Charlotte DWI Lawyer Brad Smith answers the question: “If I simply intend to plead guilty, why do I need a lawyer?”
Christmas came early for burglars in Charlotte. Two suspects stole Christmas gifts and cash in a recent armed home invasion in the city. The crime highlights the importance of taking security measures to protect your home ahead of Christmas and New Year’s Eve.
Charlotte Criminal Lawyer Brad Smith answers the question: “Should I ever plead guilty to a charge?”
Stealing a motor vehicle is a serious crime in North Carolina. In addition to auto theft charges, a person can be found guilty of a crime when he or she uses, damages, or misappropriates someone else’s vehicle.
Charlotte Criminal Lawyer Brad Smith answers the question: “Should I ever plead guilty to a charge?”
North Carolina law recognizes theft as taking someone else’s property without their permission to permanently deprive the owner of the item. Theft, burglary, and shoplifting are serious crimes. Being charged with one of these crimes carries the risk of losing your freedom and facing other life-changing consequences.
Charlotte DWI Lawyer Brad Smith answers the question: “Can the police search my car without a warrant?”
One of the fundamental rights that American citizens have is the right to privacy. We have the right to feel secure in our person and be free from unreasonable searches and seizures and government intrusions. The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution grants us this right. The crux of the Fourth Amendment is providing protection from the police, or other governmental institutions, from searching you or your belongings without the proper justification. The American judicial system has a whole host of cases dealing with exactly how far the right to privacy extends.
Charlotte Criminal Lawyer Brad Smith answers the question: “What is the difference between a misdemeanor and a felony?”
Criminal law is complex. There are many crimes that can be committed under the same “type” of offense and there are different levels of severity for each crime. In North Carolina, there are many different crimes that can be committed to/on property. The following are the most common types of property crime in North Carolina.
Charlotte Criminal Lawyer Brad Smith answers the question: “Should I ever plead guilty to a charge?”
States across the country are wrestling with finding ways to deal with increasingly large prison populations. People on both side of the issue acknowledge that as the population of people incarcerated continues to swell it presents a multitude of challenges, some budgetary, some logistical, others societal. One approach advocated by many is to try and reverse the trend by reducing criminal penalties for a range of mainly low-level offenses. By reducing the number of crimes that result in time behind bars, you not only save money, but also hopefully address underlying issues through treatment and reduce recidivism.
Charlotte Criminal Lawyer Brad Smith answers the question: “The person that called the police doesn’t want to press charges, can I still be prosecuted?”
A man in Italy found himself in the odd situation of having a conviction overturned not because he didn’t do the crime, but because the court decided he shouldn’t have been punished for it in the first place. The case, oddly similar to the storyline of “Les Miserables”, has garnered substantial attention both in Italy and abroad, with experts debating whether the appellate court was right to throw out the conviction.
Charlotte Criminal Lawyer Brad Smith answers the question: “Can I be arrested without evidence against me?”
A busted pair of bank robbers in Brazil had resorted to an interesting method of disguise for their attempted heist: the duo covered themselves head to toe in aluminum foil for their early-morning raid.
Charlotte DWI and Criminal Defense Attorney J. Bradley Smith of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “If I simply intend to plead guilty, why do I need a lawyer?”
Recent news reports indicate that crime is up in various parts of North Carolina, with a recent article revealing a double-digit rise in criminal activity in Charlotte in 2015. Other places have fared better and, as a result, have more time on their hands to direct money and energy at problems that are rarely seen as priorities.
Charlotte Criminal Lawyer Brad Smith answers the question: What is an expungement?
In a case that will surely make headlines across the country, a man from Clayton, North Carolina has been arrested after police say he left his wallet at the scene of the crime. Being arrested and charged with a crime is bad enough and often requires the skills of an experienced attorney to help defend your freedom and argue on behalf of innocence. Putting on a strong defense goes from merely difficult to nearly impossible when the burglar leaves behind a picture ID at the victim’s house. If recent news reports are true, this means that Joseph Alan Sherman’s attorney is going to need all the help he can get.
Charlotte Criminal Lawyer Blog