New York Criminal Lawyer Blog
A good criminal attorney can be the deciding factor in a criminal trial for a defendant who has been charged with an offence, in understanding the rights and restrictions that are imposed upon him. Prosecutors are only human and as such are capable of making mistakes that are common to all people. Procedural law is strict. A New York Drug Crime Lawyer said only a person who has been sufficiently trained in the law is capable of deciphering the requirements that the prosecution team has to meet in order for them to obtain a conviction. When the prosecution team makes an error, it is not up to them to admit to the error. It is incumbent upon the defense team to expose the error.
The case of one defendant in New York is an example. He was charged with several misdemeanor offenses of menacing and reckless endangerment stemming from incidents that occurred between May and October of 2009. On October 12, 2009, he was arraigned on two misdemeanors. Bail was set on the charges and court date was set for October 16, 2009. On the 16th, the prosecutor served and filed an information with the court. As an oversight, the prosecution team failed to convert the misdemeanor information with a misdemeanor complaint as required. A New York Drug Possession Lawyer said that an information is a court document that details the facts of a case against a particular defendant. The information provides the details of the offenses and the charges that are being pursued.
The defense team filed a motion to release the defendant from custody because the complaint was not converted to an information as required by the New York State statute CPL §170.70. This statute requires that a misdemeanor complaint filed by a prosecutor of the state of New York must replace the complaint with an information within five days of the person’s incarceration. The five day rule does not include Sundays. If the complaint is not replaced with an information within five days, the statute requires that the defendant be released on his own recognizance.
The court was called upon to review the defense motion for ROR (release on own recognizance). ROR means that the person is not required to place any money or bond in order to ensure that he will appear in court as required. A Nassau County Drug Possession Lawyer said the court determined that there were three issues to consider before ROR would be granted in this case. They wanted to review if the prosecution was required to convert the complaint involving multiple counts of a superseding information . Secondly, the court needed to determine if the superseding information was enough to consider that the information was converted. Lastly, the court needed to determine if the prosecution is capable of replacing their initial misdemeanor complaint with a superseding information to qualify under the proposed statute.
The court determined that the prosecution was not required to change the charge of the initial misdemeanor complaint in the superseding information as long as the information was inclusive of all of the additional charges and at least one of the additional charges came from the conduct that was the element of the crime that the first complaint was based on. A Queens Drug Possession Lawyer said the purpose of this statute is to ensure tha a misdemeanor offender is not kept in jail without a hearing for more than the amount of time that would be fair considering the charges that are pending against him. The court contends that an information that replaces a misdemeanor complaint does not have to charge the same offense as long as the charges in the information are based upon the conduct that created the initial charge. In this case, the prosecution’s superseding information was sufficient to comply with the requirements of the statutory law. The court determined that the defendant was not entitled to release or ROR based on the oversight of the prosecution in this particular incident.
At Stephen Bilkis & Associates with its assault lawyers there are convenient offices throughout New York State and Metropolitan area. Our criminal attorneys can provide you with advice to guide you through difficult situations. Hiring a misdemeanor crime Lawyers can prevent you from losing precious time with your family.