Felony Eavesdropping Charges Dropped Against Defendant – Chicago Criminal Defense Attorney

September 9, 2011

Charges against a woman who recorded Chicago Police investigators without their knowledge were dismissed.

The woman never denied recording the police officers on her smartphone but told the jury that the reason she did so was because she felt the Chicago Police investigators were pressuring her to drop her complaint against another officer.

The officer against whom the woman was filing a complaint had made advances toward her while responding to a domestic battery call against the woman’s boyfriend.

The woman was charged under the Illinois Eavesdropping Act which makes it illegal to record any conversation without the permission of all parties involved in the conversation. Illinois is one of a handful of states which still have eavesdropping laws. Most states have recognized that recording conversations or the actions of law enforcement officers on video as a powerful too to protect the public against unlawful actions disguised as law enforcement actions.

Continuing with the momentum of the victory, the American Civil Liberties Union has challenged the eavesdropping law in federal court.

Purav Bhatt is a criminal defense attorney practicing in Cook, DuPage, Lake and Will counties. He is located in Lincolnwood, Illinois near most Chicago and suburban courthouses including: Skokie, Maywood and Rolling Meadows.

If you or a loved on has been arrested for a criminal offense please contact Mr. Bhatt at 773-791-9682 to discuss your matter.

I’ve been charged with a crime. What is my statute citation number? Chicago Criminal Defense Attorney

August 1, 2011
arrest

criminal charges

Oftentimes people call my office with questions similar to this…, “I’ve been charged with 720 ILCS 550/4-B. Is that bad?”

It’s one thing to know generally what you’ve been charged with, but understanding your criminal charges specifically can give you greater understanding of the consequences of your charges as well as how to fight them.

Below I’ve listed the most frequent criminal charges people call me about and the statute citations associated with those charges.

CHARGE                                                                        STATUTE CITATION

First degree Murder – 720 ILCS 5/9-1

Kidnapping – 720 ILCS 5/10-1

Aggravated Kidnapping – 720 ILCS 5/10-2

Indecent Solicitation of a Child – 720 ILCS 5/11-6

Indecent Solicitation of an Adult – 720 ILCS 5/11-6.5

Public Indecency – 720 ILCS 5/11-9

Assault – 720 ILCS 5/12-1

Aggravated Assault – 720 ILCS 5/12-2

Battery – 720 ILCS 5/12-3

Domestic Battery – 720 ILCS 5/12-3.2

Aggravated Domestic Battery – 720 ILCS 5/12-3.3

Aggravated Battery – 720 ILCS 5/12-4

Criminal Sexual Abuse – 720 ILCS 5/12-13

Theft – 720 ILCS 5/16-1

Theft of Lost of Mislaid Property – 720 ILCS 5/16-2

Retail Theft – 720 ILCS 5/16A-3

Deceptive Practices – 720 ILCS 5/17-1

Forgery – 720 ILCS 5/17-3

Robbery – 720 ILCS 5/18-1

Armed Robbery – 720 ILCS 5/18-2

Aggravated Robbery – 720 ILCS 5/18-5

Burglary – 720 ILCS 5/19-1

Criminal Damage to Property – 720 ILCS 5/21-1

Criminal Trespass to Vehicle – 720 ILCS 5/21-2

Unlawful Use of Weapons – 720 ILCS 5/24-1

Disorderly Conduct – 720 ILCS 5/26-1

Resisting or Obstructing a Peace Officer – 720 ILCS 5/31-1

Possession of Cannabis – 720 ILCS 550/4(a), 720 ILCS 550/4(b), 720 ILCS 550/4(c)

Manufacture, delivery or possession – 720 ILCS 550/5
with intent to deliver

Manufacture or controlled substance – 720 ILCS 570/401

Possession of a controlled substance – 720 ILCS 570/402

Purav Bhatt is a criminal defense attorney practicing in Cook, DuPage, Lake and Will counties. He is located in Lincolnwood, Illinois near most Chicago and suburban courthouses including: Skokie, Maywood and Rolling Meadows.

If you or a loved one has been charged with a criminal offense, you deserve the best representation available. Contact The Law Office of Purav Bhatt at 773-791-9682.

New Federal Law Attempts to Make Penalties for Crack and Cocaine More Consistent – Chicago Drug Lawyer

July 11, 2011

crack possession

cocaine possession

Soon, nearly 12,000 inmates in federal prisons across the country will be eligible to have their sentences reduced because of a new law attempting to make penalties for crack possession more consistent with penalties for possession of cocaine.

In the federal prison system, nearly 1 in 17 inmates is in custody as a result of a conviction for crack cocaine. Federal laws have been criticized since the 1980s for being racially discriminatory because of the unequal sentences imposed on those convicted of crack possession or trafficking compared with the sentences imposed on those convicted of cocaine-related offenses. The sentencing guidelines were criticized for being unequally hard on poor and black communities.
Shockingly, statistics show that 85 percent of the inmates expected to benefit from this decision are black. Statistics also show that the average reduction in federal sentences is expected to be approximately 3 years.

The original law was created in 1986 when crack cocaine was first introduced into the inner-city bringing with it  a new wave of crime and violence. As a result, lawmakers came down hard on crack-related offenders. Under that 1986 law, a person receiving a conviction for crack possession received a mandatory prison term equal to someone with 100 times the powdered cocaine amount. Essentially, 5 grams of crack cocaine got the same period of incarceration as 500 grams of powder cocaine.

Purav Bhatt is a criminal defense attorney practicing in Cook, DuPage, Lake and Will counties. He is located in Lincolnwood, Illinois near most Chicago and suburban courthouses including: Skokie, Maywood and Rolling Meadows.

If you or a loved on has been arrested for crack, cocaine or any other drug possession please contact Mr. Bhatt at 773-791-9682 to discuss your matter.

New Driver’s License Law Takes Effect July 1st, 2011 – Chicago Criminal Defense Lawyer

May 19, 2011
suspended license

revoked license

Currently, if you are arrested for DUI and there is personal injury or death involved in the accident, you must be convicted of the DUI before the Secretary of State has the authority to revoke your drivers license and take away your driving privileges.

Under the new law, which takes effect July 1, 2011, simply being arrested for DUI involving personal injury gives the Secretary of State the authority to revoke your drivers license. As a result, the accused must wait a full year before requesting relief from the revocation.

Even if you are found not guilty of the DUI, the arrest alone is enough under the new law to revoke one’s drivers license.

If you have been charged with DUI or have had your license suspended or revoked it is important to have representation to protect your interests. Purav Bhatt is a traffic attorney and former prosecutor serving Cook, DuPage, Lake and Will counties, as well as, Skokie, Lincolnwood, Rolling Meadows and Chicago.

 

I’ve been arrested. What should I do? – Chicago Criminal Lawyer

March 31, 2011

arrest

arrested?
If you are involved in a criminal arrest, what you say and how you act are being watched, recorded and remembered from the moment you come into contact with the police. Many people believe being cooperative and nice to the police will help their situation. This is a tactic used by the police to gather information and evidence against you. The moment you come into contact with a police officer, that officer is gathering information and evidence against you that can be used against you should that officer decide to arrest you. How you act and how you answer the officer’s questions can determine whether you can fight your criminal case and avoid a conviction or jail.
Below I’ve listed a few things to keep in  mind when you come into contact with the police.

1. Be Courteous to the Police from the beginning of the contact to the end.
Being courteous to the police officer will always work to your advantage. The police come into contact with the worst parts of our society and are conditioned to be hostile toward individuals the are investigating or arresting. By being polite and courteous, you’ve disarmed the officer by acting unlike the people the officer usually comes into contact with. Acting in a polite and courteous way can benefit you from the moment of contact with the police throughout your arrest and into court. By being polite to the officer, he may release you, give you a citation instead of arresting you, he may not seek felony charges against you and the officer may put in a good word with you to the prosecutor in court. During my time as a prosecutor, one of my first questions to police officers was how the defendant acted toward the officer. If the officer felt you were respectful and polite, the prosecutor may reduce charges or offer some kind of deferred prosecution. While I am recommending you be courteous to the police, I am not recommending you give a confession. You do not have to answer any question the police officer asks you and you should refuse to answer the officer’s questions as politely as you can.

2. The Officer’s First Job is to Gather Evidence Against You.
A judge I practiced in front of would ask defendants who talked to much, “Do you know how the fish got caught? He opened his mouth!”
Police officers and detectives are trained to have what seem like friendly conversations with suspects of crimes. What the officers and detectives are actually doing is gathering evidence against you and recording this information on police reports for the prosecution against you. As much as you want to clear up the situation by explaining yourself to the officer, what you are doing is actually providing information to the police and doing the investigation for them. You are not doing yourself any favors by continuing to talk to the police. Your best bet is to tell the officer respectfully that before you answer any questions, you’d like to consult with an attorney.

3. Ask for a Lawyer
The most important piece of information any suspect or defendant must know is that once you inform the police that you want a criminal defense attorney, the officers are required by law to stop questioning you until a lawyer is present. It is not the officer’s responsibility to provide you with a lawyer but anything the police ask you after you’ve informed them that you want a lawyer cannot be used against you because you’ve requested a lawyer. I would recommend if you are arrested to continually request a lawyer because information you voluntarily provide to the police can be used against you. The police are trained to trick you into providing information in a voluntary way so make multiple requests for a lawyer.

4. Do Not Discuss Your Case With Anyone
If you are charged with a crime, it is crucial that you do not discuss your matter with anyone except your attorney. Outside of a spouse or priest, anyone you discuss your case with can be brought into court through the use of a subpoena and be forced to answer questions about their conversations with you about your case. If you made any kind of confession to this person, this can be brought out and used against you in court.

Purav Bhatt is a criminal defense attorney practicing in Chicago, Cook County, Dupage County and Lake County. If you have been charged with a felony or misdemeanor please contact Mr. Bhatt’s office at 773-791-9682 or visit us at www.bhattlaw.com.

What is the difference between an expungement and sealing of my record?

March 22, 2011
expungement

expungement

Criminal arrests can have many detrimental consequences in one’s life. A criminal background can prevent you from finding employment, prevent you from being able to certify for certain licences or simply be an embarrassing mark on your record.

Many of my clients ask me about what they can do to clear their records after an arrest. Oftentimes, whether an individual qualifies for an expungement or sealing of his record will depend on what type of background the person has and what the outcome of the current case was. After these questions are answered, only then can you determine whether you qualify for an expungement, sealing or neither.

So what is the difference between an expungement and a sealing of your record?

Expungements

An expungement causes the physical destruction of one’s records or to return the records to the petitioner, and to obliterate (remove) the petitioner’s name from any official index or public record. This allows a person arrested for a misdemeanor offense such as: retail theft, marijuana possession, battery, assault, etc. and some felony arrests to be erased off of one’s criminal background permanently. Illinois understands that an arrest record can be accessed by potential employers, educational institutions and law enforcement. As a result, Illinois has allowed an individual to clear his or her record if that person’s background qualifies under the expungement guidelines. So what are those guidelines?

First, you must determine whether your case was dismissed or you were found not guilty at a trial. If so, your charge will qualify for an expungement.

If you were placed on supervision, it will depend on what charge you were placed on supervision for. If the charge is retail theft, domestic battery or operating an uninsured motor vehicle, you must wait 5 years before you qualify to have your record expunged.  If you were placed on supervision for another offense aside from the offenses mentioned above, you will be required to wait 2 years before qualifying to expunge your record.

Once a criminal background is expunged, the police file is either destroyed or returned to the defendant who sought the expungement.

Sealing

The sealing of ones record allows the criminal record to be closed to public access. Sealing allows the individual to physically and electronically maintain records, but to make the records unavailable to the public without a court order and to obliterate (remove) the petitioner’s name from any official index or public record. However, law enforcement agencies and the courts will still have access to the records, as will other entities and employers allowed by law.

Sealing one’s criminal record is attractive because oftentimes, my clients simply wish to protect their ability to gain employment and the sealing of a criminal record allows you to do that.

First Steps?

The first step in seeking an expungement or sealing of a criminal record is for the individual to get a copy of his or her rap sheet from Criminal History Access and Review Records Services Division –4770 S Kedzie, Chicago, Illinois.

Once the rap sheet is in possession, a certified copy of disposition needs to be compiled in order to complete the petition to expunge or seal.

Purav Bhatt is a criminal defense attorney with offices in Lincolnwood, Illinois. His office routinely handles expungements and sealing petitions for his clients.

If you have any questions about expungements or sealings or would like to discuss completing the petition contact us or call us at 773-791-9682.

DUI – Are you actually driving?

March 16, 2011

duiDUI stands for driving under the influence. Illinois, like many other states, has tailored its DUI laws to cover situations where the person was not actually driving. Instead, to be charged with a DUI, you simply need to be in “control” of the vehicle. According to Illinois law, this is considered controlling a car without driving.

However, there are some circumstances where it is not so clear that a person is “actually controlling” a car. There has been a growing question about what it means to be “controlling” a car in a DUI case. For example, people can legally use their car as a shelter after they have been drinking alcohol.  Someone who sleeps in their properly parked car after getting drunk is not “controlling” their car for purposes of Illinois DUI law. Occasionally, there are situations that are legally unclear such as when the key is in the ignition to turn on the air condition. Does that action create a DUI?

People may have no intention to drive, but only to sleep in their car. Maybe the keys were in the ignition to roll down the window, turn on the air conditioning or turn on the radio?

The Illinois DUI statute does not define what “actual physical control” of a vehicle is, and there have been varying types of jury instructions on the meaning of this phrase through-out the courts.

If you’ve been charged with a DUI, you may have more defenses than you think are available to you. I am a criminal defense attorney specializing in DUI cases in Chicago, Lincolnwood, Skokie and Evanston. Please contact Purav Bhatt if you’d like to discuss your options.

Indian Attorney Chicago

Welcome to my blog. My name is Purav Bhatt and I am an Indian Attorney in Chicago, Cook county, Dupage county and Lake county. As a lawyer practice services Lincolnwood, Skokie, Evanston and all other Chicago surrounding suburbs.

My practice concentrates on criminal defense. Criminal attorney Chicago.

chicago criminal lawyer