Long Island

Published on: July 22, 2012

Court Discusses Jury Selection

by Stephen Bilkis

When a person is charged with a felony crime, their case is sent to a Grand Jury in most states before the indictment is confirmed and sent to trial. The Grand Jury is a group of jurors who review the circumstances surrounding a case and determine with the guidance of the prosecutor from the District Attorney’s office if the elements of the crime have been met to proceed with a prosecution. At each stage of a criminal trial, there are requirements that must be met in order for the state to prosecute a person for the commission of a crime.

A New York Criminal Lawyer said these steps are important to protect the rights of every citizen in the United States. While it may seem to some that criminals are provided with too many rights and the ability to escape justice based on mistakes that are made by the prosecution team, it is important to remember that these safeguards are in place to enable a defense team to protect an innocent person from being incarcerated for a crime that they did not commit. At any stage of a criminal prosecution, the defendant is considered innocent until proven guilty. The job of the defense attorney is to protect the rights of all citizens by ensuring that the prosecution is not allowed to circumvent the safeguards that the legislature has placed in effect. Toward this end, many times defense attorneys notice improprieties in legal process that could have long reaching effects on all people.

One case of this type was heard in New York on March 17, 1975. In this case, the defense team noticed that the statutory requirements that were on the law books were not being followed by the Kings County New York court system. The process for the selection of grand jurors was detailed in the Judiciary Law § 609. The statute requires that the county clerk of each county must make an investigation of persons who are qualified to serve as trial jurors. The clerk will then require that the jurors provide legible fingerprints of both hands in order to ensure that they have not been convicted of any felony and certain misdemeanor charges in the state of New York. In this statute, the wording of the statute itself refers to the juror pool as applicants for the Grand Jury.

Published on: April 21, 2012

Court Discusses Jurisdiction of Integrated Domestic Violence Court

by Stephen Bilkis

A man was charged on one count of harassment in the second degree alleging an act of domestic violence against the complainant. Consequently, the man served an action on the district attorney while the court action was pending. The three petitions were concurrently pending in the family court between the man, the complainant and a third family member concerning the custody of the man and complainant’s child. The pending decision of the criminal and family court matters with the underlying issue prompted a screening by the Supreme Court and its integrated domestic violence (IDV) part in the county. After the screening, the court determined that the transfer of the family’s cases to the IDV was appropriate by finding that it would promote the administration of justice.

The man moved for dismissal of the charged on one count of harassment in the second degree alleging an act of domestic cruelty against him and asserts that Supreme Court lacks an essential subject matter authority citing criminal procedure law. A New York Criminal Lawyer said the man also argued that irrelevant offenses charged as a sole count in a legal document may not be tried in the Supreme Court unless the offense is charged in an allegation that also charges a crime. The man further relies on the recent Court of Appeal’s decision that supports his dismissal request.

The man also claims that to understand the provisions of the constitution to grant the transfer of authority to the Supreme Court IDV part and to transfer a sole count of a violation level offense would support an improper use of the court’s resources and gives the court’s unarguable subject matter authority over more serious offenses.

Published on: January 16, 2012

The Lohan Family Crime Spree Continues in Tinsel Town

by Stephen Bilkis

Lindsay Lohan’s father, Michael Lohan, was apprehended and charged with 3 felony counts. Lohan was arrested at his West Hollywood home on suspicion of three different counts of domestic violence against a female living with him, according to authorities.

The arrest occurred during the same stretch of days in which his famous daughter, former child actress Lindsay was putting to rest a plea deal for her recent legal imbroglio the media has been calling “necklacegate.”

Michael Lohan had been living with his lover, Kate Major, for the past few years. While out walking in his West Hollywood neighborhood, Lohan was en route past the sheriff’s station when he was arrested.

Published on: August 18, 2011

Mouthy children get shot and killed by their mother

by Stephen Bilkis

A 16 year old girl and a 13 year old boy are shot and killed after talking back to their 50 year old new mom. The mom didn’t deny the shooting and killing of these two children.

The mom was already confronted once by police a few months earlier when they went to her residence for an abuse call. A New York Criminal Defender said the mom would slap her children in the face for talking back. The police couldn’t really do anything at that time for lack of evidence. A police spokeswoman said that this seemed like a normal incident of high tension between a frustrated mom and teenage children. The police didn’t think this woman would eventually shoot her children. Domestic Violence is not uncommon in Long Island and Staten Island.

The daughter had been going to a school counselor because of her own lashing out at her mom. She regretted how bad she had talked to and treated her mother. The counselor did say that she was told the mom would sometimes slap the children in the face for talking back. This really frustrated the teen girl who was used to being grounded for discipline and not hit. The counselor told the teen that a mother should not be slapping anybody in the face.

Published on: August 10, 2011

Man Kidnap and Held for Ransom

by Stephen Bilkis

A middle-aged man was kidnapped for ransom earlier this week. The man was kidnapped and ransom was demanded after the man was taken. The man was taken from his own vehicle by several men.

The 58-year-old man was taken and held in the suspects’ vehicle. He was forced to call his brother and tell his brother to pay the five men ransom in order to secure his release. The man’s brother reported the call to the police who followed up on the report. The police responded by going to the location where the monetary exchange was scheduled to take place, a N York City Lawyer said. All five of the men who had kidnapped the victim were waiting at the location. In Long Island and Staten Island, these crimes are often considered to be domestic violence situations.

Three of the men were immediately arrested upon the police’s arrival. The other two men attempted to escape from police capture; the two men ran away as soon as the police arrived. A New York City Lawyer explains that running from the police does not help one’s case when the case is brought to court.

Published on: December 10, 2008

Batman Bale Beats Brit Assault Rap-Did He Have A Long Island Criminal Attorney

by Stephen Bilkis

Christian Bale who doubles as “Batman” avoided criminal charges which claimed that he committed domestic assault his sister and his mother at a hotel in London.

The Crown has decided that there was not enough evidence to procede with the case against Bale and told police to lay off.

No doubt, Bale had very good criminal lawyer to plead his case. As the outcome shows, they did a great job of convincing the Brits to drop the charges.