Practice Areas
Investigation
When people think about federal cases, they think about arrests, charges, and trials. What they do not realize is that there are many ways to influence the outcome of a criminal case long before a person is charged or arrested. If you think that you are a target of a federal investigation, it is never too early to get an attorney. Getting an attorney is not an admission of guilt and not something that only guilty people do. It is the smart thing to do.
With the guidance of a knowledgeable federal attorney, you may be able to avoid being charged, find a beneficial resolution prior to being charged, or avoid making a mistake that could come back to haunt you later if you are charged. Being a target is nerve-racking, we are there to keep you from having to face this alone.
Arrest, Bond Hearing, and Pretrial Proceedings
When someone is charged and arrested, one of the most important initial proceedings is the detention hearing. While getting charged in federal court is bad, it is worse if you have to sit in jail in pretrial detention. We have handled hundreds of bond hearings in federal court and know what it takes to get people released.
Some lawyers come into a case looking to cut a quick plea deal. We are not those lawyers. We start each case with the assumption that we are going to trial. We scrutinize the evidence, file motions challenging the evidence, and fight every step of the way. With this approach, we are ready for trial if that is what our client wants.
Trial
We have been trying cases in federal court for 30 years and we win. If you want to have a trial, we are the lawyers for you. We know how to do federal trials and we are good at it. We have won more federal criminal trials than most lawyers in Atlanta have ever tried.
Sentencing
Unfortunately, many federal criminal defendants end up facing a federal judge at a sentencing. This is a place where you need a real federal lawyer. In state court, defendants typically reach a plea deal that has a sentence that the judge will impose. Federal court is different. In federal court, the judge decides what the sentence will be after considering the Federal Sentencing Guidelines and certain sentencing factors. We know the sentencing guidelines inside and out because we have been working with them for 30 years. We know how to interpret them in order to benefit our clients.
The other part of sentencing is that the defense gets to present mitigation evidence. This is evidence about the background and history of the defendant and the circumstances of the offense that can be used to lessen the severity of the sentence. Because of our experience as death penalty lawyers, we excel at telling our client’s stories in a sympathetic way that encourages judges to be lenient. As a result, the overwhelming number of our clients who are sentenced receive sentences below the sentence called for by the Sentencing Guidelines.
Appeal
Depending on the circumstances of a case, a criminal defendant may be able to appeal a conviction or a sentence the court of appeals. We are expert appellate advocates. Over the last 30 years we have regularly briefed and argued cases on appeal in the court of appeals. Many trial lawyers hate to write briefs because they would rather be in court. We are different. Because we started out as appellate lawyers working on capital cases, we are excellent brief writers who know the ins and outs of appellate law.
We handle all types of federal criminal cases including:
White Collar Crimes:
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Mail and wire fraud
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Bank Fraud
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Tax Fraud
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Mortgage Fraud
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Telemarketing Fraud
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Paycheck Protection Program
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Conspiracy
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Money Laundering
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False Statements and Obstruction of Justice
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Import/Export Violations
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Currency violations
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Counterfeiting
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Bank Larceny
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Aggravated Identity Theft
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Credit Card Fraud
Drug Crimes:
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Possession and Possession with Intent to distribute
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Conspiracy
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Improper prescribing
Firearm Crimes:
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Firearms trafficking
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Straw purchasing of firearms
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Possession of firearms by a convicted felon or prohibited person
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Possession of machine gun
Civil Rights Violations by Police Officers or Jailers
Sex Crimes:
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Possession, distribution, or production of child pornography
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Enticement of a child for sex
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Sex trafficking
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Computer related sex offenses
Violent Crimes:
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Hobbs Act – Robbery or Extortion
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RICO
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Murder
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Bank robbery
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Postal robbery
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Carjacking
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Assault
Chop Shop
State Cases in Georgia
While our main area of focus is federal cases, we also handle state cases where we use our wide expertise in criminal law to the advantage of our clients.