Criminal Defense Legal Questions

The sentences will not necessarily end at the same time even if they are running concurrent and given credit from time served from the same date that your brother took the plea in the original case.  Your brother, prior to being sentenced on the original case, may have had credit for time that he was in jail on the original case prior to entering the plea. If he was not in jail during the very same time on the new case, then the credit for time served would be different in the two cases.  Also, your brother upon being sentenced in the original case may have started getting some form of gain time on the original sentence.  It is unlikely that he will be given credit for that gain time on the new sentence even if it is concurrent.  It "may" be possible to negotiate some plea bargain that specifies the sentence on the new case will be co-terminous with the original case.  However, the wording for such a negotiated plea must be very specific and without question as to its meaning.  It may be hard to work out a plea bargain that accomplishes that. ... Read More

You should talk to your probation officer because they will waive the fees they can if you qualify for the waiver - and any fees that have to be paid, the probation officer OR the court clerk in charge of 'collection' will work out a payment schedule you can live with.  They will not/ cannot revoke your probation due to an 'inability' to pay the fees. Talk to them. ... Read More

That depends on whether there interests are in conflict.   If their interests are aligned, yes.  For example, if they were charged in the same altercation and both claim that the other guy attacked them and that they acted together in self-defense. If each is going to be blaming the other, no. ... Read More

Sadly, you can try but, especially in an age of police cruiser dashboard cameras, you will probably will not escape the ticket if the officer got the driver's license number right. As for paraphenalia, if it is related to Marijuana, I am not sure those charges can stand as it is legal to possess in Michigan. You might get 1 or 2 of the charges dropped and wind up paying a fine; depending why your license was suspended, it looks good to the court if you have fixed those issues (prior ticket not paid etc.).   Good luck. ... Read More

I suggest not talking further to the police until you have a lawyer.  Hire a lawyer sooner rather than later. Then tell the lawyer the full story, and what you told the police. The lawyer can help you decide whether it makes sense to talk any further or whether to take a polygraph. You never have to take a polygraph and there are lots of considerations in whether to take one or not, although the results are not admissible in court. However, the police may use the results to decide whethere to charge you with something.... Read More

This is extremely long for anyone, even in a time of COVID to sit in jail. Everyone has a lawyer, ask them to contact their lawyer and demand bail or unconditional release. Obviously, the seriousness of the charges do still matter. Any time in jail will be credited to any sentence. Depending on what the charge is, they might be able to get out for time served.   Good luck... Read More

Nobody. "Pressing charges" occurs in criminal cases, which are investigated by the police and prosecuted by a government prosecuting attorney. You would bring your complaint to the police. You could also bring a civil suit against your son, but you would babe to pay for that yourself. ... Read More

This may depend on whether they were charged with operating the vehicle with no license or unauthorized use of a vehicle. More likely than not if they were just charged with operating a vehicle without a valid license (VTL 509.1) then I doubt the Court would contact your daughter. With that being said, if they were charged with unauthorized use of a vehicle PL § 165.05 then the Prosecutor would almost certainly be in touch with your daughter as the owner of the vehicle to determine whether or not your friend had her permission and authority to operate the vehicle.   ... Read More

Yes, if law enforcement has probable cause to believe you committed a crime, you could be arrested despite being innocent.  Sadly, innocent persons can also be convicted and sentenced.  That is the reason for trials.  It forces the state to produce testimony/evidence to prove guilt.  Upon producing evidence of guilt, the accused has an opportunity, if he/she so chooses, to present testimony/evidence to try to show the state's evidence is wrong.  Unfortunately, there are numerous innocent persons who are charged and, sometimes, convicted. If law enforcement officers came to your house, they most likely were conducting and investigation because they had information that made them think you, or someone at your home, was involved in a crime or knew something about a crime even if you weren't involved.  If you believe law enforcement officers may think you had some involvement in a crime, I urge you to talk to an attorney ASAP!  You need to know your rights and how to assert your rights before deciding whether, or not, to talk to an officer or investigator.  ... Read More

It depends. If the cr ios evidence then it may be kept until the case is over. Usually and in most cases, once the car is processed and swhatever evidence is sought is removed fromthe car, the police will release the car to the owner. Be prepred to porve that you are the owner. You should call the police depwrtment that seized the vehicle, speak to the assigned detecitve and ask politel;y when yur car can be released to you. Explain that you need the car for work, or for family and again, be polite when yiu are speaking to the detective. Civility can go along way!... Read More

Forml arrqignment is a criticl stage of the criminal proceeding and you definitely need a lawyer. At formal arraignment a olea is entered and it needs to be a counseled plea. Also, depending on whst county yiu are in the case may be giuven a trial date and discovery may be exchanged. So you deiniftely need a lawyer. If your county bar association has a lawyer referral servie this may be a good place to start in looking for a crimina lawyer.... Read More

It could be; but not definitely.  It is possible that they determined the amount of restitution was $6,100.  Florida law mandates the court order full restitution in all criminal cases.  It's possible the State Attorney's Office may have asked them if they would be willing to drop the charges if they received restitution.  However, be aware that they cannot drop charges; only the State Attorney's Office can drop charges.  However, the State Attorney's Office is unlikely to drop the charges unless the alledged victim/s agree to it.  If you proceed to trial and are convicted, you would be court-ordered to pay restitution.  However, you would be entitled at that point to a restitution hearing where evidence would have to be presented to show the accurate amount of restitution.  If you resolve the charge by a negotiated plea, it is likely any offer would include restitution also.  It, also, could be that the alleged victim/s was/were attempting to extort money from you.  However, much more information and facts would be needed to determine whether they could be charged with extortion.  Since charges currently are pending against you, you should not have direct contact with the alleged victim/s with regard to payment of money - or you could find yourself facing more charges.  Do not try to handle it on your own.  You should let your attorney know that you have been contacted regarding paying a sum of money and charges being dropped.  Any knowledgable, experienced criminal defense lawyer should be able to advise you as to how to proceed;  how to avoid any more charges being filed against you; and whether the alleged victim's actions may have been an attempt to extort money from you.  If you do not have an attorney, my best legal advice is to retain one as quickly as possible and let the attorney deal with this on your behalf.... Read More

There are too many variables to tell you what to expect at your arraignment.  The state may make an offer.  However, since any petty theft conviction can have future negative ramifications (other than the "sentence"), I recommend you retain an attorney to represent you.  If you cannot afford to retain an attorney, you have the right to a court-appointed attorney.  You should ask the court to appoint one.  It's possible that the court could appoint one and you still could proceed to dispose of your case at arraignment.  But, hopefully, if that were to happen, the attorney would talkt with you first to make sure you understood the rights you would be giving up (including potential defenses) and potential future consequences of a petty theft conviction (even if adjudication is withheld).... Read More

There are many variables in what will actually be the result of such a situation - like the persons prior criminal record, the facts of the cases with the felonies, the reasons the person is alleged to have violated probation, etc. But of course, given that the cases are felonies and there are several of them, the result could be a prison sentence of a length decided by the judge. Also, a person might be eligible for 'community corrections' sentence (sentence to prison BUT placement in a halfway house). ... Read More

You're quite right in believing that the police cannot simply enter your home without a warrant or without cause. Generally speaking, the police would need either a search warrant or an arrest warrant to enter your home without permission. There are some exceptions to this rule when exigent circumstances exist, such as if they are in hot pursuit of a suspect. With that being said, if you believe that your civil rights have been violated, you certainly have various methods of recourse. Depending on what specific damage you suffered, you may be able to initiate a lawsuit against the Police department and specific police officers who caused you to suffer those damages. You may also be able to initiate a complaint either internally with the police department, or externally from the police department if you reside in NYC and contact the Civilian Complaint Review Board. With all that being said, you may want to consider consulting an attorney who handles these types of matters as soon as possible, as there are statutes of limitations that can impact your ability to file a claim or sue. I will not advise on those specific periods of time here, but do want to ensure that you are aware that statutes of limitations do exist for lawsuits and therefore you should act quickly.    I hope this information is helpful. ... Read More

An arrest warrant is different than a search warrant.  If there is an active arrest warrant and a law enforcement confirms it before arresting you, the law enforcement officer is allowed to make the arrest (even if the officer is not in possession of the warrant at the time).   However, the law enforcement officer/s is/are not allowed to question you after the arrest without first advising you of your Miranda rights (i.e., right to remain silent and have an attorney present for any questioning).  If you are in custody and questioned by law enforcement, without first being advised of your Miranda rights, it does not make the case go away.  However, it would allow your attorney to file a motion to suppress anything you said in response to such questioning.  That, of course, is assuming the officers admit they questioned you without first giving you your Miranda rights.  If the officers claim you were given your rights (contrary to what you claim), it will be up to the judge to decide whom to believe. Be careful.  Even if you are in custody, if you begin to talk and provide information to the law enforcement officers on your own (i.e., without being questioned), anything you say can be used against you even if you were not given your Miranda rights.  Also, if after being given your Miranda rights, you consent to answer questions and talk to law enforcement officers, anything you say can be used against you.  However, you have the right to terminate the questioning at any time. Also, if you have not been taken into custody, but are being questioned, it is up to you to decide whether to answer questions unless you have been subpoenaed for the purpose of questioning.  If that happens, I urge you to contact an attorney who can explain your options and possible repercussions of each option.  They can be devastating.  You need to know your rights in that event.  They are different than your Miranda rights.      ... Read More