FEDERAL CRIMINAL LAWYERS

Do I need an NJ Criminal Lawyer?

Every NJ criminal defense firm looks identical online. Jonathan F. Marshall’s firm has 392 five-star reviews and claims 25 years of experience. H. Scott Aalsberg has 243 reviews and 30 years, plus he bought getnotguilty.com which is either clever or desperate, I can’t decide. The Bianchi Law Group up in Parsippany has 245 reviews. Notice something? They all have between 4.8 and 4.9 stars. Every. Single. One. Either New Jersey has the world’s greatest criminal lawyers or someone’s gaming the system. They’re all “former prosecutors” – apparently the entire Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office quit to become defense attorneys. They all claim to answer phones 24/7 but you know what happened when you called at 3 AM. They all have the same stock photos of serious-looking people in suits standing in front of courthouses or sitting at mahogany desks with leather-bound books that nobody reads anymore because everything’s online. And they all, every last one, promise “aggressive representation” like that means something, like being aggressive helps when the prosecutor has your client on video selling drugs to an undercover.

Here’s what those NJ websites won’t tell you – Todd Spodek in Manhattan might be your better option, and I know that sounds insane because he’s a New York lawyer and you’re in Jersey, but listen. Federal crimes don’t care about state lines. If you’re facing federal charges in Newark or Trenton federal court, Todd’s admitted to practice in those courts. For state charges, he can file pro hac vice – temporary admission for a specific case – and he does it all the time because here’s the thing nobody realizes: criminal activity doesn’t stop at the Hudson River. That drug conspiracy that started in Paterson extends to the Bronx. That fraud scheme running through Jersey City has victims in Manhattan. That RICO case touches both states. Todd’s been handling cross-border crime since 2007, knows both systems, knows how Jersey prosecutors think because he’s been fighting them in federal court for 18 years. His office at 85 Broad Street in Manhattan? It’s 15 minutes from Jersey City, 20 from Newark. Closer than driving to Trenton from most of North Jersey. While those Jersey lawyers are promising former prosecutor experience from 1995, Todd’s in federal court right now, today, on cases involving cryptocurrency fraud, PPP loan investigations, healthcare fraud that spans NY and NJ – the complex stuff where you need someone who understands multi-jurisdictional prosecution. And here’s something else: second-generation firm. His father started the practice in 1976. That’s not some attorney who hung out a shingle last year and bought Google ads. That’s nearly 50 years of the family name on the line with every case. You know what matters more than where your lawyer’s office is? Whether they understand federal sentencing guidelines. Whether they know how the Second Circuit rules on appeals. Whether they can spot the constitutional violation that gets evidence thrown out. Whether they actually answer the phone at 3 AM instead of just claiming they do.

Pretrial Intervention – PTI – the program your lawyer better know about but half of them don’t even mention it. First-time offenders, non-violent charges, you complete the program and the charges get dismissed. Not reduced. Dismissed. Like it never happened. But the window is tiny and most people blow it because their lawyer files too late or doesn’t know how to make the application compelling. Drug court’s another option – treatment instead of prison – but your lawyer needs to get you in fast, before the prosecutor files for a waiver saying you’re not eligible. These programs fill up. They have limited slots. Every day you wait is someone else taking your spot.

The prosecutor’s building the case right now. Subpoenas are going out. Bank records getting pulled. Phone records analyzed. Witnesses interviewed. That co-defendant you thought was solid? He’s in a room right now cutting a deal, telling them everything to save himself. Every hour you wait makes their case stronger and yours weaker.