Aug 23, 2025
Holmes, Athey, Cowan & Mermelstein LLP, a LA-based law firm specializing in criminal defense and complex civil litigation, won a significant appellate victory when the California Court of Appeals unanimously affirmed the trial court’s dismissal of all criminal charges against 6 defendants associated with a prominent residential care facility for the elderly (RCFE).
Los Angeles, CA Aug 23, 2025 – Holmes, Athey, Cowan & Mermelstein LLP, a LA-based law firm specializing in criminal defense and complex civil litigation, won a significant appellate victory when the California Court of Appeals unanimously affirmed the trial court’s dismissal of all criminal charges against 6 defendants associated with a prominent residential care facility for the elderly (RCFE).
After briefing that was the collective effort of counsel for all 6 defendants, Mark Mermelstein of Holmes Athey took the lead on arguing the appeal before Justices Chavez, Ashmann-Gest, and Richardson. The ruling by the Court of Appeals affirms the dismissal of all charges by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Kerry White who dismissed them in October 2023. In March 2023, the LA County District Attorney’s Office, then headed by George Gascon, filed criminal charges against the RCFE and certain of its executives alleging elder abuse and violations of the California Labor Code stemming from the RCFE’s decision to admit a new resident who, not known at the time because testing was not yet available to the RCFE, had asymptomatic COVID. Despite the fact that the RCFE transferred the new resident to a hospital the day after his admission when he developed symptoms consistent with COVID, the DA’s Office went forward with filing a criminal case. Judge White dismissed the charges “in the furtherance of justice” after defense counsel demonstrated to the court that the prosecution team had engaged in a series of missteps including the improper use of testimony that was compelled from a witness.
Mr. Mermelstein, a white-collar criminal defense attorney, worked with counsel for all of the defendants to expose numerous problems with the government’s case. “This is a case that never should have been brought,” said Mermelstein. “Judge White dismissed this case early in the process because he recognized that the information that was provided to Silverado's regulators during a global pandemic had no place in a criminal courtroom. After hearing multiple days of testimony, he dismissed the case 'in furtherance of justice' for good reason. We're gratified that the Court of Appeals saw it the same way."
The appeal was People v. Silverado Senior Living Management, Inc, et al., B334247 in the California Court of Appeals, Second Division.