Although it has always been illegal in New York to intentionally cause physical injury to another person (see Assault, Chapter 120.00 of the Penal Law), a relatively new set of laws has increased the penalties for the strangulation of another person. New York Penal Law Section 121.11 (Criminal Obstruction of Breathing or Blood Circulation) makes…
Continue reading ›The arrest of a friend or loved one often happens unexpectedly. The majority of New Yorkers do not have any experience with the criminal justice system and are often thrust into a position of having to deal with the possibility of bail being set. This post will explain a few factors that go into a…
Continue reading ›We have previously discussed Assault in the Third Degree. This post addresses the more serious felony charge of Assault in the Second Degree, under New York Penal Law section 120.05. A common situation where this offense is charged is where a bar fight goes too far — someone uses a boot, a bottle, a knife…
Continue reading ›Many juveniles in New York City are arrested every week and given a family court summons for a crime that would otherwise subject him or her to a permanent criminal record. A juvenile is “defined” in the Penal Law as a person under the age of sixteen years old. To be more precise, it is…
Continue reading ›On June 14, 2004, night club owner Neville Wells struck with his vehicle and and killed 37-year-old Judith Gubernikoff on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. A grand jury charged him with one count of murder in the second degree and assault in the first degree (both under depraved indifference theories), and one count each of vehicular…
Continue reading ›The topic of this post is New York Gang Assault Offenses, the crime defined in Article 120 of the New York Penal Law. Gang Assault can be described as a simple assault plus the “aided” element borrowed from the robbery statutes. There are two degrees of Gang Assault. The text of the base, or second-degree,…
Continue reading ›On Tuesday, February 16, the Appellate Division, First Department, reversed the 2008 conviction of Freddy Rodriguez. Rodriguez had been convicted in Bronx County Supreme Court of manslaughter, vehicular manslaughter, and two counts each of assault in the second degree, vehicular assault in the second degree, and DWI. The full text of the decision is available…
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