In the United States under constitutional law you are presumed innocent. The prosecution bears the burden of establishing your guilt, ‘beyond a reasonable doubt’. These are not mere words, they are the essence of our system of justice. The State has the sole burden of proof, and that burden cannot be shifted to you, the defendant. When you are charged with a crime, you have the right to remain silent, and cannot be compelled to become… read more →
Health Care Claims Fraud: Rest assured, or rest uneasy: the State is always certain the healthcare claims fraud was done ‘knowingly’. But, truth is, contrary to the State’s point of view, sometimes it is nothing more than a mistake. Unfortunately, a court of law is sometimes the only place this is revealed. We all do it…make mistakes, but the fact that it was a mistake does not necessarily end the prosecution. Whether it is in… read more →
>One of the dumbest types of defenses is to claim ‘police brutality’ or ‘racism’ as a defense strategy without knowing all of the facts. Things are not always what they seem. Without knowing all of the facts, clients and their supporters often use evocative ‘flash-point’ words trying to get short-term sympathy from the public. The likely result that occurs when facts are not present is the police brutality defense can backfire in front of a jury… read more →
Domestic abuse is not gender-limited. Men and women can both be victims. Domestic abuse by verbally harassing someone is a criminal act. Under New Jersey law, making or causing ‘…a communication at…extremely inconvenient hours, or in offensively coarse language, or in any other manner likely to cause annoyance or alarm…’ is harassment. Under the New Jersey Domestic Violence law, that is one of the predicate criminal acts that a ‘protected party’ can use to obtain a… read more →
Police are permitted to go undercover or use informants, to detect and investigate crime. Things may not be what they appear to be. An informant or an undercover police detective is supposed to look like a regular person, a ‘customer’ or a potential ‘target’ for those committing crimes. They will look like you, talk like you, act like you. Anything you say or do in their presence can be used as evidence against you. Undercover police… read more →
Under NJ law, you do not have to have the item ‘on you’ for you to be charged with the possession of it. One of the elements of a crime is the ability to exercise ‘Dominion and Control’ over the illegal item. Possession can be ‘actual’ (you have it on you), ‘constructive’ (you can exercise dominion and control over it – think you can pick it up if you want to), and it can be ‘joint’… read more →
Witness preparation, learning how to answer the type of questions asked on both direct and cross exam, is critical to your credibility and could ultimately sway the outcome to a positive result. There are right and wrong ways to approach what you say from the witness stand. If you are called as a witness in a New Jersey criminal case, or if you as the defendant decide to give up your right to remain silent and… read more →
When you are being sentenced in a criminal court, apologize to the victim, if there was one. Apologize as well to the Court for having failed to obey the law. In New Jersey there are statutory lists of aggravating and mitigating factors that can used by the Court when imposing the sentence. In some cases, while there is no mandatory period of incarceration, the Court has discretion (based on the balancing of the aggravating and mitigating… read more →
Trespassing, Stalking and Harassment are three offenses (among others) that can be charged when someone will not take the hint to leave a person alone. Any of these charges can happen between strangers (or among those with whom each is familiar) when personal boundaries have been crossed to the point unsafe feelings emerge. In New Jersey, if these feelings occur when there is already a domestic relationship (husband/wife, dating situation, unwelcome presence etc.) they would… read more →
Domestic Violence cases in NJ often result in you being charged with both criminal charges, and a Restraining Order being issued against you. A prior history of Domestic Violence between the parties can be used in a variety of ways by the police and the Judge to support why the charges or limits on contact need to be enforced. If the victim is not willing to press charges, the police are required to file them… read more →