Astoria Appeals Lawyer

The criminal justice process is long and complex, even after a trial ends. A case lasts only from when a person is arrested until the end of their trial. In reality, the legal questions and potential for consequences can go on for much longer.

Even if a court finds a person guilty at the end of a trial, they may have legal options to reverse the conviction. By filing an appeal with an appellate court, people may argue that a mistake of law unfairly influenced their chances at trial.

Astoria appeals lawyer Michael Schillinger could take the lead in arguing people’s appeals in state appellate courts. However, the procedure for doing this and the time limits are strict. An experienced criminal defense attorney could ensure all deadlines are met.

When Can a Convicted Person Appeal Their Case?

The state rules that govern criminal appeals are restrictive. A person cannot argue that the jury misinterpreted the facts of the case or that a witness did not give helpful testimony.

Instead, a person must argue they were convicted due to a mistake in how the case was tried. This is known as a mistake of law. For the most part, only judges are capable of making mistakes of law. Common sources of these mistakes in criminal appeals are:

• Improperly ruled motions concerning whether evidence should be admitted at trial
• A defendant was not allowed to discover all the evidence due to be presented at trial
• The court improperly impaneled a juror
• A witness was classified incorrectly as an expert

Any of these mistakes may hurt a person’s case. Ideally, their trial lawyer will have registered an objection at the time of the decision. However, this will not set an appeal in motion. To do this, a person must file a separate case with a New York State appeals court.

How Can Someone Pursue an Appeal?

To begin the appeal process, the convicted person must file a state notice of appeal form with the court that issued the ruling no more than 30 days after the court enters the decision.

This results in many situations where the accused must file a notice of their intent to appeal before their case closes. For example, all motions concerning the discovery of relevant evidence will be made before the case goes to trial. This appeal can be dropped if the verdict works in the defendant’s favor, but many appeals must preempt the verdict.

After a person files the initial notice, they must gather information concerning their case and present it to the appeals court. An appeals attorney in Astoria could help with this process. Once the New York State appeals court has all the necessary information and attorneys’ briefs, they hear the case.

The hearing can result in a retrial for a guilty defendant or even an outright acquittal under limited circumstances.

Reach Out to an Astoria Appeals Attorney Today

Poor decisions made by judges can have a catastrophic effect on an accused person’s case in criminal court. Even though judges are highly trained, they are still humans who can make mistakes. These mistakes can result in unfair convictions or people being denied their fair day in court. People can seek a remedy through an appeal whenever this is the case.

An Astoria appeals lawyer like Michael Schillinger is ready to fight for you. He could examine every aspect of your primary criminal case, evaluate judges’ decisions for errors of law, and represent your interests before an appellate court. Contact us immediately, because the time to file an appeal is limited.