Gilbert Arenas is a three time All – Star point guard in the NBA for the Washington Wizards. However, today in DC Superior Court he will find out his sentence that will be imposed on him by Judge Robert E. Morin. The question is whether Arenas will be sentenced to do jail time or get probation and community service for his one felony count of violating the District of Columbia’s strict gun laws.
The basic facts of this case are simple and unfortunately very foolish. Arenas and Crittenton were playing cards and got into a heated verbal joust while flying back from on the team plane on December 19, 2009. Two days later, Arenas brought his guns to the locker room and in his words “played the prank” on Crittenton by placing the guns on the latter’s chair with the sign, "Pick 1." Additionally, Crittenton then retrieved his own gun and ensured that Areans knew he had a “piece” of his own. (Crittenton pleaded guilty in January to a misdemeanor gun charge and received a year of unsupervised probation.) Subsequent, Arenas entered a guilty plea on January 15th.
The maximum term for Arenas' crime is five years. The sentencing guidelines for someone with his record call for 6-24 months, although those guidelines also allow for probation. The reason his guidelines start at 6 months is that Arenas has had two prior misdemeanor convictions for gun related crimes. The sentencing guidelines take into account both prior record variables as well as offense variables to increase one’s guideline. The top of one’s sentencing guideline may not exceed the top of the statutory penalty. Perhaps most important, Arenas' sentence could determine whether the Wizards will attempt to void the remainder of his six-year, $111 million contract.
Prosecutors demand a sentence of three months in jail. Part of their argument is that Arenas’ showed a carefree type attitude throughout the proceedings, that he knew that bringing the guns to the locker room was illegal, that he has a prior gun charge and that he “joked about the incident to large groups, and stated that he did nothing wrong and felt no remorse,” according to assistant United States attorney Christopher Kavanaugh.
The defense has made good arguments to counter on behalf of Arenas, and attempt to persuade the Judge to grant Arenas probation and community service in lieu of a jail sentence. The crust of the defense argument is that Arenas played a much misguided prank but he had absolutely no intent to harm anyone. Additionally, the guns were unloaded, the media misinterpreted Arenas’s light hearted comments regarding the case, and that he has been a positive role model for the community with much community service and charitable donations through NBA Cares and other charitable organization. Finally, the defense argues that Arenas was confused about the DC’s complicated gun laws and that through his suspension the rest of the 2009-10 season he was already punished with the tens of millions lost in earnings and endorsements.
The arguments put forth by both sides are fairly persuasive on their face. The defense team is making the type of arguments that defendants should expect their clients to put forth in all types of cases. Lack of prior history, positive impact on the community prior and subsequent to the offense, remorse for one’s actions after entering a plea deal are all factors that a well trained criminal defense attorney should use to craft a persuasive argument on their client’s behalf at the sentencing hearing.
Attorney Raymond Cassar is a Detroit Area Criminal Defense attorney who has twenty years of experience in State & Federal Court. His office is happy to give advice regarding criminal matters. You may learn more about Attorney Raymond Cassar and his team of attorneys by visiting his website at: http://www.crimlawattorney.com .
Showing posts with label NFL. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NFL. Show all posts
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Ben Roethlisberger’s sexual assault allegations: the smart way to handle.
Recently, another shocking new development ensued in the life of the $102 million QB of the Pittsburgh Steelers. The proud franchise with its 7 Super Bowl wins and the tradition and pride that it has established throughout the Rooney family ownership is seeing its reputation affected through allegations faced by its Super Bowl MVP quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. This is the second such allegation against Roethlisberger in two years. The first was not pursued by Lake Tahoe police, but it resulted in a civil suit against Roethlisberger.
On March 7th, it is alleged that after a night of partying in a college bar in Georgia, Roethlisberger sexually assaulted a 20 year college woman. This type of allegations are very serious, and generally speaking when something like this hits the press in relation to a professional public figure it usually alleges a crime of violence such as forcible intercourse or something just sort of that. Of course, it is just as likely that nothing happened, and ulterior motives are inspiring the allegations. However, once such allegations of sexual assault make it to the police, a serious and potentially life altering investigations begins, and the Roethlisberger matter is just that. Perhaps worse, due to the harsh “court of public opinion,” despite the Constitutional protections, Roethlisberger faces an uphill battle of clearing his name and defending his life and reputation.
At this point in time, Roethlisberger and his team of attorneys are handling such allegations the right way. Whenever such allegations are put forth, the police will be investigating and they will focus their investigations in two aspects.
First, they will attempt to gather evidence of the complainant’s demeanor shortly after the alleged crime, whether there is any evidence, physical or verbal from other corroborating witnesses, that she/he was indeed sexually assaulted.
Second, the police always attempt to give the accused an “opportunity to explain himself/herself.” This is nothing more than an attempt to obtain a confession. Seldom if ever will an accused go to the police, make a statement without the consultation and presence of an attorney, and get himself/herself out of whatever allegations were thrown at him/her. By hiring an attorney, the accused is assuring that the police attempted contact with him/her will always be screened by his/her attorney, and therefore the possibility of making incriminating statements is greatly diminished.
Roethlisberger is doing the right thing. He has hired an attorney and is making no statements. While the press is reporting that he is cooperating with the police, what is truly taking place is that the attorney is handling the investigation phase of this criminal matter. The attorney is the one who is making contact with the police, he is attempting to extrapolate additional information regarding the allegations, and he is insulating his client from making potentially fatal statements to the police.
When facing with such an accusation, the prudent and smart thing to do is to simply demand an attorney when the phone call from the police comes. That phone call will always come, as it is the easiest way for the police and prosecution to obtain a conviction through a confession. Hiring an attorney to handle such an investigation into a sexual assault is a well worth investment, as the penalties are very harsh, and convictions virtually always result in prison or jail time.
When facing with such an accusation, the prudent and smart thing to do is to simply demand an attorney when the phone call from the police comes. That phone call will always come, as it is the easiest way for the police and prosecution to obtain a conviction through a confession. Hiring an attorney to handle such an investigation into a sexual assault is a well worth investment, as the penalties are very harsh, and convictions virtually always result in prison or jail time.
The attorneys at the Law Offices of Raymond Cassar, PLC have over 45 years of experience of handling nothing but criminal defense. Handling criminal investigations and providing aggressive representation is all we do, and we are here to help you. For more information on how the attorneys at the Law Offices of Raymond Cassar, PLC can help you in such circumstances please feel free to call us: 248-855-0911 or 313-278-8811, or visit our web site at: http://www.crimlawattorney.com/
On March 7th, it is alleged that after a night of partying in a college bar in Georgia, Roethlisberger sexually assaulted a 20 year college woman. This type of allegations are very serious, and generally speaking when something like this hits the press in relation to a professional public figure it usually alleges a crime of violence such as forcible intercourse or something just sort of that. Of course, it is just as likely that nothing happened, and ulterior motives are inspiring the allegations. However, once such allegations of sexual assault make it to the police, a serious and potentially life altering investigations begins, and the Roethlisberger matter is just that. Perhaps worse, due to the harsh “court of public opinion,” despite the Constitutional protections, Roethlisberger faces an uphill battle of clearing his name and defending his life and reputation.
At this point in time, Roethlisberger and his team of attorneys are handling such allegations the right way. Whenever such allegations are put forth, the police will be investigating and they will focus their investigations in two aspects.
First, they will attempt to gather evidence of the complainant’s demeanor shortly after the alleged crime, whether there is any evidence, physical or verbal from other corroborating witnesses, that she/he was indeed sexually assaulted.
Second, the police always attempt to give the accused an “opportunity to explain himself/herself.” This is nothing more than an attempt to obtain a confession. Seldom if ever will an accused go to the police, make a statement without the consultation and presence of an attorney, and get himself/herself out of whatever allegations were thrown at him/her. By hiring an attorney, the accused is assuring that the police attempted contact with him/her will always be screened by his/her attorney, and therefore the possibility of making incriminating statements is greatly diminished.
Roethlisberger is doing the right thing. He has hired an attorney and is making no statements. While the press is reporting that he is cooperating with the police, what is truly taking place is that the attorney is handling the investigation phase of this criminal matter. The attorney is the one who is making contact with the police, he is attempting to extrapolate additional information regarding the allegations, and he is insulating his client from making potentially fatal statements to the police.
When facing with such an accusation, the prudent and smart thing to do is to simply demand an attorney when the phone call from the police comes. That phone call will always come, as it is the easiest way for the police and prosecution to obtain a conviction through a confession. Hiring an attorney to handle such an investigation into a sexual assault is a well worth investment, as the penalties are very harsh, and convictions virtually always result in prison or jail time.
When facing with such an accusation, the prudent and smart thing to do is to simply demand an attorney when the phone call from the police comes. That phone call will always come, as it is the easiest way for the police and prosecution to obtain a conviction through a confession. Hiring an attorney to handle such an investigation into a sexual assault is a well worth investment, as the penalties are very harsh, and convictions virtually always result in prison or jail time.
The attorneys at the Law Offices of Raymond Cassar, PLC have over 45 years of experience of handling nothing but criminal defense. Handling criminal investigations and providing aggressive representation is all we do, and we are here to help you. For more information on how the attorneys at the Law Offices of Raymond Cassar, PLC can help you in such circumstances please feel free to call us: 248-855-0911 or 313-278-8811, or visit our web site at: http://www.crimlawattorney.com/
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