Federal criminal cases are particularly serious and involve a level of legal complexity that is uncommon to state criminal offenses. Likewise, federal court is a unique and demanding practice arena, wherein defense counsel must be well-versed in the nuances of an enormous body of federal law, including the Bail Reform Act, the United States Sentencing Guidelines, and all aspects of constitutional law, or else risk jeopardizing clients’ interests. The greatest post-arrest mistake made by criminal defendants in federal court is hiring an attorney who practices mainly in state criminal cases and lacks the familiarity with federal law possessed by an attorney who focuses on federal criminal defense.
Sex Crimes
Congress has enacted a landslide of legislation designed to keep children safe from sex offenders. Likewise, the Department of Justice has prioritized the prosecution of child pornography and sexual exploitation of children cases. While the protection of children is a good and necessary thing, people can make mistakes and laws can be misapplied, leading to surprise arrests. For instance...
Fraud
Tax fraud presents itself in many different forms. Prosecutors sometimes allege that citizens failed to file tax returns when they were required to under the law and that they owe a tax debt as a result. Other times, the government charges a defendant with making material misrepresentations on a filed tax return (or series of tax returns) that, when adjusted to what the government perceives to be true and accurate numbers, results in a substantial underpayment by the taxpayer (also called tax evasion).
Robbery
Burglary
White Collar Crimes
Kimberly S. Hodde brings her exacting organizational skills to your case. If you have been indicted for a complex white collar crime, like Medicare, tax or bank fraud, your defense depends on your lawyer’s ability to sort through thousands of emails, forms, invoices, receipts and other documentation. Likewise, if your case involves wiretapping or the seizure of computer evidence (servers or hard drives), your defense will hinge on your lawyer’s ability to synthesize and understand vast amounts of technical information. Ms. Hodde is well-equipped to rise to the challenge of these types of cases. She regularly handles cases involving millions of pages of paper documents and terabytes of electronic data.
Theft
Misdemeanors
18 U.S.C. §922(g) forbids the use or possession of a “firearm” (which is defined to include a destructive device) by a person who is a “prohibited person.” The possession of the firearm can be “actual” possession or “constructive” possession (meaning you never actually touched the firearm but had the ability to do so). The list of prohibited people as defined by 18 U.S.C §922(g) includes: (1) a felon; (2) a fugitive from justice; (3) an unlawful user or addict to any controlled substance; (4) a person “adjudicated as a mental defective” or committed to a mental institution; (5) an illegal alien; (6) a person dishonorably discharged from the military; (7) a person who renounced U.S. citizenship; (8) a person subject to an order of protection or restraining order; or, (9) a person with a misdemeanor domestic violence conviction.
Embezzlement
Drug Crimes
Allegations involving the possession of a firearm can lead to serious consequences, as can charges involving the possession, distribution or trafficking of drugs. When charges for firearm and drug violations are combined, the potential consequences can threaten the defendant’s liberty for years and even decades.
Assault
Murder
Homicide
Restraining Order
Money Laundering
Money laundering in its most basic form is taking the profits of illegal activity and engaging in financial transactions with those funds. There are two distinct federal statutes that criminalize money laundering.