Desk Appearance Ticket Tips and General Advice
Receiving a desk appearance ticket is a stressful situation. For some people, it happens during a bad time in their life when they are looking for a new job, moving, or applying for immigration status. For everyone, a desk appearance ticket is given in connection with an extremely traumatic experience. Receiving desk appearance ticket means that you were arrested and here are some tips for handling it properly.
Tip #1
Treat it seriously. If you have a clean record, you may be unaware of the advantages and benefits you have received in life because you did not have a criminal record. That could all change, now. Desk appearance tickets usually charge misdemeanors and misdemeanors are crimes in New York. . Also, additional charges could be added in court on the "return date" listed on your desk appearance ticket. If you are not a US citizen, you could suffer severe hardship simply because you were arrested and further hardship if you are convicted. This can happen even if you were in the United States legally when you received your desk appearance ticket.
Tip #2
Know what it is. This is a criminal prosecution. Occasionally, an arresting officer might remark that this is just a ticket or that it will just get dropped. This isn't true. While a speeding ticket may be just a ticket, a desk appearance ticket signals the beginning of a criminal prosecution in which the District Attorney is trying to convict and punish you.
Tip #3
Don't make your desk appearance ticket worse. Be careful of the natural desire to handle it by yourself. Common mistakes involve contacting the court or district Attorney or witnesses prior to consulting with an attorney. This is because anything you say to a court employee or prosecuting official could be used against you later. For example, if you speak with a witness and that witness gets the wrong idea about your intentions, you could face additional charges in court. If you contact the court to get the date changed, a misunderstanding could lead to a warrant being issued for your arrest.
Tip #4
Don't assume anything. Often, the arrest process happened without your input or after you tried to explain yourself. Even without your input or after a failed attempt to defend yourself, you were arrested and given a desk appearance ticket anyway. So, don't assume a Criminal Court judge will be on your side to any greater extent than the police officer who gave you the desk appearance ticket. It is a better strategy to be cautious and take your time to prepare a winning defense.
Tip #5
Don't be in a hurry. Never get rushed into some kind of outcome in court on your desk appearance ticket court date. Even lenient sounding outcomes could be disastrous for you. Convictions carry employment, immigration, and civil risk. Any agreement that you make could lead to other consequences. For example, having the wrong outcome could even include a deal that avoids jail and probation if you are a professional, have a professional license, are not a US citizen, are in danger of being sued or are going to be subjected to a background check in your future.
Tip #6
Get help with your desk appearance ticket. Contact and experienced criminal defense attorney immediately. This is not the time to get help from your nephew who took a few law classes or your friend who is a family law attorney. Instead, you should seek help from a criminal defense attorney who focuses on criminal cases. This is because part of a successful defense will involve knowledge of New York's criminal law and part will involve past successful experience handling cases similar to yours.