An arrest at a casino can be an embarrassing and stressful end to a night on the town. If you were in Atlantic City for a bachelor/bachelorette party, a weekend away, or a night of gambling and you were arrested at Harrah’s Casino, you could face serious criminal charges that you’ll need to address in Atlantic City.
For help with your charges, contact one of the experienced casino crime lawyers at the Law Offices of John J. Zarych. Our criminal lawyers for people arrested at Harrah’s Atlantic City might be able to take your case and fight the charges against you to help you have charges dropped and penalties reduced. For a free legal consultation, call our law offices today at (609) 616-4956.
Addressing Charges for Casino Crimes in Atlantic City, NJ
The first important thing to realize about charges for an arrest at a casino in Atlantic City – such as Harrah’s – is that the charges will need to be fought in Atlantic City. Atlantic City is the seat of Atlantic County, and the main courthouse for the county is located there, as is the municipal courthouse for local citations and low-level offenses. This means that whether you face local citations, charges for a disorderly persons offense, or charges for an indictable crime, you will have to fight your case in Atlantic City.
If you are from another state or another part of New Jersey and were arrested while you were here on vacation, you will unfortunately have to come back to address your charges. Our attorneys are local to Atlantic City, and we can be here and prepared for your case when you arrive. This can help avoid repeat court dates and get the case resolved quickly so that you can go home and move on with your life, especially if you face minor charges.
If you are from another state, this might make it harder to get bail. After you are arrested, the court will make a bail determination, usually selecting one of the following options:
- You will be released on your own recognizance (ROR) and trusted to return to court.
- You will pay some amount of cash bail that you forfeit if you fail to appear at a later court date.
- You will have bail denied and will have to wait in jail.
The judge should weigh your risk to the community, your ability to pay, and your flight risk when making this decision. If you are from another state and have a job, family, and other connections there, you might not be tied down to Atlantic City, and a judge might need extra assurance that you will come back for your hearing. That extra assurance often comes in the form of cash bail. Alternatively, the judge might refuse to release you altogether. Our attorneys can argue to get you released from jail while you await trial and help you keep your freedom so that you can fight your case on your own terms.
Getting Charges from an Arrest in Harrah’s Casino Dropped and Dismissed
If you were arrested in Harrah’s, you may now have pending charges. Our goal as criminal defense lawyers is to end your case as quickly as possible to reduce the number of court appearances you will need to make and reduce the time and expense it takes to fight your case. This often means fighting to get charges dropped by the prosecution ahead of your court date, getting charges dismissed at the early stages of the trial, and negotiating plea deals to minimize the penalties.
If we can, we will discuss your case with the police officers and prosecutors on the case to see if they will drop unnecessary charges. This might ultimately allow you to have all charges dropped, pending completion of various “diversionary” programs like New Jersey’s Pre-Trial Intervention Program. This program and similar agreements can allow you to complete anti-crime classes and perform community service instead of facing penalties. Ultimately, these programs typically leave you with no criminal record, as the charges are dropped in exchange for your cooperation and rehabilitation. You can typically only use these opportunities once though, so if you were previously arrested and got off through pretrial diversion programs, you might not be able to do so again.
If the prosecution is unwilling to drop the charges you face, we can fight to get the judge to dismiss them. This can be done by challenging the arrest and the evidence for probable cause. If we can, we will get evidence and arrests suppressed, which might leave the prosecution with little to no evidence to use against you. We can also challenge the case based on the legal definition of the crime, and if the judge finds that your conduct does not rise to the level of a crime, then the case must be dismissed.
If these steps fail or you want to end the case more quickly by simply pleading guilty, we may be able to negotiate with the prosecution to get penalties reduced. Often, plea deals can help you avoid jail time by getting penalties that include a fine only or some level of probation and supervision.
Talk to an attorney about what kinds of options might be available in your case to get charges dropped and dismissed or to reduce the penalties through plea negotiations.
Call Our Atlantic City Casino Crime Lawyers for Defendants Arrested at Harrah’s AC
If you or a loved one was arrested at Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City, our lawyers might be able to help them get charges dropped and dismissed. For a free legal consultation on your charges, call the Law Offices of John J. Zarych’s criminal lawyers for people arrested at Harrah’s Atlantic City today. Our phone number is (609) 616-4956.