Author Archives: Gary Gerson
Appeals court rules defendant cannot be cross-examined after allocution
On Tuesday, a federal appeals court ruled that people who are convicted of federal crimes have a right to make a final statement before the judge sentences them without being cross-examined by prosecutors. This opinion by the 3rd United States Circuit Court of Appeals is based on a rule that governs criminal procedures in… Read More »
Ex-officer stands trial for murder of friend
Two friends were drinking in a bar in Bloomfield when a fight began. Within seconds, one man was dead and an ex-cop from the Pittsburgh Police sat back down at his seat and waited for police to arrive. The ex-cop’s murder trial will began last week, as the shooter is being charged with killing… Read More »
New bill for mentally ill should help prison overpopulation
In a recent report, the Government Accountability Office found 112 federal programs meant to support people with serious mental illness in 2013. Overcrowding and staff shortage at mental health facilities in the 60s contributed to views that hospitals were ineffective. It also drove communal thinking that care should be community-based. Abuse and neglect at… Read More »
The legality of wiretapping
Someone recently asked me a question about “wiretapping” in regards to a potential criminal defense case against them. Wiretapping techniques may be a good way for the police to make their case; but in some cases, the wiretaps are either inappropriately used or improperly granted. Such circumstances can lead to an accused individual being let… Read More »
Have you been arrested for violent crimes?
Violent crimes, like arson and aggravated assault, often end in lengthy jail sentences, years of probation, and hundreds of thousands in restitution; this is not even to mention the impact a guilty charge it can have on people as they move forward with their lives. Trouble finding gainful employment and a place to live… Read More »
Do you believe your arrest came by way of entrapment?
"Entrapment" is a solid defense to a criminal charge. Basically, entrapment means that a police officer or government official, usually undercover, has convinced a person to commit a crime that they most likely would not have committed in any other scenario. In my more than twenty-five years as a Pittsburgh criminal defense attorney, I… Read More »
Pittsburgh college student attorney
With winter break finishing soon and college kids back in class, I will start receiving a lot of emails and calls about underage drinking, public nuisance charges, and juvenile crimes. One question that seems to be coming in much more frequently now than in the past is that of indecent exposure as it relates… Read More »
Defense attorney discusses drug convictions in Allegheny County
For more than twenty-five years, I have been an aggressive advocate on behalf of my clients in and around the Pittsburgh region who have been arrested and charged with drug crimes and other related criminal offenses. In my many years of helping people who have found themselves on the wrong end of the law,… Read More »
Pittsburgh decriminalizes possession of small amounts of marijuana
The Pittsburgh City Council voted Monday morning to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana within city limits. The council voted 7-2 in favor of a bill that allows police to levy a maximum fine of $100 against anyone possessing up to thirty grams of marijuana or eight grams of hashish. In the… Read More »
PA drug charges attorney discusses new Pittsburgh marijuana laws
Each year in Pittsburgh, there are nearly one thousand people who face criminal charges for possessing small amounts of marijuana. Studies show that approximately 70% of those marijuana-related charges last year were aimed African-Americans. This information comes regardless of the fact that African Americans make up only 26% of the population and whites and… Read More »
