Criminal Law
The two most common encounters the public has with the court system are criminal law and drunk driving-traffic cases. The drunk driving-traffic cases are detailed in one of our other Section Tab Pull Downs. The most common criminal law cases are for Assault, Domestic Violence and Drugs Cases. Our attorneys have years of experience in all types of cases from Misdemeanors to Murder; from the frivolous to Felonies.
Domestic Violence is a label that can be put on any regular charge where the people involved have or previously had an intimate relationship or the charges grow out of a related intimate relationship. Domestic Violence is not so much a separate charge as it what lawyers call a sentence enhancer. This means you can have harassment-domestic violence or assault-domestic violence or criminal mischief-domestic violence.
Domestic Violence means that you immediately have special bond conditions that limit your ability to talk to the other person, limits your ability to see children and may immediately eject you from a shared residence. Therefore, early legal representation is critical. At sentencing Domestic Violence in most jurisdictions requires a 36 week (Nine Month) domestic violence class. Certain charges with a Domestic Violence conviction can immediately affect your Second Amendment Rights and can prohibit you from owning a gun and prohibit hunting with a weapon under Federal law. Therefore, legal representation is critical to make sure you do not plead guilty to the wrong charge.
Assault charges can arise out of any kind of altercation where you lay hands on someone. A skilled lawyer is necessary to present any kind of self defense, defense of others or justification defense. Our lawyers have successfully taken cases to jury trial that involve bar fights, domestic assaults, road rage and general altercations.
Drug Cases are still serious charges. The recent law changes allowing for medical marijuana cards have not changed the basic law enforcement approach to drugs, especially cocaine, ecstasy, crack, angel dust, PCP, heroin and the other dangerous drugs.
The law does not require proof of sale of illicit drugs, only delivery of illicit drugs. Possession of dangerous drugs on the controlled substance lists can still result in a career damaging criminal record. Our attorneys have been handling these cases for decades, participating in dozens of trials and hundreds of dispositions. We can minimize the impact these types of cases have on your life and career.
Juvenile Law
The juvenile system is a different system. So long as a child is not charged as an adult, the possible penalty is the same for all charges. A child can be placed on probation and returned home, or placed in an out-of-home placement for up to two years, including a locked detention facility such as Montview in Lakewood.
Our philosophy is to not just help with the criminal charges, but also to help with your child's possible counseling or placement. If appropriate, we will help find a program with counseling that will actually help with other problems that may be occurring.
Our Qualifications
Judith J. Carlson is a former Juvenile & Family Court Judge. Ron Carlson is a former Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Social Service. Paul Dunkelman has extensive practice experience in juvenile law. |
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