Voting in New York With a Felony Record
By Jill K. Sanders, Esq. When a person has lost the right to vote, this is called “disenfranchisement.” In the United States, an estimated 4.6 million citizens are barred from voting due to a felon...
Halloween 2022: Safety Tips for Trick-or-Treaters
By Jill K. Sanders, Esq. Halloween is a day most kids in the United States look forward to. However, it can also be dangerous. Whether it's costumes, trick-or-treating, or candy, there are various...
October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month
By Jill K. Sanders, Esq. Domestic Violence Awareness Month was launched in the United States in October 1987. In 1989, Congress passed a law officially designating the month. This serves to highlig...
Possession of Synthetic Cannabinoids Laws in New York
By Jill K. Sanders, Esq. If you go to a convenience store, gas station, or smoke shop, you may see colorful packets at the register labeled as “incense” or “synthetic marijuana.” Often times, these...
How Self-Checkout Could Lead to Criminal Charges
By Jill K. Sanders, Esq. While self-checkout lanes have been around for decades, they really came to prominence in the US in the early 2000s. Now, most supermarkets as well as many other types of r...
New Concealed Carry Permit Laws Take Effect September 1
By Jill K. Sanders, Esq. Gun possession is a hot topic in New York. As covered in our blog back in June, the US Supreme Court struck down part of New York’s concealed pistol carry permit licensing...
Federal Criminal Offenses of Mail and Wire Fraud
By Jill K. Sanders, Esq. In the movie The Firm, Tom Cruise’s character helps the FBI get the bad guys in his law firm. But not by exposing their more serious offenses. Instead, he helps the FBI pro...
Traffic Cameras in New York – Tickets for Speeding and More
By Jill K. Sanders, Esq. You may have gotten a ticket in the mail for speeding or running a red light. For these tickets, they are issued after detection by traffic cameras. In many places, these c...
Human Trafficking: What You Need to Know
By Jill K. Sanders, Esq. Recently, there was coverage in the news of a large operation to combat human trafficking at the World Games in Alabama. Homeland Security Investigations headed-up “Operati...
SCOTUS Strikes “Proper Cause” Requirement in NY Gun Licensing Law
By Jill K. Sanders, Esq. New York has some of the toughest gun laws in the nation. Specifically, the state makes it a crime to possess a firearm without a permit, whether inside or outside the home...
Marijuana Possession by Youths: Loophole in New York’s MRTA
By Jill K. Sanders, Esq. In 2021, New York passed the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA). We highlighted the new laws in a blog last year. In essence, the legislation legalized the produc...
Hate Crimes Against the LGBTQ+ Community
By Jill K. Sanders, Esq. June is LGBTQ+ Pride Month. While we’ve previously blogged about hate crimes in New York, Pride Month is a good time to highlight that the LGBTQ+ community is particularly...