Criminal Defense
High crime area presence can help okay a Virginia police frisk
High crime area is a phrase that police like using to try to justify their reason for focusing their attention on a particular suspect. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I am always ready to challenge the legality of police stops, detentions, frisks and arrests. This...
Succeed on appeal if not at first says Fairfax criminal lawyer
Succeed against your Virginia District Court prosecution. If you do not, as a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know that you get another bite at the apple through an appeal to Circuit Court. This appeal right has never been more beneficial, now that selecting a jury...
Virginia Arraignment & Attorney Dates Addressed by Fairfax Criminal Lawyer
Virginia arraignment and attorney review dates are critical to correctly calendar and follow. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know that Northern Virginia courts ordinarily excuse a criminal and DUI defendant's appearance at such court dates so long as a lawyer timely files his or...
Broker deals that erase landmines ahead says Fairfax criminal lawyer
Broker criminal case settlements that minimize harm to the criminal defendant. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know that needs to be a criminal defense lawyer's watchword. A case in point is Evans & Conway v. Commonwealth of Virginia, ___ Va. ___ (Dec. 3, 2020), where...
Counter Dangerous Prosecutors with the Right Virginia Criminal Lawyer
Counter and know who the dangerous prosecutors are. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know that all prosecutors are potentially dangerous, even those who have for years acted otherwise. Even the best meaning Virginia prosecutor has an agenda that is first and foremost to serve...
Continuous offense doctrine in Virginia- Fairfax criminal lawyer comments
In Francis, the Virginia Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 that the evidence was sufficient to convict in two separate neighboring county circuit courts for felony eluding police from the same police officer during the same chase. Rejecting that the two separate convictions protected Francis under...
Multiple criminal actions risk harsh sentencing says Fairfax criminal lawyer
Multiple criminal actions mean that the perpetrator might receive a separate Virginia criminal charge for each such action, rather than having them all rolled into one criminal accusation. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know that the concept of a harsher sentence for more criminal...
Miranda applicability addressed by Fairfax criminal lawyer
Miranda applicablity depends on whether the criminal defendant is in police custody. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I hear many arrestees underline that the police did not read them their rights. However, without police custody, the Miranda rule from the United States Supreme Court does not...
Protective Order Violations with Injury – Fairfax Criminal Lawyer Comments
Protective order violations in Virginia are a criminal offense. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I think initial protective orders ("PO's") -- both emergency and prelminary PO's, which bar such behavior as contacting the respondent and assault -- are too often a threat to our civil...
Private Prosecutors are Limited by Virginia Law
Private prosecutors are the exception to the usual Virginia practice of having prosecutors be elected officials or their employees, or private practicing lawyers hired by incorporated cities or towns. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I am ready to seek the disqualification of a private prosecutor...
