Last week a local Phoenix Criminal Defense Attorney was arrested and charged with smuggling drugs to one of his in custody clients. The same thing happened to another Valley Defense Attorney less than a year ago. As an Arizona Board Certified Specialist in Criminal Law who has been practicing Criminal Law in the Valley for over 21 years, I always am concerned when a fellow lawyer gets into this kind of trouble.
In criminal defense it is sometimes very easy to become personally and emotionally involved with not only the client, but their loved ones as well. This is because even minor criminal charges often affect whole families, making an attorney’s job even more challenging because so much is at stake.
This is why the State Bar of Arizona makes it crystal clear that an attorney must maintain their professional integrity at all times. In this instance, it appears the lawyer was not only engaging in illegal activity on behalf of his client, but was also having a sexual relationship with the Defendant’s sister in exchange for smuggling the drugs.
My purpose here is not to shame the lawyer involved, but simply to illustrate the pitfalls and temptations that can lead to the tragedy which will impact all the persons involved. I write this in part to warn younger or less experienced lawyers to always remember that your clients are depending on you for the best legal representation you can provide and that stepping over the line is not only harmful to your client, but it may well destroy your entire career. This is why it is important to remember your ethical obligations and not lose sight of your sacred duty as a sworn Officer of the Court.
However, this does not mean that we cannot give prospective and actual clients compassion and respect. Reassuring and supporting loved ones in a sensitive but appropriate manner is far from impossible. In fact it is one of the major tenets of the Palmisano Law Firm. We pride ourselves in responding to our clients and their loved ones as individual human beings and we recognize that many criminal cases have emotional aspects which can be supported by our staff in a respectful and helpful manner. It means that we treat each client and their families as individuals who come to us for not only the highest quality legal representation, but also for the singular attention they simply won’t find at other firms.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Ever wonder why, when you hand a store clerk a $50 or $100 dollar bill, they raise it to the ceiling light, and then determine if it is a valid bill or not? This is because, in each real U.S. large denominational bill there are two parallel magnetic strips which can be viewed in the light. Without them, and regardless of the high quality artwork, the bills are phony.
I give you this information so that you yourselves can check your own bills at anytime to ascertain whether they are counterfeit or not. The parallel strips can change positions on each individual bill but the same magnetic lines will nonetheless be present regardless of their varied placement on the inside of the bill.
In the course of handling hundreds of fraud and theft cases, I wished to hand along this helpful little tidbit for any consumer who may feel skeptical about a large bill in their possession. Use any bright light to quickly and easily ‘test’ the suspect bill.
For those of you out there that may wish to ‘try your hand’ in this type of endeavor, please keep in mind that the perpetrators normally have exceptional artistic skills, and working with such tiny tools and ‘canvasses’ means that there are few people who can successfully forge counterfeit currency with any degree of success.
In addition, although considered a ‘Non-Dangerous’ Offense under the Arizona Criminal Code, their repetitive nature [one felony charge per false currency unit] can create, under Arizona and Federal Law, a very lengthy prison sentence, as well as substantial restitution obligations.
Although, after 21 years of handling criminal defense cases, I have been fortunate enough to have many clients receive only probation, outright dismissals, or minimal jail time, I highly encourage citizens not to pursue this career choice, as these endeavors tend to be short lived, and the number of victims [those people or companies who have been defrauded], can cause a Prosecutor to really ‘make and example’ out of someone who is caught.
I hope to do a segment soon on credit card fraud that might perhaps provide some useful information out there for consumers and proprietors who are reading this blog. But for now, I will continue to try to post useful information on our website at http://www.palmisanoazlaw.com/. Again, as always, feel free to fill out one of our free legal online review forms for further information or any other legal matter that is of interest to you. At the Palmisano Law Firm, we aim to please by giving consumers large firm quality at small firm prices.
Until next time, I remain humbly yours,
Joseph P. Palmisano, Esq.
Owner and Certified Specialist in Criminal Law.
I give you this information so that you yourselves can check your own bills at anytime to ascertain whether they are counterfeit or not. The parallel strips can change positions on each individual bill but the same magnetic lines will nonetheless be present regardless of their varied placement on the inside of the bill.
In the course of handling hundreds of fraud and theft cases, I wished to hand along this helpful little tidbit for any consumer who may feel skeptical about a large bill in their possession. Use any bright light to quickly and easily ‘test’ the suspect bill.
For those of you out there that may wish to ‘try your hand’ in this type of endeavor, please keep in mind that the perpetrators normally have exceptional artistic skills, and working with such tiny tools and ‘canvasses’ means that there are few people who can successfully forge counterfeit currency with any degree of success.
In addition, although considered a ‘Non-Dangerous’ Offense under the Arizona Criminal Code, their repetitive nature [one felony charge per false currency unit] can create, under Arizona and Federal Law, a very lengthy prison sentence, as well as substantial restitution obligations.
Although, after 21 years of handling criminal defense cases, I have been fortunate enough to have many clients receive only probation, outright dismissals, or minimal jail time, I highly encourage citizens not to pursue this career choice, as these endeavors tend to be short lived, and the number of victims [those people or companies who have been defrauded], can cause a Prosecutor to really ‘make and example’ out of someone who is caught.
I hope to do a segment soon on credit card fraud that might perhaps provide some useful information out there for consumers and proprietors who are reading this blog. But for now, I will continue to try to post useful information on our website at http://www.palmisanoazlaw.com/. Again, as always, feel free to fill out one of our free legal online review forms for further information or any other legal matter that is of interest to you. At the Palmisano Law Firm, we aim to please by giving consumers large firm quality at small firm prices.
Until next time, I remain humbly yours,
Joseph P. Palmisano, Esq.
Owner and Certified Specialist in Criminal Law.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Apparent lax gun laws in Arizona
Lately there has been a debate about the apparent lax gun laws in the State of Arizona. The highlight occurred a couple weeks ago when a speaker declined to appear in Phoenix, on account of the fact that a man standing with protestors outside the building wherein the President was speaking, was carrying an unloaded automatic weapon.
To a certain degree, Arizona is unusual in that many States will simply not allow any guns in their large municipalities. For example, in Upstate New York guns are legal, but in New York City they are illegal.
An important point to remember in Maricopa County, which is Arizona’s largest county and in which Phoenix City is located, is that the County Attorney’s Office has very strict policies concerning even the mere display of guns to threaten or intimidate other citizens. In fact, the normal plea offer requires a prison sentence, even if the gun is not discharged or actually used in a deadly manner.
After 21 years of Criminal Defense representation, I cannot stress enough how important it is not to abuse the privilege of being allowed to carry a gun in the state of Arizona. I have represented hundreds of clients who face serious consequences for even displaying a gun in a threatening manner.
Please be mindful of the responsibilities associated with gun ownership in this State. Although I have been fortunate enough to have many clients get ‘deviations’ from State policies or acquittals at trial, it is best not to put yourself in this predicament in the first place.
For further information on the policies and the law, feel free to use our Legal Review Form to become better informed.
To a certain degree, Arizona is unusual in that many States will simply not allow any guns in their large municipalities. For example, in Upstate New York guns are legal, but in New York City they are illegal.
An important point to remember in Maricopa County, which is Arizona’s largest county and in which Phoenix City is located, is that the County Attorney’s Office has very strict policies concerning even the mere display of guns to threaten or intimidate other citizens. In fact, the normal plea offer requires a prison sentence, even if the gun is not discharged or actually used in a deadly manner.
After 21 years of Criminal Defense representation, I cannot stress enough how important it is not to abuse the privilege of being allowed to carry a gun in the state of Arizona. I have represented hundreds of clients who face serious consequences for even displaying a gun in a threatening manner.
Please be mindful of the responsibilities associated with gun ownership in this State. Although I have been fortunate enough to have many clients get ‘deviations’ from State policies or acquittals at trial, it is best not to put yourself in this predicament in the first place.
For further information on the policies and the law, feel free to use our Legal Review Form to become better informed.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Happy 4th of July
Greetings Fellow Bloggers: I wish to take this time to wish everyone a Happy 4th of July!
I would also advise that all vacationers and tourists should drive safely and use designated drivers if consuming alcohol and operating a motor vehicle.
In this blog I wish to call attention to a rather lesser known but nevertheless equally important crime that I have experienced over the past 20 years. Specifically, the crime is OUI ,and in essence mirrors the DUI laws for motor vehicles except it involves all sorts of water craft, including motorboats and jet skis with motors and used on lakes and ponds in Arizona. Many people unfortunately do not realize that such craft are covered under Title 28 and therefore all the penalties associated with criminal DUI charges stemming from a motor vehicle can be equally applicable to watercraft.
In light of this reality, it is of good practice that a watercraft owner or lessee should designate a sober driver for all water craft. You should use the same common sense as you would for a motor vehicle.
Police patrol all Arizona Lakes and Ponds and thus you have the same criminal exposure as though on a public road.
Fortunately, all the constitutional protections for criminal defense are also afforded for these water craft incidents. Nonetheless, the best approach is to designate a watercraft driver and not try to ‘beat the system’ or ‘the odds’. Officers still need ‘reasonable suspicion’ to even stop a craft, but all breath, urinalysis or blood tests also can be ordered for the operator of the watercraft and so there are many consequences, just as in a normal DUI which can be brought forth against a suspect. The BAC limit of .08% is the same as for motor vehicles, as well as fines and jail time.
So, enjoy getting in the water and cool off this Summer, but be careful.
I would also advise that all vacationers and tourists should drive safely and use designated drivers if consuming alcohol and operating a motor vehicle.
In this blog I wish to call attention to a rather lesser known but nevertheless equally important crime that I have experienced over the past 20 years. Specifically, the crime is OUI ,and in essence mirrors the DUI laws for motor vehicles except it involves all sorts of water craft, including motorboats and jet skis with motors and used on lakes and ponds in Arizona. Many people unfortunately do not realize that such craft are covered under Title 28 and therefore all the penalties associated with criminal DUI charges stemming from a motor vehicle can be equally applicable to watercraft.
In light of this reality, it is of good practice that a watercraft owner or lessee should designate a sober driver for all water craft. You should use the same common sense as you would for a motor vehicle.
Police patrol all Arizona Lakes and Ponds and thus you have the same criminal exposure as though on a public road.
Fortunately, all the constitutional protections for criminal defense are also afforded for these water craft incidents. Nonetheless, the best approach is to designate a watercraft driver and not try to ‘beat the system’ or ‘the odds’. Officers still need ‘reasonable suspicion’ to even stop a craft, but all breath, urinalysis or blood tests also can be ordered for the operator of the watercraft and so there are many consequences, just as in a normal DUI which can be brought forth against a suspect. The BAC limit of .08% is the same as for motor vehicles, as well as fines and jail time.
So, enjoy getting in the water and cool off this Summer, but be careful.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Hi Everyone!
On the local news in Phoenix last night it was reported that the Arizona Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, ruled that once a suspect is secured in the back of an officer’s patrol car, and is therefore no longer a ‘safety threat’ to the police, then the police must get a search warrant to search the rest of the vehicle.
I am a certified specialist in criminal law, as licensed by the State Bar of Arizona since 1989, and I believe that this decision will have positive repercussions for my clients who are currently charged with crimes in Arizona.
As a little background on the issue, the basic argument was that, once police arrested an individual, they more or less had carte blanche to search most visible areas of a vehicle ‘for the safety of the officers’. For example, a officer can ‘pat down’ a suspect even on the street, to ensure the suspect has no weapons ‘within’ reach that could pose a safety risk to the officers.
The problem is that the Arizona State law enforcement generally ‘stretched’ this policy to allow themselves the opportunity to casually, and without a warrant, search a suspect vehicle with no warrant, on the pretext that the officer’s safety was of paramount importance. Basically, cops got a free search of a vehicle at the expense of the U.S. and Arizona constitutions. Thankfully, and although a close decision, the Arizona Supreme Court found that an officer’s safety clearly is not an issue when the individual is handcuffed and secured in the back of a patrol control car.
Hopefully, as a criminal defense attorney, I will be able to apply this ruling to some of the hundreds of cases which I currently handle for the benefit of my clients and their families.
I am a certified specialist in criminal law, as licensed by the State Bar of Arizona since 1989, and I believe that this decision will have positive repercussions for my clients who are currently charged with crimes in Arizona.
As a little background on the issue, the basic argument was that, once police arrested an individual, they more or less had carte blanche to search most visible areas of a vehicle ‘for the safety of the officers’. For example, a officer can ‘pat down’ a suspect even on the street, to ensure the suspect has no weapons ‘within’ reach that could pose a safety risk to the officers.
The problem is that the Arizona State law enforcement generally ‘stretched’ this policy to allow themselves the opportunity to casually, and without a warrant, search a suspect vehicle with no warrant, on the pretext that the officer’s safety was of paramount importance. Basically, cops got a free search of a vehicle at the expense of the U.S. and Arizona constitutions. Thankfully, and although a close decision, the Arizona Supreme Court found that an officer’s safety clearly is not an issue when the individual is handcuffed and secured in the back of a patrol control car.
Hopefully, as a criminal defense attorney, I will be able to apply this ruling to some of the hundreds of cases which I currently handle for the benefit of my clients and their families.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)