Law Offices of Nathan J. Wade, P.C., lawyers in Marietta, GA, Georgia

Defendants and Sentencing with Respect to Convictions of Violating Environmental Statutes

There are three types of defendants that may be charged in a case involving a violation of an environmental statute. The three types of defendants include corporations, corporate officers and individuals. More...

Factual Stipulations in Criminal Trials

A stipulation is an agreement between adverse parties as to the definition or identification of a statement or pieces of evidence that are material to the case. Trial judges typically accept stipulations of fact presented by parties. However, it is within the trial judge's discretion to reject the stipulated fact if fact sought to be admitted is not relevant or constitutes a legal conclusion. When the trial court accepts a stipulated fact, the party that had the burden of proof with respect to the stipulated fact is relieved from presenting a foundation to establish that fact during the defendant's trial. More...

HARASSMENT & STALKING

A person commits the offense of harassment when he or she performs any of the following acts with the intent to harass, annoy, alarm, abuse, torment, or embarrass another person: (1) when he or she initiates a communication with the other person by telephone, in writing, or electronically and makes an obscene comment or suggestion; (2) when he or she threatens by telephone, in writing, or electronically to inflict bodily injury on the other person or to commit a felony against the other person, a member of his or her family, or his or her property; (3) when he or she conveys a false report to the other person that another person has died or has been seriously injured.More...

Depositions

Depositions are not a discovery device for purposes of federal criminal practice. But depositions are permitted in the interests of justice or in exceptional circumstances. Further, if both parties agree, depositions may also be taken of witnesses. Either party may file a motion to take a deposition of a witness. The moving party should file its motion promptly and early in the pretrial process if possible. The moving party has the burden of showing that it is necessary to take the deposition of a witness in the interests of justice. It is within the trial court's discretion to grant or deny the request to conduct a deposition. More...

NECESSITY AS A DEFENSE

A necessity may be claimed as a defense when a defendant reasonably believed that his or her criminal act was immediately necessary to avoid imminent harm. The reasonableness of the defendant's act and the harm that was sought to be avoided by the defendant are the essential elements of the defense. The defendant must show that the harm that he or she sought to avoid was greater than the harm that was committed by his or her criminal act. In other words, the defendant must show that he or she was attempting to achieve a "greater good."More...