If you’ve been charged with shoplifting, you’re likely scared, intimidated, embarrassed, and unsure of what to do next. First things first — find yourself a criminal lawyer in Hamilton Township, NJ, to represent you in court and help you navigate the complexities of the criminal court system. Here are some FAQs about shoplifting in New Jersey to give you a bit of insight into what you can expect going forward.
Possession with Intent to Distribute in New Jersey?
More often than not, simply getting caught with any type of drugs on your person, even recreational marijuana, can land you a drug possession with intent to distribute charge in New Jersey. How? Law enforcement officials may not have any solid evidence that you did, in fact, intend to distribute, but that won’t stop them from increasing the severity of the charges against you.
While the ability to be armed is protected under the Second Amendment, it’s still important for New Jersey weapon owners to understand local laws that restrict weapon usage and accessibility. New Jersey is well-known for having some of the toughest weapon charges, so knowing the law and choosing an experienced lawyer to help you is essential in making it through the case without massive fines or jail time, or avoiding a weapons charge in the first place.
Indictable offenses in New Jersey, also known as felonies in other states, are crimes that require a prison sentence of at least one year after conviction. These crimes, such as murder, arson, sex crimes, and robbery, among others, are the most severe crimes one might commit, and they all have different levels of severity with corresponding punishments. In this article, we at the Law Office of Zapicchi & Liller LLP will give you a brief overview of indictables in NJ, including the degrees of indictable offenses, the criminal statute of limitations, and the different sentences for each.
New Jersey indictables are classified by four degrees. Their severity is listed in descending order below:
These degrees and their corresponding crimes refer to first offenses only. Any subsequent convictions for the same offense will usually be considered a more severe degree for individual perpetrators. New Jersey law dictates that there should be an “ordinary term” for each degree, as listed above. However, judges can extend sentences for certain crimes (e.g., 20 years to life for a murder charge), impose minimum penalties, or allow for indicted individuals to serve all or a part of their sentences on probation.
Even though indictable crimes are the most serious crimes, there is still a statute of limitations for many of them, meaning that the state has a certain period to open a criminal case before it cannot be brought to court. Although for some of the more serious crimes, this is not a concern.
Below is a summary of the statutes of limitations for indictable offenses:
An indictable crime can seriously affect your life, as a conviction becomes part of your permanent record and can make it challenging to get a job or an apartment and eliminates your voting, gun, and professional license rights. Additionally, If you were convicted of a prior felony, a harsher sentence may be imposed. An experienced criminal defense lawyer should always be consulted to help reduce sentences and make plea deals. If you need a defense attorney, contact the Law Office of Zapicchi & Liller LLP before it is too late!
In addition to indictable offense representation, if you require a speeding ticket lawyer in Monmouth County, NJ, or a DWI/DUI lawyer in Mercer County, NJ, call the Law Office of Zapicchi & Liller LLP today!
You’re driving down the highway, moving along with traffic, going about your day as usual and suddenly you drive past a police officer sitting in the median. You check your speed — 10 over. You can feel it. You’re going to get a ticket. Sure enough, the officer pulls out, puts on his lights, and pulls you over. You’ve just gotten yourself a ticket.
Don’t feel bad though, we’ve all been there, and we will all probably be there again, but sometimes, it feels like the ticket that you were written, the fine you got, or the points that you got on your license were unjust for the situation you were in. Maybe you had to go to the hospital, or you were just in a rush to get to work. Whatever the reason, you want to fight it, and lucky for you, we are your traffic lawyer, whether you’re in Burlington County, NJ, or the surrounding area.
We help people fight traffic and speeding violations all the time, and we will fight vehemently to get your charges reduced and points off your license. How do we do this? In this blog, we will cover how anyone can go through the legal process of fighting a speeding ticket in the state of New Jersey.
Plead Not Guilty
First things first, you need to plead not guilty. Pleading not guilty is your way of saying to the state that you believe you were charged unfairly, inaccurately, or unlawfully. Many municipalities have their own rules or time periods set up as to when you can or cannot file an appeal to a ticket, so make sure to read the fine print on your ticket before you attempt to plead not guilty.
The Next Steps
After pleading not guilty, there will be two more steps before you know whether or not your plea has helped your case at all. These steps are:
When you meet with the prosecutor, you will (generally) be able to make a deal that will amend the charge to have a reduced fine, reduction of points, or, sometimes, both.
To finalize the deal that was made between you and the prosecutor, you will have to appear before a judge for him to finalize and approve the plea deals that were settled upon by both parties.
Hire a Traffic Lawyer
Getting to a point where a judge will accept your plea deal can be difficult. Setting a deal with a prosecutor is the most critical step, and this is where a traffic lawyer in Mercer County, NJ can help.
At The Law Office of Zapicchi & Liller LLP, we help individuals fight speeding tickets and traffic violations regularly, assisting them in getting lower fines and reduced points. Ready to team up with the toughest traffic lawyers in New Jersey? Call us today at 609-318-3990.
