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Criminal charges are never taken lightly by the attorneys at Meggesto, Crossett & Valerino, LLP. Since 1974, we have represented individuals accused of a variety of offenses, from simple misdemeanors to murder cases.
Many criminal actions start with an arrest. Generally speaking an arrest is any time a police officer or citizen, physically or verbally restrains you to answer for a crime or an offense. Many times, a police officer immediately takes the arrestee into custody. On other occasions, an appearance ticket, which is similar to a traffic ticket, is issued.
On other occasions, an arrest begins with an arrest warrant that has been issued by the court, based upon information presented to a judge. If a police officer has an arrest warrant and you refuse to honor the warrant, the police officer may use force to open the door, or otherwise gain entrance, after notice has been given of the authority and the purpose of the warrant. If the police office thinks there is reasonable belief that you will attempt to escape or destroy evidence, the warrant may be acted upon without notice.
Often, people are confronted with a situation where they are being questioned about a particular event or crime.
Federal and State Law protect your right to remain silent. You are not required to answer questions, but nevertheless, you may still be placed under arrest. Often it is said that the police officer must either arrest you or allow you to go free.
You do have a right to a lawyer through every stage of a criminal proceeding. If you are arrested and brought to a court, the court must allow you an opportunity to obtain an attorney and if you cannot afford one, the court will appoint you one in most cases.
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James A. Meggesto
Gary J. Valerino
Deborah A. Bellomo
Heather LaDieu
John A. Sickinger