by Faraji Rosenthall | Jan 11, 2016 | expungment
Is Your Criminal Record Getting in Your Way? You have just been interviewed for your dream job. The final step in the employee review process is checking your background and criminal record. Once checked, the employer finds a misdemeanor theft charge from ten years ago that was dismissed. They decide to go with another candidate – a better candidate, considering they are a financial institution. This scenario, unfortunately, plays out too often when a criminal record has not been expunged, leaving people with the inability to become employed, find housing, or obtain gun permits. However, this does not have to be the case with you. If you or a loved one have been charged with a crime that you would like to get expunged from your record, contact an experienced Virginia expungement attorney. What is an Expungement? An expungement is an action that is used to delete all police and court records pertaining to a criminal case. Though many people get expungements confused with the sealing of records, they are not the same. When a record is sealed, it is blocked from access by members of the public such as landlords, but can still be found in some cases. This option is best when you have not been convicted of a crime. When you receive an expungement, the records are completely inaccessible unless you are trying to obtain a professional license. How Can I Receive an Expungement? Virginia state law states that you can only have your records expunged in limited cases, such as: You were acquitted of the crime The charges were dismissed Someone else committed the crime...
by Faraji Rosenthall | Apr 13, 2015 | Shoplifting
What to Do if You Have Been Charged with Grand Larceny in Fairfax County, Virginia It can be surprising how quickly a larceny can be a life changing event. People may make an error in judgment, taking something without realizing that the value of the object they took made the action a felony. From there, life can be an uphill battle. Employers in particular are skeptical of hiring individuals with grand larcenies on their record because of the perceived harm that stealing will do to their business. If you have been charged with Grand Larceny in Fairfax County, Virginia, you need to know what the offense entails and what your options may be. So, what is grand larceny? Grand larceny is covered under Virginia Code 18.2-95. Typically, the Commonwealth needs to prove that you intentionally took something without permission and that the thing you took was valued at more than $200.00. You can also commit a grand larceny by taking something valued at more than $5.00 from the person of another or by stealing a firearm. However, those portions of the statute are rarely used. This piece will instead focus on what it means to be charged with stealing something valued at greater than $200.00 in Fairfax County, Virginia. What Qualifies as a Grand Larceny? The thing about grand larceny in Fairfax County, Virginia is that it includes basically any kind of theft. One of the more common ways to get charged with grand larceny is to commit shoplifting. If you handle merchandize in a way that goes beyond what the store allows, you could be in trouble. Critically,...
by Faraji Rosenthall | Apr 6, 2015 | Uncategorized
What Does it Mean to Be Charged with Larceny as a Juvenile in Fairfax County, Virginia There’s a reason we don’t let minors drink alcohol, vote or drive cars until they are 16. Children are still developing as people, and they sometimes make impulsive mistakes that an adult would avoid. Some of those mistakes can cast a pall on the rest of the youngster’s childhood and have a devastating impact on the child’s future prospects. One such example is a child’s act of theft. While a child convicted of a petit larceny might be able to keep is record clean, a juvenile convicted of grand larceny will likely be carrying that bag for the rest of his or her life. What is a Petit Larceny? If you have to be charged with a theft crime as a minor, petit larceny is what you would want to aim for. Petit larceny is the intentional taking of property valued at less than $200.00 without permission. The offenses are very common in retail stores where cameras make defenses very difficult. However, there can be circumstances where cameras were unable to capture the theft or, rarely, a witness doesn’t appear. It’s critical that you speak with a Fairfax County attorney to help you recognize situations where charges can be beat at trial. Petit larceny is a class 1 Misdemeanor. As a result, it has the advantage of being sealed at a later date. The record will be destroyed when the defendant turns 19 if the defendanthas been on good behavior for at least 5 years.It might also be possible to get a judge...
by Faraji Rosenthall | Apr 6, 2015 | Juvenile
Juvenile Drug Distribution Charges Kids do stupid things. Maybe because they are following cultural suggestions or maybe because they just want to make an easy buck, minors sometimes get caught up in the drug distribution racket. Their parents are probably aware that such actions can have long term consequences. The good news is that, while drug charges are serious, Virginia takes a rehabilitative approach that presents the possibility of keeping a long term conviction off the minor’s record. Generally, for adult marijuana distributions the offense is a Class 1 Misdemeanor if it involves less than half an ounce. More than a half ounce but less than 5 pounds is punished as a Class 5 felony. More than 5 pounds leads to a sentence of between 5 years and 30 years. However, in many case the key is not getting the juvenile charged as an adult at all. Keeping the Case in the Juvenile Courts For minors, that is, those under the age of 18, criminal cases must originate in the Juvenile & Domestic Relations Courts. The judges in these courts have a wide range of options available for disposing of juvenile defendants. They can, for example, place the defendant on house arrest or, in some cases, they can even defer ruling on the charge and dismiss the case if the defendant complies with a probationary period. The decision on whether or not a juvenile case will be transferred will often depend on the judge. If the child is above the age of 14, the Commonwealth can request that an offense that would be a felony if committed by an...
by Faraji Rosenthall | Apr 6, 2015 | Protective Order
What Should I do if I Have Violated a Protective Order in Fairfax County, Virginia? Judges do not like to be disobeyed. It is a sign that an individual is incapable of following the law even when he has been dragged into court and told what not to do. Protective orders are examples of a judicial command that are fairly common in Fairfax County, Virginia. They usually are issued as the result of an alleged domestic violence situation. Domestic violence arrests carry an automatic protective order for a 72 hour period. They can even be issued prior to a conviction if there are already charges pending or even if there is probable cause that another violent act will occur. Violating a protective order is a Class 1 Misdemeanor. It carries a penalty of up to 12 months in jail and fine of up $2,500.00. As well, the statute says that “in no case” will all of the ordered jail time be suspended. This means that a conviction under the statute will lead to at least one day in lock-up. A second offense within five years carries 60 days of mandatory jail time and a third offense in twenty years is a felony. A conviction for violating a protective order will also result in a renewal of the order for a two year period. A protective order will also show up on background checks and will prevent acquiring a license to own a firearm. What Kind of Defenses Exist? The good news is that defenses do sometimes exist for violations of protective orders. In many cases, the only evidence that...
