charges, like other criminal charges, can significantly impact your future. As a working professional, they can also damage your career and your professional goals. Choosing the right defense lawyer can be an essential part of protecting yourself in the face of criminal charges.
At Tully & Weiss Attorneys at Law, we have 25 years of experience helping defend people like you accused of many types of crimes. We know that a strong, aggressive defense is often required in the face of persistent prosecution and overwhelming court processes. Named among the National Trial Lawyers Top 100, recognized by Super Lawyers, and with more accolades, we have the experience and skills necessary to advocate for you.*
Don’t hesitate to get help with your case. The sooner you start forming a defense, the stronger it can become. Reach out to us today to tell us more about your charges, and together we can come up with a plan that considers your needs and rights.
*Awards and recognitions do not guarantee future results. Selection criteria vary by organization.
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