Recent Blog Posts
Washington Township Man Faces Felony Charges For Witness Intimidation
In some news stories about pending criminal cases, you hear that the defendant is in jail until the trial, but in other cases, you hear that the witness is out on bail. Letting defendants in criminal cases remain free until they are convicted at trial or plead guilty is in line with the legal… Read More »
Driver Who Caused Fatal DUI Collision Gets Prison Sentence
DUI has a reputation for being such a minor offense that criminal defense lawyers sometimes advertise their DUI defense services on big billboards next to the highway, as if getting arrested for DUI was as mundane as buying a burger or filing your income tax returns. It is true that many defendants accused of… Read More »
Pittsburgh Woman Charged With Trespassing And Possession Of Drug Paraphernalia
After the initial panic that you feel when riding in the back of a police car after being arrested, you might start to remind yourself of all the ways that your situation would be worse. Maybe the crime, such as drug possession, can be charged as a misdemeanor. You might be able to avoid… Read More »
Westmoreland Man Gets Three-Year Prison Sentence After Pleading Guilty To Sexual Assault Of Teen
It is easy to use Google to convince yourself that your worst fears are about to come true. If you scroll far enough down the list of search results, you can become 99 percent certain that your headache is a brain tumor, your toddler’s tantrums are a personality disorder, and it is impossible to… Read More »
You Can Go To Jail For Having An Open Container Of Alcohol In Your Car In Pennsylvania
In Pennsylvania law, a summary offense is a violation of the law that is less severe than a misdemeanor. Most traffic violations are summary offenses; only the most dangerous ones, such as drunk driving, are misdemeanors or felonies. It is still a good idea to hire a criminal defense lawyer for traffic court when… Read More »
About President Biden’s Executive Order To Pardon Defendants Convicted Of Simple Possession Of Cannabis
The War on Drugs raged through the 1990s, even though it had started decades earlier. In 1994, the federal government enacted the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act. Its provisions included new restrictions on the sale of firearms, expansion of sex offender registry requirements, and funding to expand law enforcement by hiring many… Read More »
Owner Of Oddities Museum And Macabre Ecommerce Store Charged With Attempting To Buy Stolen Human Bones
Most defendants in criminal cases plead guilty, and the ones that do not usually advance one of several common defenses. For example, they might argue that the evidence the prosecution has presented is not strong enough to prove that the defendant committed the crime. They might also argue that the defendant’s actions do not… Read More »
Philadelphia Doctor Who Operated Pill Mill Sentenced To 20 Years In Prison
When kids go to the dentist, they come home with a bag of party favors, including toothpaste, toys, and stickers, as well as a balloon. Even adults sometimes come home from dentist visits with freebies, although they are usually just toothpaste and dental floss, which are not much fun to use, but getting them… Read More »
Pittsburgh Woman Arrested After Attempting To Evade Jail Sentence
The county jail is an unpleasant place, to be sure, but if there is anything to be said in its defense, it is that no one stays there for very long. Jail sentences are usually for misdemeanor convictions, and the sentence usually lasts less than two years. No one serves a life sentence in… Read More »
Pittsburgh Man Accused Of Stealing County Maintenance Truck And Crashing It
Even for those of us who do not have a larcenous bone in our bodies, certain items of public property are a source of temptation. During study hall periods in high school, even the most straitlaced kids and the teachers’ pets shoot the breeze about which street signs they would most like to steal. … Read More »
