Over the past several months I have written about the increasing use of every day technology that automatically tracks our movements and records our conversations. Cellphones ping off cell towers that give the government access to our daily movements through information stored by carriers like Verizon, AT&T and Sprint. Alexa and other smart home devices can record our conversations and keep track of our search histories. Smart phone apps and Fitbits that track movement, heart rates and other physical activity can be used to track locations, times and other physical attributes that law enforcement can access to investigate a variety of crimes.
Tags:
Criminal Defense,
Criminal Investigation,
Fourth Amendment,
Search and Seizure,
Privacy,
Spying
In the federal system, a person may be charged and arrested by way of a complaint or indictment. A complaint is a written statement of essential facts establishing the offense charged made under oath by the agent before a magistrate-judge. Based upon the complaint, an arrest warrant may be issued upon the establishment of probable cause to believe that an offense has been committed and that the defendant committed it. The warrant must list the defendant’s name, or description by which he can be identified, the offense charged, command that the defendant be brought without unnecessary delay before a magistrate-judge and be signed by the judge.
Tags:
Criminal Defense,
Indictment,
Complaint,
Charges,
Grand Jury,
Bail,
Bond
With the advent of “smart homes and devices,” we are now in a world once only imagined in science fiction. Our phones now track our every move, contain our internet search histories and record vast portions of our lives through photos, texts, and encrypted messages. Home security devices and cameras record not only strangers coming to your home, but also you and your invited guests. Baby monitors, smart kitchen devices like refrigerators, and home devices like Amazon’s Echo, are always on and potentially recording or transmitting. And therein lies the problem.
Anything attached to the internet – the Internet of Things – can be hacked, intercepted or legitimately recorded. Since these devices are in the privacy of our own homes or businesses, they have the ability to capture our most intimate and private conversations and actions.
Tags:
Recording,
Criminal Defense,
Cell tower,
cellphone,
Search and Seizure,
Fourth Amendment,
Privacy,
Spying
Criminal defense attorneys representing non-citizen defendants are obligated to provide advice regarding the immigration consequences of a plea or guilty verdict. The Supreme Court’s decision in Padilla made it clear that failure to do so constitutes ineffective assistance of counsel.
Tags:
Deportation,
Non-Citizens,
Noncitizens,
Immigration,
Criminal Law,
Criminal Defense,
Guilty Plea,
Sentencing,
Sentence
Just the other day, "Bridgegate" cooperator and former Port Authority of New York and New Jersey official David Wildstein, was sentenced in federal court to probation. The two defendants that he cooperated against were sentenced to 24 months and 19 months in federal prison. Despite the fact that Wildstein pled guilty to two counts of conspiracy for his role in the offense, and faced several years in prison, the sentencing judge granted the government’s downward departure motion for a much more lenient sentence – in this case probation.
Tags:
Plea Agreement,
Criminal Investigation,
Criminal Defense,
Criminal Defense Process,
Federal Crimes
U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions recently issued a directive to all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to charge defendants with the most serious provable offenses that carry the most substantial sentences, including mandatory-minimum sentences. This directive is a shift back to prior years where the “war on drugs” and other initiatives were designed to reduce crime and incarcerate – warehouse for extended periods - defendants for the longest possible terms.
Tags:
Criminal Defense,
Drug Crimes
Fitbit Data Leads to Husband Charged with Wife’s Murder
Technology has advanced the ease and quality of life immeasurably. Smart phones are handheld computers that can surf the internet; deliver emails, texts and phone calls; take videos and pictures; make dinner reservations and track your every movement through various apps. Our cars can almost drive themselves with lane change warnings; infrared cameras; heads-up displays, cruise control with radar; event data recorders that record speed, braking and seatbelt use; and GPS tracking in case the car is stolen. Home security cameras, Amazon Echo, smart TV, smart appliances and the like can all be controlled remotely through the internet. A variety of devices that are small and comfortable enough to wear, such as Fitbits, iWatches and the like can track our movements, heart rates, calories burned, number of steps and location.
Tags:
Privacy Rights,
Criminal Defense,
cellphone,
Search and Seizure,
Cell tower,
Fourth Amendment
An arrest warrant is, in many cases, the formal start of a
criminal case against an individual. It is a sworn written recitation of enough “facts” of the case that demonstrate to a judge that there is probable cause to believe that a crime(s) has been committed and the at the defendant committed the alleged crime(s).
Tags:
Criminal Defense,
Criminal Defense Process
In many types of criminal cases, the right expert can be invaluable. Whether it is a forensic accountant in a complex fraud or tax investigation; a medical or billing expert in a healthcare fraud investigation; a forensic psychiatrist for a sex abuse or child pornography case; a computer expert for a computer crimes matter; or a drug or gang expert in a serious drug case, the proper expert retained early in the investigation can assist the client’s criminal defense attorney in his or her efforts to prevent the charges from being filed, or to develop a solid defense to aid in plea negotiations or to prevail at trial.
Tags:
Criminal Defense,
Experts,
Investigation,
Criminal Defense Process
