Criminal Cases

Mr. Iredale has tried numerous murder cases, including a double murder in Carmel Valley, California; People v. Valentine. In that case, former Torrey Pines High School graduate Alex Valentine was accused of murdering his parents so they would not learn that he flunked out of Harvey Mudd College in Claremont. Mr. Iredale also defended the day-care worker from Carmel Valley, California who was accused of shaking a 13-month-old boy to death; People v. Basuta. The case was billed by the English press as Nannygate II, following the notorious Louise Woodward baby-killing in Massachusetts. The trial gained world-wide notoriety and was broadcast both domestically and abroad by the BBC. Mr. Iredale successfully overturned two consecutive life sentences of a Mexican national convicted of murder in an ambush-style slaying in Chula Vista, California; People v. Marron. The Court of Appeal overturned the conviction after Mr. Iredale presented evidence that the jury foreman and another juror argued during deliberations "If a Mexican has a gun, he is guilty", "The illegals... coming here and shooting up... and getting away with it." In overturning the conviction, the court of appeal held that jury bias violates a criminally accused's Constitutionally guaranteed right to a fair and impartial trial. Mr. Iredale also defended a 25-year-old man that was accused of the hammer -slaying of retired Navy officer George Elmer Clark; People v. Avalos. Mr. Iredale pled his client to a four year prison term in that case.

Mr. Iredale won the acquittal of a La Jolla businessman accused of conspiracy to distribute cocaine; United States v. Mores, and the acquittal of an El Cajon businessman accused in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine after 10 pounds of methamphetamine were seized in his automobile repair shop; United States v. Reed. Mr. Iredale has also handled other notorious drug cases involving cocaine, marijuana, and methamphetamine; United States v. Guiterrez and United States v. Tomacelli.

Mr. Iredale has also successfully defended persons accused of various crimes related to sex and pornography. He successfully defended a fellow lawyer, in a high publicized trial, that was accused of conspiracy with a state-prison inmate to use newspaper advertisements to solicit females under 18 years of age to pose for nude pictures; United States v. Sanchez. Mr. Iredale also defended Helen Klarissa Mueller-Beilschmidt against prostitution and pandering charges related her alleged association with the convicted "Rolodex Madam" Karen Wilkening; People v. Mueller- Beilschmidt. Mr Iredale was retained to defend a licensed physician against accusations by five female patients that they had been raped and sexually battered while under his care; People v. Sinha.

Mr. Iredale is also involved in cases dealing with the rapidly-growing area of sex on the internet. He was retained to defend a Rancho Santa Fe man that was accused of having sex with a fifteen year old boy that he met on the internet; People v. Dahlberg.

Law enforcement personnel spend a lifetime trying to catch and convict law breakers. When law enforcement is accused of breaking the law, even they go to Mr. Iredale for a defense. Mr. Iredale won the acquittal of a United States Customs Service agent who was accused of accepting a $125,000 bribe to let a tanker truck loaded with drugs pass through the Calexico port of entry; United States v. Ramos.  Mr. Iredale won the acquittal of a former Chicago police officer who was accused of trafficking cocaine; United States v. Mores. Mr. Iredale defended a 30-year veteran of the Internal Revenue Service who was accused of taking bribes from a wealthy Imperial Valley grower allegedly seeking to evade paying millions in taxes (United States v. Morales)   Mr. Iredale was hired by a former Immigration and Naturalization Service office (and Navy SEAL), to defend him against charges that he threatened women that he would withhold their border crossing cards unless they had sex with him; United States v. Toothman. In 1987, Mr. Iredale represented a former San Diego and National City police officer who was charged with conspiracy to commit burglary and conspiracy to commit grand theft (People v. Smith). The charges were brought against Smith after he filed a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against the chief of police stemming from a brawl involving former San Diego Chargers defensive end Fred Robinson. Mr. Iredale also defended a veteran United States Border Patrol agent against charges that he and another agent assaulted a physician by the border and then conspired to cover up the beating. United States District Court Judge John Rhoades eventually dismissed the charges against Mr. Iredale's client (United States v. Jarvis).

Mr. Iredale was hired to try a case in which his client was accused of loan sharking and racketeering. The prosecution accused Mr. Iredale's client of having strong ties with the "mob" and a lot of power in the "underworld" (United States v. Matranga). The following year, Mr. Iredale defended a San Diego Chargers football player against charges of assault with a deadly weapon; People v. Rodgers. Mr. Iredale defended a San Diego Chargers defensive back against charges of drunk driving and possession of 1.7 grams of rock cocaine (People v. Walters).

In numerous other high-publicity cases, Mr. Iredale a lawyer accused of aiding a fugitive (United States v. Prantil); a 46-year-old clinical psychologist who worked with troubled youths against charges that he possessed methamphetamine for distribution and possession of a sawed-off shotgun (United States v. Waite); a fortune teller accused of swindling hundreds of thousands of dollars from victims by putting phony curses on them (People v. Marks) and bikers who were charged with stockpiling explosives and unregistered firearms to prepare themselves for confrontations with other biker gangs (United States v. Chavez).