NYC Underage Drug Crimes Lawyers

Understanding Juvenile Drug Offenses: Guidance from Spodek Law Group

We at the New York-based Spodek Law Group understand how challenging it can be for parents who are desperately trying to protect their children from the influence of drugs and underage alcohol consumption. Through our years of experience, we have seen that even with the best parenting, many children fall victim to the snare of juvenile drug crimes. For this reason, we are committed to providing the most experienced, effective legal help possible.

Comprehensive Legal Support

Our legal team will sit down with you and your family and, in a very straightforward yet understanding way, explain the complicated nature of the juvenile drug offense your child faces. In most cases, New York juveniles will face drug penalties that are drastically less severe than those adult offenders face. However, the problem for juveniles accused of drug-related offenses goes beyond incarceration and fines. Juveniles accused of drug offenses may find that they no longer qualify for college admission, and they may have difficulties finding future employment.

For this reason, the number one priority for our team is to help your juvenile avoid conviction. We do this by making a thorough investigation of the situation surrounding your child’s arrest. Then, our team will work with you and discuss the potential outcomes and identify the best course of action that should be taken. Our law firm has a strong belief in the benefit of providing our clients with all of the tools necessary in order to make an informed and intelligent decision about the representation they will receive.

Understanding the Legal Process

Our first step will be to explain the difference between the adult and juvenile criminal defense system. A child who is under the age of 16 will automatically be classified as a juvenile delinquent. One of the unique things about the juvenile law system is that juveniles are not tried by juries. Instead, it is a judge who has the responsibility to make the decision about the fate of a child. This is where the use of our legal defense team shines through. Our team will vigorously use our expertise to mount an aggressive defense on behalf of your son or daughter. Our goal is to convince the judge that your juvenile would fare better without a conviction.

Serious Consequences of Conviction

Convictions for juvenile drug cases have very serious and long-lasting consequences. These consequences range from expensive fines to imprisonment. In some cases, they can lead to mandatory attendance at a reform school, confinement to the home, loss of driving privileges, and probation.

Rehabilitation Focus

One of the positive aspects of the New York juvenile justice system is that the focus is not solely on incarceration. Judges aim to help children on the road to rehabilitation. Our goal as a legal team is to work with judges to help them see that just because your youngster may have made an error in judgment, this does not mean that they are a danger to society. We will work intimately with judges to find the best alternative to incarceration.

These alternatives may include drug counseling, which focuses on rehabilitating the juvenile. Parents will be required to attend drug counseling sessions to help rehabilitate their child.

Probation will require a juvenile to comply with specific terms. For example, they may be required to attend school regularly, find and keep a job, go to family counseling, and do community service.

Diversion is another type of informal probation. Just like formal probation, a juvenile who is required to submit to diversion must comply with rules set by the court. If a juvenile successfully completes the diversion programs and if they are a first-time offender, it is likely that the charges against them will be dropped.

Expert Legal Representation

Of course, as with all criminal defense cases, there are going to be certain circumstances that may affect the outcome of your child’s case. For example, if the juvenile has a record or a prior criminal history of similar drug-related offenses or other serious offenses, the likelihood of them going to jail increases. However, this does not mean that because a child has previous convictions that they are automatically going to be incarcerated. Our experienced group of New York drug crime lawyers is ready to stand by your son or daughter and create an aggressive defense regardless of the crime they are accused of.