In the year 2016, there were over 100,000 felony offenses in New York. There are seven major felony offenses, including murder, rape, robbery, felony assault, burglary, grand larceny, and grand larceny of a motor vehicle. Learn more about each felony and what the potential sentencing could be.
If you are facing a felony charge, it is imperative that you have a reliable and experienced criminal lawyer on your side. With the law office of Lisa Pelosi fighting for you, there is hope for a positive outcome.
Murder in the First Degree
A first degree murder charge is a class A-I felony and a sentence could include death, life imprisonment without parole, or imprisonment between 20 and 25 years. Your criminal lawyer could defend your case by arguing extreme emotional disturbance, mental disease, self-defense, or defense of another person.
Rape
There are third, second, and first degree rape charges.
- First Degree: This includes when the defendant is older than 18 and the victim is 13 or younger, the victim is younger than 11 years old, the victim is unable to consent because of physical helplessness, or the victim is forced into sexual intercourse through the use of physical force or a threat of death, injury, or kidnapping. This could result in five to 25 years in prison and up to $5,000 in fines.
- Second Degree: Someone is guilty of second degree rape when they engage in sexual intercourse with someone who is younger than 15 years old and the defendant is older than 18, or the victim is unable to give consent due to a mental disability or is mentally incapacitated. This could result in one to seven years in prison and up to $5,000 in fines.
- Third Degree: Someone is guilty of third degree rape if they engage in sexual intercourse with someone who is incapable of consenting due to being younger than 17 years old, if they are older than 21 and victim is 17 or younger, or the victim does not give consent. This could result in up to four years in prison and up to $5,000 in fines.
Defenses to rape charges include a lack of knowledge of the victim’s age or mental disability, the defendant was less than four years older than the victim at the time, or others.
Robbery
Robbery is the act of forcibly stealing property. A larceny is elevated to robbery when the defendant uses a threat of physical force to prevent the owner from resisting the robbery.
- A first degree robbery is considered a Class D felony and could result in two to seven years in prison.
- A second degree robbery is considered a Class C felony and could result in seven to 15 years in prison.
- A third degree robbery is considered a Class B felony and could result in 10 to 25 years in prison.
Possible defenses could include if the defendant’s firearm was not loaded, they were under duress, there was a mental disease or defect, or the person was younger than 14 years old.
If you are facing murder, rape, or robbery, call a criminal lawyer who has the experience and knowledge to give you hope for a positive outcome. The law office of Lisa Pelosi is capable of fighting for you. In the next post, learn more about felony assault, burglary, grand larceny, and grand larceny of a motor vehicle.
