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Dominique Strauss-Kahn, head of the International Monetary Fund and potential candidate of the Socialist Party against French President Nicolas Sarkozy in the 2012 election, is to be arraigned in Manhattan Criminal Court on the charges of Attempted Rape in the First Degree (New York Penal Law 130.35), Criminal Sexual Act in the First Degree (New York Penal Law 130.50) and Unlawful Imprisonment in the Second Degree (New York Penal Law 135.05). Detectives had tugged Mr. Strauss-Kahn out of first class minutes before his Paris bound flight was to leave from JFK Airport. Depending the sources, it is alleged that Mr. Strauss-Kahn, also known as “DSK,” was in his room at the Sofitel in Manhattan when a maid entered the room believing nobody was there. It is further claimed through various media outlets that Mr. Strauss-Kahn forced a women into a room and attempted to lock her inside. During this time, Mr. Strauss-Kahn allegedly attempted to have intercourse and sex with the woman and successfully forced the maid to give him oral sex.

The Crimes Dominique Strauss-Kahn Faces in New York While Mr. Strauss-Kahn may be the biggest individual “fish” caught by the recently christened District Attorney Cyrus Vance, Jr., the crimes the accused faces are no different than if he was the average denizen of Gotham. Assuming the information above is accurate (this is an assumption as there has been no press release fired off by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office as of yet), the crimes and potential punishment are as follows:

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Computer crimes in New York City and throughout New York State are no longer the crimes of the future, but the crimes of today. New York criminal defense attorneys and prosecutors alike are seeing cybercrimes and computer crimes being perpetrated in new schemes and in more creative manners almost daily. Having said that, while the means by which computer crimes such as Computer Tampering, Computer Trespass, Unauthorized Use of a Computer and Unlawful Duplication of Computer Related Material are perpetrated, statutorily defined defenses have remained the same. To be clear, there are many ways your criminal defense attorney may ascertain the best defense against a criminal allegation, but in the realm of computer crimes there are specific defenses set forth in the New York Penal Law pursuant to section 156.50.

New York Penal Law 156.50(1)

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The New York Grand Larceny lawyers and former Manhattan prosecutors at Saland Law PC are pleased to announced that our client avoided both arrest and prosecution for allegedly stealing approximately $32,000 from a bank. Detectives in a New York City suburb had sought out our client for arrest after bank officials learned our client accessed an account that she did not have permission to utilize. During a few month period, our client allegedly withdrew tens of thousands of dollars.

Although a detective asked our client to surrender for her arrest, we argued that a bank error, and not fraud or theft on our client’s part, precipitated the alleged crime. In fact, we argued that her actions may not have been criminal. Specifically, the bank opened a sub-account under our client’s main account in error. There was no accusation that our client fraudulently opened the account or was involved in opening the account in any manner. One of our New York criminal lawyers argued that our client believed this was a line of credit or an account which she had permission to access. Fortunately, after discussions with counsel for the bank and with the detective, the bank agreed to withdraw any charges of Grand Larceny once our client paid back the money that she withdrew. Not only did our client avoid an acknowledgment of wrongdoing and an arrest for a “D” felony (New York Penal Law 155.35), but she circumvented any issues with her career and employment. Our client had faced up to two and one third to seven years in prison if arrested and convicted.

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The Rockland County District Attorneys Office has announced the arrest of Joyce Bidnick, a New City Little League volunteer. It is alleged that Ms. Bidnick, the league’s treasurer, had embezzled in excess of $100,000 over the course of nearly eight years. It is further claimed by prosecutors that Ms. Bidnick hid her alleged theft by falsifying records and invoices. Although it is not clear as to all the charges Ms. Bidnick is facing, a theft exceeding $50,000 is considered Grand Larceny in the Second Degree. Additionally, it would not be surprising if Ms. Bidnick was charged with other crimes including Falsifying Business Records in the First Degree. These two crimes are “C” and “E” felonies punishable by up to fifteen and four years in state prison respectively.

According to reports, Ms. Bidnick is being held in custody with bail in the amount of $100,000. It is not apparent at this time whether or not a Grand Jury has indicted her. The Grand Jury must indict her within six days of her arrest or a preliminary hearing must be held. If not, the court must release Ms. Bidnick if her attorney has not consented to certain legal procedures. Whether or not Ms. Bidnick is released, the District Attorney’s Office has six months to have a Grand Jury indictment and answer ready for trial (subject to many legal qualifications).

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Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, Jr. continues to pursue white collar crime with equal passion as his predecessor, Robert Morgenthau. According to the New York County District Attorney’s Office, four Lehr Construction executives, as well as the company itself, were indicted by a New York County Grand Jury in connection to allegedly rampant fraud netting those executives in excess of $30 million. Approximately 14 months after Lehr Construction offices were raided, the police arrested Jeffrey Lazar, Todd Phillips, Steven Halper and Steven Wasserman to face a multi-count indictment that includes the “B” felony charge of Enterprise Corruption.

DA Vance and his lieutenants claim that Mr. Lazar, Mr. Phillips, Mr. Halper and Mr. Wasserman bilked subcontractors and clients by increasing alleged construction costs between 10 to 13 percent. This “over-invoicing” scheme was allegedly concocted by Lehr executives. According the the District Attorney’s Office:

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Saland Law PC, a New York criminal defense firm, is pleased to announce the dismissal of all charges against a client accused of possessing fifteen forged, fraudulent and fake credit cards and gift cards. Moreover, our client was alleged to have possessed a credit card scanner. In total, our client was accused of thirteen counts of Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument in the Second Degree (New York Penal Law 170.25), one count of Criminal Possession of a Forgery Device (New York Penal Law 170.40) and thirteen counts of Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument in the Third Degree (New York Penal Law 170.20). If convicted our client faced up to seven years in state prison.

The police stopped the car where our client was a front seat passenger after they claimed the driver failed to signal. Upon stopping the car, the police demanded that our client exit the vehicle. At that point the police allegedly retrieved a credit card scanner as well as fifteen total credit cards and gift cards from the floor of the vehicle. The police claimed this was all in “plain view.” It was further alleged that the account numbers on the cards belonged to different account holders and were stolen. Furthermore, some of the cards had either our client’s name on them or the co-defendant driver’s name.

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Saland Law PC, a New York criminal defense firm founded by two former Manhattan prosecutors, has created a New York Bribery law and Bribery crime information page. The statutes in the New York Penal Law that address Bribery are New York Penal Law sections 200.00, 200.03 and 200.4. These crimes are Bribery in the Third, Second and First Degrees and are punishable by up to seven, fifteen and twenty five years in prison respectively.

It is important to note that in the realm of Bribery arrests, charges and indictments, there is often confusion by those not familiar with the criminal law in New York. First, Bribery, regardless of the degree, involves public servants and not private citizens. Second, if you pay a public servant for conduct he or she has already done, as opposed to paying to influence a future action, the crime is likely not Bribery. Instead, that crime is likely Rewarding Official Misconduct.

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New York weapon possession lawyers and New York City criminal defense attorneys often have to contend with a penal code that can be voluminous and complicated. In the realm of weapon crimes, one statute may contain five, six or many more subdivisions with specifically defined words that are directly relevant as to whether or not a crime has been committed. Specifically, New York Penal Law section 265.01(1) or CPW 4, is littered with these subdivisions and defined terms. The following blog entry will deal directly with what types of objects constitute a weapon and ultimately a crime in New York regardless of the manner in which that weapon or object was used (if at all). These laws apply to weapon crimes and charges regardless of whether you were arrested and processed or issued a Desk Appearance Ticket.

New York Penal Law 265.01(1) makes it a misdemeanor crime anywhere in New York to possess certain “automatic weapons.” That is, if you merely possess any of the following items (its is not an exclusive list) you are guilty of an “A” misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail. Obviously, there may be a defense that you have – was the recovery of the gravity knife or switchblade knife the result of an illegal search or is the alleged weapon not in fact what the police claim? But barring a defense and other means of mitigation, there are serious ramifications for your possession in terms of both your criminal record and your career.

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Whether you have been arrested in New York for Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the Second Degree (New York Penal Law 175.30) and need to consult with a New York Criminal lawyer or you are the target of a New York City theft scheme involving the crime of Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree (New York Penal Law 175.35) and want a grasp on the law governing these crimes, Saland Law PC’s Offering a False Instrument for Filing information page is a good source for education. While no substitute for advice from the attorney with whom you thoroughly vet your particular case, the Offering a False Instrument for Filing information page can provide you with the basic understanding of the crimes in New York.

Generally, the crime of Offering a False Instrument for Filing occurs when you know that a written instrument has false information, but you still present it to a public office (or servant). Further, you must do so knowing or believing that it will be filed in some manner with that public office. The case is increased to the First Degree offense when you also have an intent to defraud. NY PL 175.35 is a felony punishable by up to four years in prison while NY PL 175.30 is a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail. It is important to note that many times, the crime of Offering a False Instrument for Filing is associated with other more serious felonies including Grand Larceny, Enterprise Corruption and Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument. In other words, Offering a False Instrument for filing is potentially a serious felony, but may only be a smaller part of a more serious scheme.

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The New York white collar criminal defense attorneys and former Manhattan prosecutors at Saland Law PC are pleased to announce a successful disposition for a client charged in an alleged Enterprise Corruption and Grand Larceny scheme involving multiple millions of dollars. Our client, a physician, had been indicted by a New York County Grand Jury for his alleged involvement in a scheme to perpetrate insurance fraud. It was claimed by prosecutors that phony patients would see the physician as well as his colleagues and that the physician would fraudulently bill medicaid. In all, the State of New York claimed our client, in concert with other physicians and specialists, bilked the government out of more than six million dollars.

Compounding matters, prosecutors alleged in a second indictment that our client had violated a restraining order after much of his assets were frozen. It was alleged that our client accessed certain monies without prior permission. The second indictment charged Contempt and Falsifying Business Records. Our client faced up to eight and one third to twenty five years in prison on the First Enterprise Corruption and Grand Larceny indictment and a consecutive one and one third to four years in prison on the second Contempt and Falsifying Business Records Indictment.

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