There was no way that the defendant knew he was attacking the wife of Pittsburgh Pirate pitcher Chris Snyder, and that his temper tantrum was criminal. Driving without a license is indeed illegal, as is aggravated assault. Episodes of road rage similar to his occur every day all over the country on the nations streets and highways. A professional athlete's wife being attacked, while he and their children sit in the car, is genuinely newsworthy, and will not help the defendant's chances in court.

Because the baseball player was incapacitated by back surgery seated in the car and could do nothing but helplessly watch his wife get attacked, an innocent bystander and an off duty cop were left to intervene on Ms. Snyder's behalf, fending off bites, punches with keys between his fingers, and flying shoes. As a result of his extremely poor behavior following a close call while the victim was driving and he was riding a scooter, Mr. Modhwadia was charged with driving with an invalid license, aggravated assault, assault, and criminal mischief. He is being held on $25,000 bail. This will not be an easy case for his attorney.

In New Jersey, any criminal defense attorney should be able to tell you that aggravated assault is governed by NJSA 2C:12-1(b) which governs "attempts to cause serious bodily injury to another..[.]" Based upon police notes from the scene and witness accounts, there is evidence to show that Mr. Modhwadia attempted to cause serious harm to Carla Snyder. Additionally, in New Jersey the aggravated assault is an indictable crime so it would be review by the county prosecutor and most likely would remain in the Superior Court. This defendant is headed for far more than anger management. Anyone who has been the victim of a road rage tantrum, or has had an episode of behavior which has resulted in criminal charges, should without momentary hesitation contact a highly skilled attorney who has years of experience with these types of cases.

One pound of most things is not a lot. A person can lose a pound in a day fairly easily, and gain one as well. But 585 grams, just over ½ of a kilogram or approximately one pound, when it comes to a controlled substance, is all it takes to get yourself in very, very hot water. Two nineteen year old men are certainly in some trouble for allegedly being found with an open container of alcohol, underage drinking, and interestingly, exactly 585 grams of marijuana while in their car in Brick, New Jersey.

Let's be clear: when it comes to pot, there are really only two options. The first is possession of under 50 grams, in which the charge is a disorderly persons offense (non-indictable, although you will be arrested, booked, and arraigned). The second is possession of over 50 grams. This one, considered intent to distribute, is, according to N.J.S.A 2C:35-10, a crime of the fourth degree, and can carry with it a fine of up to $25,000.00. It gets even better: possess drugs within 1,000 feet of a school zone, and if you're not imprisoned (as defined by the penal code), you'll have a mandatory 100 hours of community service you'll have to complete.

When it comes to determining whether or not there was intent to distribute, the factor most largely examined by the court is the amount of the drug that was seized by police. Someone caught with 30 grams of pot is more likely to convince a judge that it was for personal use than say, someone caught with 585 grams (about one pound). Some even try to argue that their 200+ grams of marijuana in the freezer bag in their desk drawer is for personal use, and that they just prefer to "stock up". Your personal preference of keeping a full stash is simply not persuasive or relevant for legal purposes.

In a Court of law, even with an attorney, that approach will not work. In fact, the New Jersey law allows an individual to possess a relatively large amount of marijuana, 50 grams. It's extremely unlikely that someone who possesses over two ounces of pot would have it and keep it to avoid the inconvenience of seeing their distributor or dealer once a week.

The bottom line? Possession of pot in excess of 50 grams will get someone in a whole lot more trouble than an amount under 50. So if police find you in possession of any pot/marijuana or any controlled substance, call a lawyer, obtain legal counsel, retain an attorney immediately. A good attorney will examine the details of your case, including method of arrest, search, seizure, and measured amount of controlled substance, among other aspects that might affect your welfare and determine the most appropriate legal strategy for your defense.

Unfortunately, an arrest of a student-athlete is infrequent but not uncommon. When the school's mascot gets arrested, while serving in his official capacity at the stadium, it is at least noteworthy. Apparently, the University of Cincinnati Bearcat mascot was arrested during a Saturday football game against the University of Pittsburgh. During the game that day, the weather was harsh as snow blanketed the stadium. While sitting amidst the falling snow, many fans were tossing snowballs for additional entertainment. Generally, both football fans and players are a hearty bunch, but due to safety concerns, it seems that the fans were warned to stop throwing snowballs. Hard snow and ice can easily injure someone who is not prepared to catch it or doesn't see it coming, in a crowd packed tight in stadium seats. A ball of ice could be used as a weapon. However, the Bearcat mascot did not heed that warning, and threw snowballs into the stands from his perch on a 6-foot high wall behind the end zone that was covered with ice and snow. In addition to hurting crowd members by pelting them with ice and snow, he could have fallen, injured himself and whomever he may fall upon.

When confronted by police, the Bearcat allegedly shoved the officer, both men ended upon the ground, at which point he was arrested for disorderly conduct. In New Jersey, this would give the student-mascot a criminal record. Further, he would be subject to fines and even a potential loss of driving privileges. The best thing the Bearcat can hope for is that he would be able to pay a fine to a municipal ordinance violation, and that he will be allowed to escape being saddled with a criminal record, or receive terms for expungement. While the visual of a mascot being led away in handcuffs may be humorous, it will be no laughing matter for this Cincinnati student when he appears in Court. It should also be noted that even the mascot is replaceable as Cincinnati had a "backup" mascot fill in the original mascot for the second half of the Bearcats defeat.

This sort of scenario, a row among fans or mascots at a stadium in any weather, provides a range of legal issues, personal injury or negligence claims as well as criminal charges. It is crucial for a skilled attorney to navigate this sort of legal minefield, so if you or someone close to you ever finds yourself in a situation like this, the very first thing to do, once your physical safety has been ensured, is to contact and retain an attorney immediately.

Braylon Edwards, it was reported recently, upon being pulled over in the early morning hours for having overly tinted windows, was charged with drinking and driving. In response, he first suggested that perhaps he might just leave the car and head on home (really?), then questioned the legality of police procedure which stopped him for the windows only to discover that he had been drinking, without performing a field sobriety test.

Putting Edwards' off the cuff analysis aside, there are two issues here regarding his legal situation. Firstly, he is on probation in Ohio connected to aggravated disorderly conduct charges. It is unknown whether his Ohio probation will be affected by a DUI arrest in New York. In New Jersey, for example, the DUI charge is under Title 39, which governs motor vehicles. It is not a violation of the criminal code unless there is an injury. Thus, it would be doubtful that it could be a legal setback his most recent charges occurred in New Jersey. DUI is a serious offense, however, and has been treated with appropriate gravity by the Courts in recent years, so it is possible that Edward's actions could have some impact on his probation where discretion is permitted.

Secondly, the overly tinted windows caused the police to stop Edwards. The police cannot arbitrarily pull over drivers, however if a car has very tinted windows, which are illegal, they can lead to a police stop, and the noticeable odor of alcohol provides the police officer probable cause to inquire about the driver's level of intoxication, and subsequently, to request that a driver step out of the vehicle.

If you are trying to stay out of trouble, drive a vehicle that will stay under the radar, and attract no attention. Perhaps professional athletes are not familiar with this approach to life. According to reports, should he receive up to a year in prison, he may find it harder to go unnoticed among fellow inmates. Further, spontaneous legal analysis of police behavior is ill-advised, and best left to the skilled attorney that you should immediately consult should you find yourself in any similar situation.

Whether it is New Jersey or California, a Municipal Court judge may order a person to serve jail time. In New Jersey, the longest a person can be sentenced to serve in jail is 180 days in Municipal Court. Naturally, jail time is not common for municipal offenses, outside of a mandatory sentence for a third DUI offense. The key word in all of this is "may," because the law does give a judge the authority to order jail time for things such as disorderly persons offenses. The statute puts a cap on the amount of time, but as anyone would imagine, most people do have an aversion to any prison time.

Lindsay Lohan makes the news by being sentenced to 90 days jail time because, despite her exquisite display of tears and remorse, she has blatantly disregarded the prior court orders. She has missed court dates and failed to comply with terms of her probation, and further, she has erred more than once. Lets hope the jail time is a wake up call to Ms. Lohan, even if she is released after serving a fraction of her jail sentence. If the wake-up call hits, perhaps her mandatory in-house substance abuse rehabilitation following jail might have a shot at being effective.

This Georgia attorney practices tax law, but he now will get an education in criminal law. According to his website, Mr. Tenney enjoys photography in his spare time. It seems that the hobby occupies his working time as well. A female employee of his allegedly found a camera hidden under her desk. Also a CPA, Mr. Tenney spend 2 hours in jail, before being freed on $10,000.00 bail.

This case is a good illustration of what it means for a defendant to be charged with numerous counts. Many people often wonder why some crimes warrant multiple counts. Does that make the crime more severe? This is a common misconception which an attorney can easily clarify and defend against.

The severity of a crime is measured in degrees. Though you might hear the terms "felony" and "misdemeanor" on Law and Order, these terms of art are not used in New Jersey. Instead, the terms "indictable" or "non-indictable" are used. For example, a 1st degree case is the most severe and a 4th degree the least with respect to indictable crimes. Non-indictable crimes are typically lesser crimes, and frequently occur in municipal court. Non-indictable crimes are classified as disorderly person offenses.

The phrase "multiple counts" refers to how many times the crime is committed. Each instance an accused person allegedly commits a crime equates to one count, even if it was the same victim and same action repeated. This surveillance case alleges that the victim was recorded on three different occasions. As such, there are three separate counts relating to the different dates on which the Defendant allegedly recorded the victim without her knowledge. A skilled attorney should be hired at the first possible moment, to sort through the requirements of each degree of a charge and whether or not there is proof that they are met, as well as the circumstances that generated the multiple counts.