Criminal defense

May 21, 2021

16 Years After Incident, CPD Officer Faces Misconduct Charges

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

A CPD officer is facing misconduct charges 16 years after an alleged incident occurred. Attorneys for the officer say that he should not be fired from the force because it took the city so long to open an investigation. The city moved to fire officer Thomas Sherry after his involvement with the Special Operations Section. The unit was disbanded after charges that they committed home invasions and executed robberies. The unit became a template for hit TV shows such as The Shield. The officers allegedly used armed violence to rob drug dealers or those who they believed were involved in drug trafficking.

Much of the issue surrounding this particular investigation is the fact that Sherry was left uncharged for 16 years. Attorneys for Sherry say that too much time has passed between the incident and the charging to make a valid case. They are not wrong. In 2017, the U.S. Justice Department criticized Chicago PD for delaying disciplinary actions against police officers.

Timeline

May 19, 2021

Fort Campbell Soldiers Implicated in Gun Trafficking Scheme

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

Three soldiers out of Fort Campbell have been charged with purchasing and selling weapons, some of which were used in violent homicides in Chicago, according to NPR. The three men are enlisted U.S. Army members from Fort Campbell which is home to the 101st Airborne Division. The U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division and the ATF teamed up to make the arrests.

The trio has been charged with a slew of crimes related to the illegal trafficking of weapons. These will be charged as federal crimes. These include transferring a firearm to an out-of-state resident, making false statements concerning the acquisition of a firearm, wire fraud, money laundering, and other charges related to the scheme.

Prosecutors have identified the ring leader as 24-year-old Brandon Miller. Prosecutors have asked that Miller be denied bond as he allegedly poses a significant flight risk.

May 14, 2021

Gary Councilman Will Not Face Charges Related to the Theft of His Car

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

Strange headline, but nonetheless, true. A Gary Councilman (Ronald G. Brewer), who had his Lexus stolen, tracked the thieves back to Chicago where he caught up with them. He was accused of discharging his weapon at the teens, confining them against their will, and taking one of the teens back to Gary with him. The charges against him have all been dismissed after the former councilman completed a pretrial diversion program. It is unclear what that pretrial diversion was, but it very easily could have been an anger management program.

At the time of the incident, Brewer was the president of the Gary city council.

Where is the Crime?

May 12, 2021

Chicago Woman Facing 11 Counts After Interstate Police Chase

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

A Chicago woman is facing 11 counts of misdemeanors and felonies after she crashed a stolen Jeep during a police chase that crossed state lines. She was initially noticed when her Jeep was spotted doing 83 in a 70mph zone. Police pulled the vehicle over, initially without incident, but the arresting officer recognized that the vehicle was never placed in park and that the driver had her foot on the brakes. The trooper smartly did not approach the vehicle and instead issued verbal commands to place the vehicle into park and lower her window. Instead of doing that, the woman took off in her stolen Jeep.

Another trooper down the road was alerted to the woman approaching in the Jeep. The trooper was retrieving stop sticks from the road when the Jeep approached. The woman swerved to avoid the parked police cruiser but ended up crashing into a Kia Optima anyway. The driver continued after the crash, but the Jeep was damaged. Eventually, the woman was forced to stop the Jeep. That is when she was arrested.

Tallying Up the Charges

May 7, 2021

Man With Adam Toledo Facing Charges

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

Adam Toledo is among the latest victims of police violence, but bodycam footage shows the officer making a split-second decision as Toledo turned around. Toledo had deposited the gun behind a fence and was no longer holding it when the officer discharged his weapon. He had put his hands up, and in the heat of the moment, the officer shot him. The officer involved in the shooting will not face any charges related to Toledo’s death. The same cannot be said for the 21-year-old, Ruben Roman, who allegedly gave Toledo the gun.

What Police Think Happened

Roman and Toledo were together. Roman was discharging his weapon. The sound startled nearby residents, who called the police. Roman knew that the police were coming, so he gave the weapon to a 13-year-old who would not face charges. Roman had already faced weapons charges and was on gun probation at the time of the incident. So that is how the 13-year-old ended up with the weapon. The 13-year-old is running around with the weapon, police order him to drop it and put his hands up, and even though he complies, they shoot. Toledo dies.

May 5, 2021

Man Faces Four Counts of Attempted Murder After Driving Into Picnickers

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

A Chicago man who drove his pickup truck into picnickers is facing four counts of attempted murder. The man struck two people in a group of 10—people who he dubbed, “yuppies with dogs.”

Prosecutors said that 10 people were celebrating a birthday when Timothy Nielsen complained about their dogs. Members of their group asked the man to leave, but that is when he threw his truck in reverse and struck them. One woman was briefly trapped underneath the truck and was sent to the hospital with serious injuries. Another victim was treated at the scene for minor injuries.

The Defendant

April 30, 2021

Sheriff’s Deputy Cleared of Child Molestation Charges

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

A police officer was cleared during a bench trial of all wrongdoing after the daughter of a former girlfriend accused him of inappropriately touching her. A Cook County judge found the officer not guilty. After the charges surfaced, the officer was “de-deputized” and placed on administrative leave without pay. A case to have the officer fired is still pending.

What is a Bench Trial?

A bench trial is a trial that is heard by a professional jurist as opposed to a jury of your peers. Most criminal defendants choose to avoid bench trials preferring to instead roll the dice with the public. However, police officers tend to choose bench trials, especially nowadays, when public sentiment toward police is at an all-time low. Choosing to have your case heard by a judge is an option when you think a professional jurist would be more likely to rule in your favor than a jury of your peers.

April 28, 2021

Woman Charged with “Felony Embezzlement” After Return VHS 20 Years Late

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

A Texas woman is being charged with felony embezzlement after returning a VHS tape of Sabrina the Teenage Witch, 20 years after its due date. The woman told authorities that she had never rented the tape, but at the time, she was seeing a young man with two young daughters. The tape was never returned, and now the woman is facing felony charges.

In March of 2000, the woman was charged with felony embezzlement of a rental property. However, no one went out looking for the major criminal. So 21 years later, the woman was trying to get her name changed after a recent marriage, and that is when she found out she was a wanted felon.

What is Embezzlement?

April 23, 2021

Woman Sentenced to Six and a Half Years for Enslaving Immigrants

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

Even criminal defense attorneys recognize that it takes a special type of awful to prey on the hopes and dreams of the less fortunate only to exploit them later. It takes a certain black-heartedness that most of us cannot understand. Especially when the exploitation takes so much planning and years of consistent pressure to execute.

Such is the plight of one Cicero woman who was recently sentenced to six and a half years for the forced enslavement and labor of Guatemalan immigrants. In this article, we will discuss what the woman did.

The Scam

April 21, 2021

Adam Toledo: A Lot to Unpack

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

For those of you who have not followed the story, Adam Toledo was a 13-year-old person of color who was shot dead by police officer Eric Stillman. Police received a call of weapons fire and they responded. Toledo and an older boy were allegedly firing into vehicles with loaded weapons. The cops responded, they caught up with Toledo on foot. The police officer was running with his weapon drawn when Toledo dumped his weapon and turned around with his hands up. The officer, not knowing whether or not Toledo was turning to shoot or to surrender, fired on the spot, killing Toledo. Should the officer be held accountable for this crime?

Where do We Lay the Blame?

Already, lines are beginning to form. On the one side, you have people blaming the police officer for using cowboy tactics to contain the situation. Others blame the 13-year-old, his parents, or the older boy who was with him at the time, Ruben Roman, who put the gun in his hands. Roman will face charges for putting the gun into the hands of the 13-year-old. But police-reform advocates believe that police are scapegoating Roman for their own mistake. Could it be that they are actually all right?