Georgia Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog

A bench warrant in Georgia is a legal order issued by a judge that authorizes law enforcement to arrest and detain a person who has not complied with a court order or failed to appear for a scheduled court date (failure to appear or FTA). Many people do not realize a warrant has been issued until they get stopped for something minor, like a traffic violation, and suddenly find themselves in handcuffs at the side of the road.

Because a bench warrant signals to the court that you ignored its authority, it can quickly turn a small problem into a serious one if you do not deal with it as soon as you learn about it.

Bench Warrant Definition and Why One Is Issued by a Judge

Attempting to murder or threaten witnesses in Georgia official proceedings is an extremely serious felony offense. The term “official proceeding” includes any court hearing, trial, grand jury proceeding, or other pending judicial proceedings. Below are the key points about the commission or possible commission of this crime.

Attempted Murder in Official Proceedings in Georgia

Under Georgia law O.C.G.A. §16-10-32(a), any person who attempts to kill another person with the intent to:

An affray is when people fight or threaten violence in public, causing fear or disturbance to others. It is a legal term for a public order offense. Georgia Code OCGA § 16-11-32 defines it.

Public Disturbance: The essential element of affray is that the fight or threat of violence must disturb public tranquility. This means that the actions must cause fear or alarm to ordinary people present at the scene.

In most places, affray means wanting to fight, having at least two people involved, and it happening in a public place. In Georgia, affray is when two or more people fight in a public place and disturb the peace.

Arson in the second degree in Georgia is a serious felony offense. According to Georgia Code § 16-7-61, a person commits this crime when they knowingly use fire or explosives to damage any building, vehicle, railroad car, watercraft, aircraft, or other structure that is not a dwelling, without the owner’s consent or in which another has a security interest, such as a mortgage or lien, without the consent of both parties involved. This can also occur during the commission of another felony, for example during a robbery.

If convicted of arson in the second degree, the penalties can be severe and include:

Up to a $25,000 fine

By: Atlanta Criminal Defense Attorney Cory Yager, Atlanta DUI Lawyer and Former Cop

Being charged with a crime, for many, is an out-of-body experience. Others talk about thinking they are about to awaken from a nightmare. Many who feel the handcuffs being cinched closed around their wrists envision themselves being sentenced to years in prison.

Because the metro Atlanta area is an extremely high population area, there are many good lawyers in Atlanta GA, in all practice areas. As a percentage, though, less than 1/10 of one percent of all these criminal lawyers in Atlanta GA are rated at the top of their field by reputable attorney rating services like AVVO, Justia, and Martindale-Hubbell.

Many states have criminal laws that punish parents and caregivers with fines and even jail time if they leave a child unattended in a car. But while those same individuals can be charged with child cruelty in Georgia, this state does not have any laws specifically pertaining to children left in hot cars.

However, in February 2015 the Georgia Senate did pass a bill that would protect good Samaritans when trying to save a child from a hot car.

But there are precautions that a Samaritan must take before breaking into a vehicle.

If you are in search of a criminal defense attorney Atlanta due to facing criminal charges in the State of Georgia, it is crucial to hire an Atlanta criminal lawyer with “clout.” When used in this context, “clout” means having built a reputation of influence or power for a given task. For our firm of Atlanta criminal defense attorney professionals, we are in the criminal defense business.

In the criminal law legal arena, a highly skilled, experienced and tenacious Atlanta criminal attorney that is unafraid of law enforcement is the starting point. One of our partners, Atlanta criminal defense attorney Cory Yager is an ex-police officer for nearly a decade, part of which he was an FTO (field training officer) that trained new police recruits. Partner Larry Kohn has over 545 AVVO rating that are 5-star rankings.

Having a top law firm in your corner can greatly impact the outcome of your case due to the complexity of the criminal litigation process and the pre-trial and trial process.