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nyc criminal lawyers over 30 years of experienceWe Know How To Win Cases

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Faced 5+ Years in Prison

People Vs Joseph Amico

Covered by NYDaily News. Las Vegas man accused of threatening a prominent attorney and making vile remarks.

Faced 10+ Years in Prison

People Vs. Anna Sorokin

Covered by New York Times, and other outlets. Fake heiress accused of conning the city’s wealthy, and has an HBO special being made about her.

Faced 3+ Years in Prison

People Vs. Genevieve Sabourin

Accused of stalking Alec Baldwin. The case garnered nationwide attention, with USAToday, NYPost, and other media outlets following it closely.

Faced Potential Charges

Ghislaine Maxwell Juror

Juror who prompted calls for new Ghislaine Maxwell trial turns to lawyer who defended Anna Sorokin.

Why Choose Us

Clients can use our portal to track the status of their case, stay in touch with us, upload documents, and more.

Regardless of the type of situation you're facing, our attorneys are here to help you get quality representation.

We can setup consultations in person, over Zoom, or over the phone to help you. Bottom line, we're here to help you win your case.

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Meet Todd Spodek

WE PROVIDE WHITE GLOVE SERVICE TO CLIENTS
WHO WANT MORE FROM THEIR ATTORNEY

The Spodek Law Group understands how delicate high-profile cases can be, and has a strong track record of getting positive outcomes. Our lawyers service a clientele that is nationwide. With offices in both LA and NYC, and cases all across the country - Spodek Law Group is a top tier law firm.

Todd Spodek is a second generation attorney with immense experience. He has many years of experience handling 100’s of tough and hard to win trials. He’s been featured on major news outlets, such as New York Post, Newsweek, Fox 5 New York, South China Morning Post, Insider.com, and many others.

In 2022, Netflix released a series about one of Todd’s clients: Anna Delvey/Anna Sorokin.

Why Clients Choose Spodek Law Group

The reason is simple: clients want white glove service, and lawyers who can win. Every single client who works with the Spodek Law Group is aware that the attorney they hire could drastically change the outcome of their case. Hiring the Spodek Law Group means you’re taking your future seriously. Our lawyers handle cases nationwide, ranging from NYC to LA. Our philosophy is fair and simple: our nyc criminal lawyers only take on clients who we know will benefit from our services.

We’re selective about the clients we work with, and only take on cases we know align with our experience – and where we can make a difference. This is different from other law firms who are not invested in your success nor care about your outcome.

If you have a legal issue, call us for a consultation.
We are available 24/7, to help you with any – and all, challenges you face.

Manhattan Marijuana Possession Defense Lawyers

Every year, countless people all across Manhattan are charged and convicted of marijuana possession. The sad reality is that many of these people are innocent, but they lacked the type of criminal defense attorney fighting on their behalf that is necessary to prevail in a court of law. While it is true that we are a nation where the accused are to be viewed as innocent until proven guilty, the system is often stacked against those charged with a drug related offense. If that is where you find yourself right now, consider the following four reasons why you really need a Manhattan marijuana defense lawyer.

You Simply Did Not Commit the Crime

It is true that many people charged with such a crime simply did not commit it in the first place. Be it a misunderstanding or what have you, such a charge is nonetheless extremely serious. If you have not committed the crime, you might feel that you have nothing to worry about and opt to try to settle the matter on your own. This could be a mistake. There is a reason that you were charged in the first place. Law enforcement officials do not necessarily like to admit that they made an error, so you can bet the prosecution will continue unless a qualified and professional fighting on your behalf can make the charges go away before trial.

Criminal Convictions Affect Future Employment Opportunities

It might be hard to believe, but roughly 20 percent of the adult population in this area has a criminal conviction on their record. This is a staggering statistic. For each of these individuals, however, they can tell you that such a conviction limits their employment opportunities. For this reason alone, you will want to fight the charges. Even if you are just sentenced to probation or a small prison sentence, you will find that the stigma will fall you around for the rest of your life when you go to fill out applications for employment.

One Criminal Possession Conviction Can Ruin Your Life

Laws in New York governing marijuana possession are strict. Depending on the amount you have in your possession at the time of arrest, you could be charged with anything from misdemeanor possession to having an actual felony charge of drug trafficking. You are often at the mercy of law enforcement and the prosecutors office in this regard. A lawyer can help negotiate terms of the charge and work to prove your innocence. Just one criminal possession conviction on your record can ruin your life, so make sure to have an attorney working on your behalf to keep that from happening.

Subsequent Convictions Can Add Years to the Sentence

If you happen to already have a drug possession charge on your record, a subsequent arrest can significantly raise the stakes. Sentences can be raised substantially to the point that you could be looking at decades behind bars. You cannot under estimate the importance of having a professional criminal defense attorney in such cases. You need to fight this and prove your innocence or get the charges reduced.

These are just four of the many reasons why you need to have a criminal defense attorney fighting on your side. The stakes are simply too high to trust just anybody. As soon as you have been charged with marijuana possession, no matter how major or minor the charge itself might seem to be, contact our office for help. We will put our years of experience and our speciality in the field to come to your prompt and speedy defense.

Can A Urine Test Reveal Marijuana and the Degree of Impairment?

This is a question that comes up quite often in our our criminal defense law practice, particularly when someone is facing a charge of driving while impaired. We have found it best to break the above question into two parts: “Can a urine test reveal the presence of marijuana?” and “Can a urine test determine the degree of impairment?”

Can a urine test reveal the presence of marijuana?

There are a number of chemical tests that can detect the presence of marijuana in a urine sample, but none of these are simple to administer, or are sufficiently reliable, to be used at the roadside or within a police station / state police barracks. There are a number of factors that contribute to such tests that can make them unsuitable for routine use. First among these shortcomings is the realization that there a number of substances that may trigger a “false positive” reaction.

Among the more common self-administered medications that are known to case a sample to “test positive” for THC, the compound that is responsible for the “high” that accompanies marijuana use, are ibuprofen (such as Advil, Motrin, and Midol), naproxen (Aleve and Naprosyn) and “proton blocker” antacids (such as Pepcid, Nexium, and Prevacid). Since many of these medications are available without a physician’s order, many people (including police officers) would have no reason to suspect that these “OTC” medications could suggest recent marijuana use when, in fact, no such use had taken place.

While it is true that marijuana can be detected in urine, the testing techniques required to detect THC and related compounds require sophisticated laboratory facilities and highly trained laboratory technologists. In fact, many state crime labs do not routinely perform such testing but will send such samples to one of a few testing centers nationwide with the capability to perform such analysis.

Can a urine test determine the degree of impairment?

In a word, “no.” Unlike the case with alcohol, where a certain amount of alcohol in a urine sample can be used to presume that the person submitting that sample is intoxicated or impaired, there isn’t a “presumptive” level of THC in the urine beyond which a person is considered to be impaired. There are a number of reasons why this is the case.

First of all, as is the case with alcohol use, a frequent marijuana user will have a higher tolerance for THC than will an infrequent user. In other words, the overall effect caused by a given amount of THC will vary depending on how frequently a person uses the substance: a relatively small amount of THC in the urine could have little effect on a regular user but that same amount could render an infrequent user to be all but helpless.

The second problem with using a urine test to determine the degree of impairment attributed to marijuana use is related to three separate, but related, characteristics that determine the effects of any substance: 1) intake, the manner in which a substance enters the body, 2) metabolism, how that substance is processed by the body, and 3) excretion, how and by what route that substance leaves the body.

In general, intake and metabolism take place at relatively constant rates while excretion is the most variable. Depending on factors such as body weight, the percentage of body fat, and the amount of fluid intake, the presence of marijuana and its byproducts can be detected up to 10 days after its most recent use. Since there is so much variability in the rate in which marijuana is excreted, and the fact that the amount excreted in the urine cannot be used to determine how much (and certainly not when) marijuana was ingested by an individual, such testing has very little value as evidence that could be used to support of a charge of driving while impaired.

In summary, there are far too many variables that must be taken into consideration if the amount of marijuana and its related compounds detected in a urine sample is to be used as evidence of impairment at the time such a sample was collected.

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Testimonials

I was searching for a law firm with some power to help me deal with a warrant in New York . After 6 days I decided to go with Spodek Law Group. It helped that This law firm is well respected by not only the top law firms in New York , but the DA , Judge as well. I...

~Fonder Brandon

5 Stars
It was my good fortune to retain Spodek Law Group for representation for my legal needs. From the beginning, communication was prompt and thorough. Todd, Kenneth and Alex were the first people I worked with and they all made me, and my company Qumana skincare feel comfortable and confident that the team was going to work hard for me. Everything...

~A G

5 Stars
After meeting with several law firms, I chose the Spodek Law Group not only for their professionalism and experience, but for the personal attention given to me right from the initial consultation. It is important to recognize how crucial having the right legal team is when faced with potentially life altering events that impact families and the lives of loved...

~George Cherubini

Spodek Law Group

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We Provide Superior Service, Excellent Results, At A Level Superior To Other Criminal Defense Law Firms. Regardless Of Where Your Case Is, Nationwide, We Can Help You.
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