Criminal defense

February 4, 2022

Chicago PD Announce Crack-Down on Retail Theft Rings

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

The last time you heard about an ORC you were likely watching Lord of the Rings. Nonetheless, “organized retail crime” is becoming a major issue for Chicago retailers. CPD released a statement announcing a crackdown on organized retail crime after a 15-year-old was arrested and charged with 21 counts of theft from a beauty store.

The problem for police is that it appears that teenagers are being used to carry out the crimes, are paid by adults for the merchandise they pocket, and then that merchandise is sold over eBay or related services for profit. Police believe that the conspiracy employs children because they are less likely to face serious criminal charges. They also hide the identities of the adults who are profiting from the theft. The children are paid a fraction of the cost of the merchandise. This makes it a win-win for both children and adults. However, the retail stores and the very backbone of our economy are placed at risk by retail thefts.

Police have announced that they intend to track the merchandise and sales and come down hard on those who resell the stolen merchandise on the black market.

February 2, 2022

Man Charged With Painting Swastikas on Synagogue

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

A man with a criminal history has been charged with defacing a synagogue by painting swastikas on it. He has been charged with criminal damage and defacement and is facing four hate crime charges related to each swastika that he spray painted. Earlier in the day, police found evidence that someone damaged a different synagogue, and broke the windows of two businesses. It is unclear if the man charged with defacing the synagogue has also been charged in relation to these crimes, but the matter will be investigated further to track his movements throughout the day, so more charges could be forthcoming.

What is a hate crime?

The term “hate crime” refers to a specific class of crimes committed with a specific purpose in mind. The purpose is to enrage, belittle, or terrify someone from a protected minority. In this case, painting symbols associated with the systematic murder and genocide of a people shows the type of bias the government is looking for to prove a hate crime.

January 26, 2022

Women Charged With Felony Burglary in Glitter Bomb Battery

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

The law is seldom funny, yet here we are. Two women are being charged with felony burglary and battery after breaking into a man’s apartment and glitter bombing him during a dispute. Police say they have the altercation on video and at one point, one of the women threw the glitter can at the victim. Police later traced the women’s vehicle to their home. Police found evidence of glitter within the vehicle.

How Serious are These Charges?

The two women are facing life in prison in Florida, where the crime occurred. Why? Because they burglarized a home and committed battery at the same time. Burglary + Battery + Florida = Potential Life Sentence. Florida is not a great place to play around. The Florida police are not necessarily going to make a huge distinction between someone entering a home to rob it and someone entering a home to play a prank. No matter what happened here, whether it was a domestic argument turned upside down or just a drunk prank, the actual penalties they are facing are extremely severe.

January 21, 2022

Livestream Error Results in Judge’s Recusal

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

The law has never been exactly funny. Yet today, it is becoming funnier and funnier. Now that live-streaming is being used in courts to deal with the pandemic, several extremely funny things have happened. It is important to understand, however, that these things are not funny for any of the individuals involved.

Among the funniest things to happen in the era of courtroom live streaming, a couple was caught apparently having sex during a hearing, a federal informant divulged that he was an informant over YouTube, and now a judge made inappropriate comments concerning defense counsel after a hearing.

In the last case, the judge did not realize that his conversation with two district attorneys and a public defender was still being broadcast over YouTube. During this banter, he made comments such as, “Can you imagine waking up next to her every morning?” The judge, apparently, did not like the way the lawyer conducted herself. The attorney interrupted him on multiple occasions and apparently moved her hands and arms in an agitated manner.

January 19, 2022

Feds: Illinois Nurse Stole Morphine from Patients

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

A nurse at a suburban Chicago hospital is in deep trouble after the feds accused her of tampering with patients’ morphine. According to federal prosecutors, the woman removed some of the morphine from the bottle and diluted it with another liquid, essentially ensuring that patients would get significantly less morphine than their doctors had ordered. She is facing two counts of tampering with a consumer product.

Tampering With a Consumer Product

While this may not sound like a serious offense, it is the type of crime that is punished in accord with domestic terrorism. Why? Because ever since the first Batman movie with Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson as the Joker, Americans have been unduly concerned that random people will contaminate consumer products in order to create fear and panic in the public. Meanwhile, this almost never happens. In one case, however, a wife killed her own husband with contaminated aspirin and then attempted to hide her crime by contaminating more aspirin. Essentially, she tried to cast blame on a random terrorist poisoning American products.

January 14, 2022

Mother, Children Face Murder Charges After Death of 6-Year-Old

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

A mother, her adult child, and a juvenile child are all facing charges related to the murder of the mother’s 6-year-old son. According to police, the mother concocted an odd story about a woman named Monique and another guy named Whacko or Chaos. The mother said that the child left with Whacko/Chaos and was never seen from again. However, police were able to punch a hole in that story, and then the investigation turned on the family.

The boy was found naked and wrapped in a plastic bag in an alley. The boy’s mother is charged with first-degree murder among other crimes. Her adult son is charged with aggravated abuse of a child and unlawfully disposing of a body. A juvenile will face charges in juvenile court. A recent autopsy revealed that the boy died of hypothermia. However, the autopsy also revealed that burns were on the boy’s body.

Analyzing the Evidence

January 12, 2022

Is “Woke” Bail Reform Putting Criminals Back on the Streets?

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

According to a recent opinion piece by the Daily Mail, “woke” bail reform is putting murderers back on the streets of Chicago. This is not strictly true. In 2020, when the jails and prisons were overcrowded with suspects awaiting charges, it became more routine to release individuals on ankle monitors. However, it is true that reforms in the way we do bail are impacting how it functions and who qualifies.

To be sure, Illinois is not woke when it comes to bail reform. Some states have moved to do away with the cash bail system, and we will get into their reasons why below. However, Illinois is not one of them so the idea that Chicago is putting murderers out on the streets at a greater rate than say, New York or Los Angeles is false. One of the reasons why Chicago takes it on the chin when it comes to these sorts of accusations is that we have a large Black population, a history of political corruption, and a reputation for organized crime. However, we are no more woke than, say, Birmingham, AL when it comes to our bail system.

COVID releases, overcrowding, and ankle monitors

December 31, 2021

Man Sentenced to Seven Years After Customer ODs

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

Two men meet in rehab. Neither is ready to commit to a life of sobriety. The one man sells the other man drugs or arranges for him to get access to drugs, and that man dies. Now, the other man is facing homicide charges. He is convicted of giving the other man a fatal dose of drugs. He pleads guilty and is sentenced to seven years.

Prosecutions such as these are becoming more popular and increasing the risk to drug dealers or even those who procure drugs from a drug dealer to deliver to a friend who is going to share the drugs with them. In this case, the victim’s parents pushed police to investigate the overdose as a homicide. Police were able to recover cell phone exchanges between the two men. Importantly, one exchange involved the victim complaining that he believed he overpaid for his drugs. The defendant responded by telling him he had given him the correct amount and the correct change.

The Controversy Surrounding This Law

December 29, 2021

Federal Jury Sides with Plaintiff in Wrongful Conviction Suit

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

A jury found that a defendant who spent more than 20 years behind bars for a double murder was intentionally framed for the incident by police. The defendant was awarded a new trial after he successfully argued that his criminal defense attorney failed to call witnesses to the stand that would have corroborated his alibi. These witnesses claimed that the defendant was inside of a restaurant playing Pac Man at the time of the double shooting. The only witness that the prosecution offered was a man who was allegedly shot by the defendant during the double murder and the brother of one of the victims. It was the defendant who called police to the scene of the crime to report the shooting. Let that be a lesson on the perils of involving police in any matter at all.

After vacating his conviction, the defendant filed a lawsuit against Chicago police and the city. The complaint alleged that the arresting officer called the suspect a racial epithet and said that no one cares about Black people, which is why the officers would get away with it. A federal jury returned an award of $25.2 million to the plaintiff.

The lineup

December 24, 2021

Jussie Smollett Faces Criminal and Civil Trials

by Law Offices of David L. Freidberg, P.C.

It is hard to imagine a guy faking a hate crime attack just so he could get up on stage and call himself “the Gay Tupac,” but that is exactly what Jussie Smollett is accused of doing. Police believe that Smollett paid two African bodybuilders to stage an assault that made national headlines, infuriated activists, and mined the hatred and outrage surrounding recent police murders. However, investigators came to believe that Smollett had staged the attack leading to an investigation that cost the city at least $130,000. Further, he stoked the fires of racial outrage and when it turned out that the police had evidence the hate crime was staged, it made it more difficult for others facing similar assaults to report their crimes.

It is among the most frustrating and infuriating news stories all year. As of the writing of this article, Smollett has been convicted of the charges. Smollett still maintains his innocence. But the matter remains polarizing as several high-profile celebrities continue to support Smollett on the basis that the Chicago police department has a long history of wrongdoing.

Understanding Double Jeopardy