Attorney Criminal ((INSTALL))
Under Texas law, the county or district attorney has primary jurisdiction to prosecute most criminal offenses. The Office of the Attorney General assists local prosecutors at their request. The law also authorizes this agency to proffer assistance to local prosecutors. Most OAG prosecutions are undertaken on referrals.
attorney criminal
The Attorney General's Criminal Bureau works to protect the public by investigating and prosecuting a wide range of criminal cases. These include public corruption, financial fraud, and other violations of the public trust, organized crime, major narcotic offenses, appellate issues, insurance and unemployment fraud, internet and online crimes, and more. If you believe that you have information related to a criminal offense that may be investigated or prosecuted by the Criminal Bureau, please complete the request for review form.
Access to criminal history summary records maintained by the DOJ is restricted by law to legitimate law enforcement purposes and authorized applicant agencies. However, individuals have the right to request a copy of their own criminal history record from the Department to review for accuracy and completeness. Requests from third parties are not authorized and will not be processed.
To receive a copy of YOUR criminal history record, individuals must submit fingerprint images, pay a $25 processing fee to the DOJ, and follow the instructions below. You may be eligible to apply for a fee waiver to cover the DOJ processing fees. See Apply for a Fee Waiver.
Once you have received your Record Review response, if you want to challenge the contents of your criminal record, you must complete the "Claim of Alleged Inaccuracy or Incompleteness" (form BCIA 8706), which will be included with your Record Review response if there is criminal information on your record. Mail the completed form, along with a copy of your criminal history record, to the address indicated on the form. Your challenge must specifically state the basis for the claim of inaccuracy or incompleteness and include any available proof or corroboration to substantiate your claim.
The Criminal Law Division has Regional Offices located throughout the Commonwealth to carry out its functions. In addition, the Grand Jury offices are in Harrisburg, Pittsburgh and Norristown. The attorneys in the criminal division are organized into thirteen sections with a Chief Deputy Attorney General (CDAG) in charge of each section. Each CDAG reports to the Criminal Division EDAG.
Appeals and Legal Services Section is responsible for representing the Commonwealth in all criminal appeals that involve the OAG and for advocating the position of the Attorney General on important issues in cases prosecuted by the county district attorneys.
In addition, the Appeals and Legal Services Section provides general legal and research support to the Criminal Law Division, coordinates and schedules all matters to be brought before the statewide investigating grand juries. Within this section is the Capital Litigation Unit. The Section also reviews administrative decisions by the State Police concerning criminal history records and eligibility for firearm ownership.
The Asset Forfeiture & Money Laundering Section is responsible for the litigation of all asset forfeiture cases from law enforcement agencies with statewide jurisdiction, and the supervision of financial investigations leading to money laundering arrests and large property seizures. These cases are complex and often involve multiple defendants and numerous types of property. The Section consists of a Section Chief, litigation attorneys, legal support staff, and the Asset Forfeiture Administration Unit which is tasked with administering and liquidating all forfeited property. The litigation attorneys and legal support staff are located throughout the state in various regional offices. The Asset Forfeiture Administration Unit is centrally located in the Harrisburg area to assist in the storage and transfer of assets throughout the state.
The attorneys of the Section also supervise money laundering investigations and litigate the resulting prosecutions when appropriate. The attorneys of this Section, working in conjunction with financial investigators, have the expertise to trace hidden assets, expose straw buyers, analyze bank records and develop financial profiles; then successfully litigate forfeiture and money laundering cases.
In addition to these responsibilities, pursuant to Chapter 58 of the Judicial Code relating to Forfeiture of Assets, the Office of Attorney General is responsible for annually submitting a report to the Appropriations Committee and Judiciary Committee of the Senate and to the Appropriations Committee and Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives specifying all forfeited property for the fiscal year. Information pertaining to the proceeds derived from the sale of forfeited property, the use made of unsold property and the criminal case related to the forfeited property is likewise reported. To fulfill its obligation under the statute, the Office of Attorney General is responsible for adopting and maintaining the Asset Forfeiture Report and Auditing Guidelines.
An aggressive approach to the investigation and presentation/prosecution of asset forfeiture and money laundering cases has led to significant forfeitures of monies, automobiles, personal property and real estates; as well as convictions for felony money laundering crimes. The monies derived from the forfeitures are, in turn, used by law enforcement to help fund future drug and other criminal investigations as well as assist community-based drug and crime-fighting programs throughout the state.
Drug Strike Force lawyers routinely utilize the Statewide Investigating Grand Jury and electronic surveillance as investigative resources and prosecute their criminal cases in the various counties within their assigned region.
The Office of Attorney General, Environmental Crimes Section investigates and prosecutes violations of state environmental laws governing the processing, transportation, storage, or disposal of municipal, residual and hazardous waste. Most criminal prosecutions are initiated pursuant to the Solid Waste Management Act, Clean Streams Law, Air Pollution Control Act, Radiation Protection Act or Oil & Gas Act. In conjunction with environmental crimes, the Section prosecutes traditional Crimes Code offenses including, but not limited to, tampering with public records, forgery, unsworn falsification, reckless endangerment, criminal conspiracy, corrupt organizations, money laundering, vandalism, deceptive business practices and theft.
Pursuant to the Commonwealth Attorneys Act, the Office of Attorney General does not have original jurisdiction to investigate or prosecute environmental crimes. However, the Office can obtain jurisdiction over an environmental crime by a referral from either a district attorney or a state agency with enforcement duties pursuant to statute. See 71 Pa.C.S.A. 732-205(a)(3) and (a)(6) respectively. The majority of criminal referrals are received from the Department of Environmental Protection, however local district attorneys, the Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission and the Pennsylvania Game Commission have also been a source of criminal referrals.
The primary mission of the Organized Crime Section (OCS) is to investigate and prosecute complex criminal enterprises, comprised of both traditional and nontraditional organized crime members. The organizations investigated and prosecuted by the OCS are involved in the commission of various predicate criminal offenses which have included drug trafficking, gambling, loansharking, extortion, identity theft, insurance fraud, auto theft, money laundering, intimidation of witnesses and murder.
Bureau of Criminal Investigations consists of Special Agents that investigate all criminal offenses within the jurisdiction of the OAG other than narcotics offenses. It works primarily with the following Sections: Criminal Prosecutions, Environmental Crimes, Gaming, Insurance Fraud, Medicaid Fraud Control and Organized Crime
The Special Prosecutions Unit primarily investigates and prosecutes multi-jurisdictional, complex crimes. Our office works with the statewide grand jury to assist with complex investigations. We also have expertise with wiretap investigations, state tax fraud, human trafficking, environmental crimes, and auto theft. We have an experienced team of prosecutors who also assist district attorneys with complex violent crime prosecutions.
Tasked with protecting the integrity of the system that provides healthcare to the most vulnerable Coloradans and vested with both criminal and civil jurisdiction, the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) investigates Medicaid providers that are committing fraud, waste and abuse of Medicaid program resources. Additionally, the Unit investigates the abuse, neglect and financial exploitation of individuals that reside in or receive care from facilities that accept Medicaid funding as well as those that reside in board and care facilities. To report Medicaid provider fraud, contact the MFCU at mfcu.investigations@coag.gov or (720) 508-6696.
A criminal defense lawyer is a lawyer (mostly barristers) specializing in the defense of individuals and companies charged with criminal activity. Some criminal defense lawyers are privately retained, while others are employed by the various jurisdictions with criminal courts for appointment to represent indigent persons; the latter are generally called public defenders. The terminology is imprecise because each jurisdiction may have different practices with various levels of input from state and federal law or consent decrees. Some jurisdictions use a rotating system of appointments, with judges appointing a private practice attorney or firm for each case.
In the United States, criminal defense lawyers deal with the issues surrounding an arrest, a criminal investigation, criminal charges, sentencing, appeals, and post-trial issues. Often an attorney will specialize in a niche within criminal defense, such as drug defense or DUI defense.[1][page needed] They could work for the local, state, or federal government or they could work for private law firms.[2] The defense lawyers could also have their own practice and handle multiple criminal cases. 041b061a72