Even though RICO crimes are not prosecuted by the New York State Attorney General or by one of the many District Attorneys such as those in the boroughs of New York City, organized crimes does not get a pass in the State of New York. While large-scale schemes, whether they involve crews or organizations, routinely involve allegations of Money Laundering, Criminal Tax Fraud, Grand Larceny and other offenses, the underlying acts and how they violate the law are not always the central component of these prosecutions. Instead, even if the crime or crimes committed don’t amount to a more serious felony, law enforcement in New York has a weapon in its enforcement arsenal that exposes an accused to significant incarceration post-indictment. This New York version of RICO is Enterprise Corruption, New York Penal Law 460.20.

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When, as a college student, you are accused of violating a Title IX policy or the Code of Conduct of your respective university, both your academic career and otherwise clean criminal record are often put in harm’s way. Whether or not you are arrested by the NYPD or local police department, accused of a crime or allegedly committed a form of sexual or gender-based misconduct or harassment, the consequences are quite real even if your case never reaches a technical disciplinary hearing. What is not real, however, is that every claim of wrongdoing is true and accurate. While the legal standard employed by Title IX Coordinators, the Dean of Students, or any administrative body at a New York City or New York State college or university is a preponderance of the evidence  – quite lower than the criminal threshold of proof beyond a reasonable doubt and devoid of the due process rights we all take for granted – that does not mean you cannot successfully challenge a complaint. In fact, having successfully represented student accusers and the accused in college Title IX, Student Misconduct Hearings, Disciplinary Hearings and other infractions at universities such as NYU, Fordham, CUNY, SUNY Binghamton, Columbia and others, Saland Law PC’s Title IX counsel recognize there are strategic avenues to pursue should you find yourself on either side of the law. In fact, a recent and successful resolution of multiple alleged Title IX violations against a student at a large New York City university is a testament to the advocacy of Saland Law PC’s Title IX attorneys.

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The terms are somewhat interchangeable and, for that matter, if you are a crime victim it is relatively inconsequential how the New York Penal Law defines a particular offense. After all, your goal is clear. How do I prevent my tormentor from harassing and threatening me whether its online or offline? Although the questions are many – do I want to file a criminal complaint, petition for and get an Order of Protection in Family Court, hire a lawyer to shut down my blackmailer to keep it out of the public eye – as long your abuser committed some criminal act, you have avenues to protect yourself in or out of New York’s criminal justice system. While the links below addresses your remedies and the means by which you can stop a perpetrator of Revenge Porn, Sextortion, Cyber Harassment, Online and Offline Stalking, Extortion, Coercion and Blackmail, this blog entry is more limited in its scope. That is, what is the difference between Blackmail, Extortion and Coercion?

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The New York vehicular crime lawyers and DUI attorneys at Saland Law PC are pleased to share the recent dismissal of all criminal charges against a client accused of DWI and Aggravated Unlicensed Operation of a Motor Vehicle in the Third Degree. Within the four corners of the criminal court complaint, our client faced serious offenses and, if convicted, a mandatory license suspension, installation of an ignition interlock device in the vehicle, fines and, a permanent criminal record. Although prosecutors made multiple non-criminal offers, our attorneys repeatedly advised the client to reject the non-criminal “deals” presented by the District Attorney’s Office. At bottom, although we disputed whether our client was legally intoxicated (there was a refusal to “blow” in the portable breath test device – PBT – as well as in the Intoxilyzer), we argued that the client did not violate the spirit of nor the elements the New York Vehicle and Traffic Law.

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How do I get an Order of Protection in New York? Do I have to go to the police, such as the NYPD, to apply for a Restraining Order? What are the steps and  whatever they may be, am I eligible for a Stay Away Order? All reasonable questions, the answer to whether you are entitled to an Oder of Protection (“entitled” may or may not be the correct word in this context) and whether a judge will issue one depends on many factors. Before briefly addressing the answer to your questions in this blog entry, and discussing further with your attorney should you determine you are a candidate for a Restraining Order in New York, keep the following in mind. A Restraining Order, Stay Away Order and Order of Protection are different names for the same order issued by a court. No matter what you call this mechanism to protect you from another person, in the State and City of New York, there are generally two avenues to secure an Order of Protection. A Criminal Court Judge can issue a Restraining Order after the arrest and during the arraignment of a criminal defendant and Family Court Judge can issue an order in a civil proceeding pursuant to the New York State Family Court Act Article 8.

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If you are a victim of Revenge Porn, Unlawful Disclosure of an Intimate Image (NYC Admin. Code 10-180), Unlawful Dissemination or Publication of an Intimate Image (Penal Law 245.15), Cyber Stalking, Online Harassment, Sextortion, or other victimization, not only is your ex-boyfriend, former girlfriend or whomever is posting your intimate images without your consent, trying to shame and torment you, but they are likely committing a crime and setting themselves up for a lawsuit filed by a Revenge Porn Lawyer they will not soon forget. What gives a harasser and stalker power is they believe that you, the victim of unlawful distribution or publication of your personal and sometimes explicit recordings, pictures and videos, will succumb to shame and humiliation instead of fighting back with an experienced and knowledgeable attorney. He or she will use Revenge Porn as a means to strike at you from afar knowing that your anxiety will intensify every time you access Instagram, Reddit, Snapchat, Youtube, Facebook, Tumblr, or any other social media platform. Whether your tormentor post videos of you engaged in sexual acts or more “tame” images of your naked body, know that you can potentially have these images not merely hidden or blocked, but removed from Google, Bing, and Yahoo search engines. The lift may not be easy and you may have some work ahead, but when you are ready to hire a lawyer familiar with Revenge Porn and Sextortion crimes and statutes, the civil remedies to compensate you for your pain, the means to secure an Order of Protection, and ultimately the ability to remove copyrighted or explicit personal pictures from the internet by way of a DMCA Takedown or other method, you can put the Revenge Porn, Cyber Stalking and Online Harassment campaign against you in your rear view mirror.

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A friend of LeSean McCoy’s ex-girlfriend, Delicia Cordon, accused the Buffalo Bills’ running back of a horrifically violent attack that allegedly left Cordon hospitalized and bloodied. Beyond the claimed domestic violence she suffered at his hands, further assertions, by way of Instagram, lobbed at the athlete included the beating of his son, the pummeling of a pet dog and steroid use. Hours after the social media post, McCoy assertively denied the accusation and went as far as denying any physical, aka, “direct.” contact with Cordon for months prior. The question remains, however, if McCoy’s response that he had no contact with his ex doesn’t hold water, or corroboration exists as to these serious allegations, what charges could he face if he intentionally inflicted what appear to be quite frightening injuries on Cordon’s face? Even assuming probable cause does not exist to arrest McCoy or proof beyond a reasonable doubt to convict him of any crime as to Cordon, what is his exposure to crimes involving his son and animal cruelty?

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In the age of #Metoo, an important movement long time coming, there can be unforeseen consequences when vigorously supporting gender-based misconduct without stepping back to thoroughly examine an accusation. Simply, allegations that lack sufficient corroboration or answers to reasoned questions should hold no more water than those in other contexts. As much as we want to believe any assertion of wrongdoing is legitimate, sometimes such claims are subjectively “right” because a complainant perceives it as such or they are completely fictitious. Regardless, whatever the case may be, a critical analysis of the evidence and facts tells quite a different story. For a recent client of the New York criminal lawyers and former Manhattan prosecutors at Saland Law PC, such a scenario played out in a New York City Criminal Courts. After being contacted by the NYPD, our client self-surrendered for his arrest and prosecution by the District Attorney where the latter charged him with, among other offenses, Stalking in the Fourth Degree, New York Penal Law 120.45. Fortunately, and thanks to the skill, diligence and advocacy of Saland Law PC, a judge acquitted our client of all charges after trial.

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How do I stop an ex from humiliating me with Revenge Porn or “”Sextortion” by sending intimate images to my co-workers and family in violation of Penal Law 245.15 or NYC Administrative Code 10-180 (177*3)? What steps can I take to stop a person from Blackmailing me? I am being harassed and extorted by a former business associate. Should I report the Extortion to the police or are there other methods to stop my victimization? All reasonable questions, even if the answers are not always easy, know that there are numerous actions that you can take regardless of whether you engage a Blackmail defense lawyer or Revenge Porn attorney. In short, while not a complete list of questions and answers, securing formidable evidence and allowing your abuser to “hang” him or herself is invaluable to cease your Extortion, Coercion, or other harassment no matter if you pursue protection with the assistance of the police or retain private legal counsel. In fact, taking the proper steps to preserve evidence as early as possible will provide you with the strongest foundation no matter if you fight back through the New York City or New York State criminal justice system, with a law suit in the civil courts, petitioning the New York Family Court for an Order of Protection, or by means of a case and desist letter along with a non-disclosure agreement.

Should I Block my Blackmailer from Texting, Emailing or Communicating with Me on Social Media?

Thanks to the passage of New York City Administrative Code 10-180, Unlawful Disclosure of an Intimate Image, victims of Revenge Porn and the unauthorized sharing of compromising images in New York City – Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx and Staten Island – now can protect themselves in a court of law. Similarly, those abused elsewhere in the state can avail themselves of NY Penal Law 245.15, Unlawful Dissemination or Publication of an Intimate Image. Not only are distributors of intimate images, videos, pictures and other recordings committing a crime, but you, as a victim, can also file a lawsuit to hold them financially accountable for, among other things, punitive damages. Simply, if an ex-boyfriend, former spouse, or even an affair, shares your intimate images that he or she may have lawfully had at some point but were not permitted to send out to friends, business associates or online, a NYC Revenge Porn lawyer can help you secure justice in every sense of the word. No longer will you have to shrug when you ask, “How can I protect myself as a victim of Revenge Porn?”

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