Criminal Defense Blog

Posted By Lance Fletcher 22-Aug-2021

Alvin Bragg, the future Manhattan DA

Alvin Bragg set to Become next Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg appears to have clinched the race to become the next Manhattan District Attorney now that he has won the Democratic primary election. This is because in a city like New York, ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 11-Aug-2021

Marijuana Legalization in New York

Is recreational marijuana legal in New York? Yes. Recently, important changes to New York Law have occurred that allow for legal possession and use of recreational marijuana in New York for people over 21 and up to 3 ounces in public. Additionally, ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 29-Apr-2020

Subway Offender Ban in New York

Subway Offender Ban Legislation was passed in early April, 2020, banning certain convicted criminals from using MTA's mass transit services for up to 3 years by the sentencing judge. What this means is that if you've been arrested and are ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 29-Apr-2020

New Changes to New York's Bail, Discovery, and other Criminal Laws

Starting in 2020, New York enacted sweeping reforms meant to give criminal defendants more rights. The biggest changes were to bail and discovery. Bail was changed so that the vast majority defendants would be released at arraignments. Discovery is ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 30-Mar-2020

COVID-19 (coronavirus) Legal Issues

COVID-19 (coronavirus) Legal Issues - New York By Lance Fletcher, Esq. These are unprecedented times. As we naturally focus on this medical emergency, also consider how your rights may be affected. Hopefully, you never end up in an urgent medical, ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 27-Mar-2020

State vs Federal Criminal Procedure

New York Federal vs State Criminal Cases The United States has a patchwork of criminal laws that often overlap in that they proscribe the same thing. For example, when you commit a state level offense such as a grand larceny where you buy something ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 25-Mar-2020

How to Find the Best NYC Criminal Defense Attorney

How to Find the Best / Top NYC Criminal Defense Attorney John was working in the accounting department of a major hospital in Manhattan. He was confronted one day about discrepancies in certain transactions he approved and which caused large sums of ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 8-Jan-2020

Sealing, Expungment, and Hiding Criminal Records in New York

Expungement and Sealing in New York New laws in New York now make it easier than ever to hide an old New York arrest. Having an arrest record can severely damage your reputation, career, professional license, immigration status, ability to travel ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 24-Jul-2019

Arrests in Port Authority and other Train Bathrooms in NYC

NYPD Crackdown on Lewdness and Exposure in Penn Station, Grand Central & other Public Bathrooms Recently, the Wall Street Journal reported about increased policing of public bathrooms in New York City. This is part of an ongoing effort by the ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 12-Jul-2018

Rolling Background Checks Becoming More Common

Rolling Background Checks at Work are Becoming More Common If someone accuses you of a crime, you could be arrested. Being arrested in New York causes an immediate record because your case and arrest information can be accessed by other people and ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 31-Jan-2018

Will I lose my job after my NYC arrest or conviction?

Will I lose my job after my New York arrest or conviction? Being arrested is a stressful experience. After the physical and psychological shock of being treated like a criminal, you have to wonder about how your arrest could harm you in the months ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 13-Feb-2017

MDMA Arrests in NYC

MDMA Possession Cases in NYC In New York, possessing more than 25mg of MDMA is a felony offense. Being caught with less than 25mg of the drug is a misdemeanor and can result in being charged with possession of a controlled substance in the 7th ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 7-Feb-2017

Do I Need to Hire a Lawyer After Arrest or Desk Appearance Ticket?

If You're not Considered poor, You may be on your own Following Arrest (but it's probably for the better) City and local government are often grappling with ways to solve funding problems. This can happen when total expenses exceed tax ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 4-Feb-2017

After Arrest, the Rich Can Buy the Outcome they Need

After Arrest, the Rich Can Buy the Outcome they Need Historically, someone arrested for a crime would hire a lawyer to argue their case in court. The rich can afford to pay for a more skilled criminal defense attorney thereby increasing their odds of ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 2-Feb-2017

New York Medical Marijuana Update

Medical Marijuana in New York State In July of 2014, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo together with the New York State Legislature passed the Compassionate Care Act. Allowing residents of New York State, with qualify illnesses such as H.I.V./AIDS, ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 1-Feb-2017

Even Low-level Offenses Can Have Severe Consequences

Immigration Consequences Can Happen Even for Minor New York Offenses As a New York City Criminal Defense Attorney, I'm often asked if a minor offense can lead to short-term immigration consequences like problems getting back into the US or damage ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 28-Jan-2017

The Benefit of a Good Criminal Defense Attorney

Think Twice before Going to Court Alone As an attorney, I'm often asked if it makes sense to hire an attorney for certain situations that some people think aren't that serious. I almost always say yes. Sometimes I'm asked to be candid. My ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 28-Jan-2017

U.S. is Home to 5% of World's Population but 25% of its Prisoners

U.S. is Home to 5% of World's Population but 25% of its Prisoners According to a recent Wall Street Journal article, the US is home to a quarter of the world's prison population despite having only 5% of the world's population. They made ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 2-Jan-2017

Financial Realities Hurt Free Lawyers & Legal Aid Attorneys

Who's Paying Your Lawyer? They say there's no such thing as a Evaluation lunch. This observation exposes the truth that everything costs something. What might be evaluation for you may have been paid for by others which raises questions about ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 27-Jun-2016

Crime and Punishment in the Post Broken Windows Era

The Link between Crime and Punishment Fyodor Dostoyevsky in Crime and Punishment succinctly observed that, “[t]he man who has a conscience suffers whilst acknowledging his sin. That is his punishment.” But some people’s conscience ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 27-Jun-2016

Brock Turner - Stanford Rape Case 2016

Brock Turner Brock Turner was a Stanford University student athlete swimmer who was convicted on three counts of felony sexual assault on January 18, 2015. Mr. Turner, then a 19 year old freshman, encountered the victim, a 22 year old alumna of a ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 23-Jun-2016

Accounting Error or Grand Larceny?

Bookkeepers and Accountants are Often Suspected A profession with a large amount of responsibility is something of a double edged sword. On the one hand, praise is heaped upon a person when things are going well. On the other hand, that same person ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 20-Jun-2016

The High Cost of Justice

The High Cost of Justice Clarence Earl Gideon was a homeless drifter with an eighth grade education. He had been on the streets since age 14 and had a string of nonviolent crimes like burglary and larceny in his past. Though it may not excuse his ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 20-Jun-2016

NYPD in the Bathroom - Exposure & Lewdness in NYC

NYPD in the Bathroom - Exposure and Lewdness A public restroom is almost an oxymoron. How can a place reserved for our most private moments be translated to a public facility? While there are certainly those who would take advantage of the ...

Posted By Lance Fletcher 20-Jun-2016

Gravity Knives in NYC

NY’S GRAVITY KNIFE LAW We all know that it is legal to own a knife, but how do you know? I am going to go out on a limb and say that you have not read a New York statute that told you: It is legal to own a knife. You probably don’t really ...

NYC Criminal Defense Attorney