Buffalo Criminal Defense Lawyers
DWI, Misdemeanor & Felony Defense

The United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York announced yesterday that three convicted truck hijackers ? Rafael Rodriguez, Angel Diaz and Jorge Cedeno- have been sentenced to long terms of imprisonment. The three men allegedly hijacked tractor- trailers at gun point. They also allegedly used flex-ties to restrain the truck drivers in their sleeper berths or trucks. Rafael Rodriguez was sentenced to 55 years having been convicted of conspiracy to commit kidnapping, conspiracy to commit armed robbery, two counts of kidnapping, two counts of armed robbery and two counts of firearms charge. Angel Diaz was sentenced to 37 years having been convicted of conspiracy to commit kidnapping, conspiracy to commit armed robbery, kidnapping, armed robbery and a firearms charge. Jorge Cedeno was sentenced to 26 years having also been convicted of conspiracy to commit kidnapping, conspiracy to commit armed robbery, kidnapping, armed robbery and a firearms charge. The three men were convicted after a five week jury trial back in July of 2008. The sentences were handed down by United States District Judge Colleen McMahon.

The United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York announced yesterday that Clyde ?Peter? Hall ?who was a member of the New York Giants in the 1960?s- plead guilty yesterday to one count of conspiring to commit wire fraud and five counts of substantive wire fraud. Hall in exchange for a "refundable" prepaid fee allegedly promised to provide his victims various bank instruments worth hundreds of millions that they could use to obtain loans or fund lucrative investments. Hall allegedly delivered fake bank instruments or did not deliver any bank instruments at all to his alleged victims. Hall ?age 70- faces up to 20 years on each count for a total possible federal prison sentence of 120 years. He also faces a fine on each count of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss derived from each offense. Hall is scheduled to be sentenced August 7, 2009 at 10:00 a.m.

DUI manslaughter charges were filed yesterday in Dade County Circuit Court against Cleveland Brown?s wide receiver Donte Stallworth in connection with the death of Mario Reyes. Stallworth appeared before Circuit Court Judge Dennis Murphy today. Stallworth was released on a $200,000.00 surety bond. Stallworth is scheduled for an arraignment hearing on April 23, 2009 at 9:00 am. Reyes was struck and killed earlier this month by a motor vehicle being operated by Stallworth. Stallworth allegedly had a BAC of .126 at the time of the accident. If convicted, Stallworth could be sentenced up to 15 years in prison. However, Stallworth?s defense attorneys presumably have accident reconstruction experts looking at the issue of whether Stallworth?s alleged intoxication was a factor in the accident. It may very well turn out that Stallworth could not have been able to avoid striking Reyes ?who was attempting to catch a bus home from work at the time of the accident- even if he had been stone sober. The charges pending are merely allegations and Stallworth is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

On October 18, 2008, New York Yankees pitching ace-Joba Chamberlain- was arrested by a Nebraska State Trooper on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol, speeding and having an open container of alcohol in a car. The authorities have reported that Joba?s blood alcohol content was .134 percent. According to the Associated Press, Joba entered a plea of guilty today to driving under the influence of alcohol in full satisfaction of the charges. The reports further state that Judge Laurie Yardley sentenced Joba to probation, fined him four hundred dollars, suspended his driver?s license for 60 days and ordered him to take an alcohol education class. Joba is quoted as stating " I made a mistake and hope over time to turn this into a positive learning experience for me and others." With that outlook, it is easy to understand why Joba Chamberlain is a winner.

Oscar Sanchez ?of Brooklyn - is a former branch manager for the Bank of America. He allegedly assisted the ?Khan Ring? with opening fraudulent bank accounts and lines of credit at the Bank of America in exchange for an estimated one hundred thousand dollars. The scheme allegedly cost the Bank of America approximately two million dollars. On August 15, 2007, a federal indictment was unsealed charging Oscar Sanchez -amongest others- with conspiracy to commit identification document fraud, production of false documents, use of false ID documents to commit other crimes, aggravated ID theft , conspiracy to commit access device fraud, access device fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud and bank fraud. On November 13, 2008, Sanchez pleaded guilty in federal court in Manhattan to one count of bank fraud. On March 25, 2009, Sanchez was sentenced in federal court in Manhattan to sixty-three months in federal prison. Bank Fraud carries a maximum sentence of thirty years in federal prison.