In our last post, we discussed the history and tactics of the Department of Justice’s Medicare Fraud Strike Force. We also talked briefly about the recent Healthcare Fraud nation-wide “takedown.” But as we also mentioned, this was not one giant case involving 90 defendants, but rather dozens of cases, scattered…
In March 2007 the Medicare Fraud Strike Force originated in South Florida as a ground-breaking joint effort between the U.S. Department of Justice’s Criminal Division Fraud Section, the U.S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, as well as state and…
When arrested for drunk driving in New York City or New York State (some attorneys and non-lawyers alike call this crime DWI or DUI), there are certain elements for each of the two major DWI crimes that transcend every case. That is, for example, if you “blow” a .08 or…
When it comes to the criminal law, many people become obsessed with theoretical loopholes and “get out of jail free” cards. While prosecution of the guilty is a noble purpose of government, sometimes there are other, competing governmental interests (such as avoiding a Police State and governmental violations of an…
I recently posted a blog entry briefly analyzing a Second Degree Forgery (New York Penal Law 170.10) conviction where one of the central issues was whether the defendant had the intent to “defraud, deceive or injure” the bank when a deceased man’s credit card was used and all principle and…
Regardless of the degree or level of the crime, Forgery is a very serious offense as defined in the New York Penal Law. While the misdemeanor offense of New York Penal Law 170.05 is punishable by a sentence of up to one year in jail, the Second and First Degree Forgery crimes…
If your client is arrested for and charged with Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree (New York Penal Law 220.16) for allegedly possessing 45 glassines of heroin with the intent to sell that drug, you certainly engage the Assistant District Attorney when a non jail offer…
On numerous occasions I have addressed how prosecutors can overcharge crimes or think out of the box to get to a particular result. Sometimes it is warranted and other times it is not. Similarly, sometimes the end result is proper while other times it is a violation of the law.…
Whether you are arrested for allegedly possessing a drug such as heroin or cocaine, a weapon including a gravity knife or firearm, or some marijuana, the contraband the police claim you possessed may not have been on your person. That is, you are being charged with PL 220.03 (drug possession),…
The crime of Kidnapping, New York Penal Law 135.20, is one of the worst “sounding” crimes one can be accused of. Most people, whether you are a prosecutor, criminal lawyer, juror, teacher, carpenter or justice of the criminal court (or any professional in between), instinctively think the worse when such an accusation or…