Legal Question in Criminal Law in New York

DA involvement

Someone falsely claimed I tried to run them over. I was arrested for attempted assault- a felony-and I am out on bail. I have not had so much as a traffic ticket in my entire life! An eyewitness (''K'')saw the whole thing & will testify that I was nowhere near the ''victim''. Unfortunately, the investigating cop is K's friend. K was somewhere he wasn't supposed to be when this happened, which I believe is why the cop didnt include K's statement in his report. First my lawyer said the charge would be thrown out; then he said that it would be up to the DA to decide if it was worth the trouble & $$ to prosecute me; then he met with an ADA (explained re: witness, no motive,victim's prior harassment of me, etc) and said it would ''probably'' be thrown out; now he says that ''since they went to the trouble of arresting you, they will want to go through the trouble of taking you to trial''. I am afraid that if I press the fact that the cop omitted K's statement to him, then K will cover for his friend and deny witnessing things (K has not made an ''official'' statement/affadavit yet). Why should this matter go to trial? How can I get the cop to amend his report? (Incident occurred in local town but DA has jurisdiction over a felony).


Asked on 6/19/07, 8:14 am

2 Answers from Attorneys
James Kats James S. Kats, Esq.

Re: DA involvement

You probably cannot get the cop's report amended; anyhow, the original report exists and cannot be "erased".

Your best strategy is probably to force the DA's office to take the case to trial. My advice to clients in your situation is to NOT plead guilty to a lesser offense (misdemeanor or lower) if they're innocent; a trial should result in your favor, provided the attorney prepares adequately for the trial.

James Kats, Esq. www.LAWJSK.com

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Answered on 6/20/07, 12:08 pm
Christopher Hoyt The Law Offices of Christopher W. Hoyt

Re: DA involvement

This is something you should discuss with your attorney. It is highly unlikely that you will get a police officer to change his report after an arrest was made. It may be a good idea to retain a private investigator to go out and interview the witness and if there was any police misconduct your attorney could contact internal affairs, so that an investigation will be started.These are things that your attorney should do and not you. I'm not sure where your case is being prosecuted, but has a former prosecutor I never went forward with a case just because the police had made an arrest. If you have exculpatory evidence that clearly shows your innocence the DA should drop the charges. Please feel free to contact my office if we can provide any assistance.

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Answered on 6/19/07, 12:53 pm


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