I was able to obtain two good outcomes last night for clients in Henrietta Town Court.
In the first case, my client was a young man charged with the misdemeanor of Petit Larceny. As my client had no prior criminal history, it was important to him to obtain a non-criminal disposition to minimize the impact on his future employment opportunities. Following my negotiations with the judge and the prosecutor, my client was offered and accepted an Adjournment in Contemplation of Dismissal, better known in legal circles as an “ACD.” An ACD means that the case is adjourned, generally for six months. If there are no further legal difficulties for the client during that six month time period, then the case is dismissed entirely at that point. In terms of last night’s matter, the client was also ordered to complete 16 hours of community service. That’s a great tradeoff to avoid a criminal conviction, in my opinion.
In my other matter, my client was originally charged with some very serious narcotics felonies. Felonies that could have carried state prison time had he been convicted of those charges. However, because of some significant legal issues in the case, most notably questions about the legality of the police search of my client’s residence at the time of his arrest, I was able to secure a plea for my client to a Class B Misdemeanor marijuana offense with a sentence of just one year on probation. That outcome sure beats a lengthy state prison sentence, and it highlights how important it is for a person who is accused of serious crimes to obtain competent representation from an attorney who can spot legal issues in a case that can lead to minimized long-term ramifications.
If you find yourself or a loved one in similar legal difficulty as these clients, please give me a call.
(As always please remember that past results do not ensure similar future outcomes.)