Useful Tips
It’s important for people to realize that it’s all about hiring the right attorney, which is true not just for drug-related crimes, but for any crime. It’s important to hire someone who is knowledgeable and who continues to stay involved with the changing rules, laws and published cases. Being involved and educated about the process is important. For example, I…Read More
Starting from the least to the most restrictive, the three most common options for dealing with any drug case in a rehabilitation type of sentence include diversion, which can be formal or informal, and can utilize the assistance of a judge or a prosecutor, which will usually happen in a very low-level misdemeanor case, such as someone who is charged…Read More
In larger cases, when multiple parties are involved, everything would come down to the level of involvement of the accused, my client. Because of the nature of the investigation, there will be wiretaps approved by a judge and a law enforcement officer will have to provide something similar to a search warrant, as a statement of probable cause, to a…Read More
A tremendous amount of investigation goes into drug cases, especially since the decriminalization of marijuana possession. Law enforcement still takes a very strong stance that any controlled substance is considered criminal, so law enforcement may try to say that the amounts of marijuana or narcotics suggested that it was possessed with the intent for sale, because it was not possible…Read More
Whether they can will depend on the circumstances; there can be circumstances in which they can enter a home or stop a vehicle and conduct a search without a warrant, irrespective of whether it was a crime or otherwise. However, such a search requires an exigent circumstance, meaning that, without their involvement, there may be destruction of evidence or the…Read More
Most drug cases that I handle are cases for possession and possession for sale, in part because of the way the system is set up. Possession means possession for personal use; larger amounts of narcotics or controlled substances can include wiretap cases, transportation cases and even cultivation when it involves marijuana. Certain cases may involve large amounts of money, firearms…Read More
Interviewer: I see advertisements saying, “We’re aggressive.” “We’ll treat you like family.” “We fight for you.” Do you think an aggressive attorney is the best way to go? So, if you needed an attorney, you were facing criminal charge, what would you look for and why? Paul Geller: I would look for the most well rounded attorney – someone who can be…Read More
Interviewer: What do you say to people that are kind of in the middle of the process and they say, “I can’t take it anymore; I want to just give up and thrown in the towel?” Does that happen? What do you tell people who say that? Paul Geller: That does happen and I always encourage people to hang in there. During…Read More
Interviewer: What are some of the top mistakes you see people make that hurts their ability to have a good defense or a proper defense or makes their situation worse? Paul Geller: A lot of the time we’re raised to be honest with police – and we should. We are trying to raise our kids and operate in a society where we…Read More