New York Criminal Attorney Blog

As explained in a prior blog, New York State law requires, with some limited exceptions, that an individual be fingerprinted when he is arrested for (1) a felony; (2) a misdemeanor defined in the New York State Penal Law; (3) a misdemeanor defined outside the New York State Penal Law if the misdemeanor would be a felony because the individual has a prior criminal conviction; or (4) loitering for the purpose of engaging in prostitution under Penal Law 240.37(2). [See CPL 160.10(1)].

However, upon the arraignment of a defendant whose court attendance has been secured by the issuance and service of a summons based upon an information or misdemeanor complaint filed by a complainant who is not a police officer, the court may, if it finds reasonable cause to believe the defendant committed one of the “printable” offenses listed above, order that the defendant be fingerprinted. [CPL 130.60(2)].

Therefore, where a defendant appears in court pursuant to a properly served summons and that summons is based upon an information or misdemeanor complaint filed by a complainant who is not a police officer, defense counsel should object to the printing of the defendant absent a finding by the court of reasonable cause to believe the defendant committed one of the printable offenses listed above. Furthermore, defense counsel should further object to defendant’s printing arguing to the court that, under the statute [CPL 130.60(2)], even if the court finds reasonable cause, it “may” but need not order that the defendant be printed. The clear wording of the statute makes the fingerprinting of the defendant discretionary even where the court finds reasonable cause to believe the defendant committed a printable offense.

For more information about this or any other criminal law issue, feel free to contact Tilem & Campbell toll free at 1-877-377-8666 or visit us on the web at www.888AnyCrime.com.

New York State law requires, with some limited exceptions, that the police take one’s fingerprints when one is arrested for (1) a felony; (2) a misdemeanor defined in the New York State Penal Law; (3) a misdemeanor defined outside the New York State Penal Law if the misdemeanor would be a felony because the individual has a prior criminal conviction (For example, a first time DWI is a misdemeanor found in the Vehicle and Traffic Law – not the Penal Law – and therefore one arrested for a DWI is not subject to mandatory fingerprinting.

However, a DWI can be charged as a felony if the individual has a prior DWI conviction within the previous ten years. In such a situation, the individual would be subject to mandatory fingerprinting); or (4) Loitering for the purpose of engaging in prostitution under Penal Law 240.37(2)(which is a violation unless the individual has a prior conviction for violating Penal Law 240.37(2), Penal Law 230.00 (Prostitution) or Penal Law 230.05 (Patronizing a Prostitute in the Second Degree) in which case a violation of Penal Law 240.37(2) is a B misdemeanor.) [See CPL 160.10(1)].

Furthermore, the police may fingerprint an individual they arrest for any offense if the police (1) are unable to ascertain the individual’s identity; (2) reasonably suspect the identification given by the individual is not accurate; or (3) reasonably suspect that the individual is wanted by law enforcement for the commission of another offense. [See CPL 160.10(2)].

For more information about this or other criminal law issues, feel free to contact us toll free at 1-888-ANY-CRIME or visit us on the web at www.888AnyCrime.com.

In New York, often an individual will be issued an appearance ticket by the police. Many times appearance tickets are issued for offenses such as marihuana possession, aggravated unlicensed operator and driving while intoxicated. Experienced criminal attorneys know that getting a client an appearance ticket, also called a "Desk Appearance Ticket, can mean the difference between spending 24 hours or more in custody or spending less than an hour. An appearance ticket can be issued by the police, in lieu of arrest. Also, after an individual has been arrested, the police can issue that individual an appearance ticket and release him from police custody without waiting to be formally arraigned before a judge. There are limitations on when the police may issue an appearance ticket which will be discussed in a future blog. [CPL 150.20].

An appearance ticket is basically a written notice signed by a police officer or other authorized public official directing a designated individual to appear in a designated local criminal court at a designated future time in connection with that individual’s alleged commission of a designated offense. Any notice that conforms to this definition of an appearance ticket constitutes an appearance ticket notwithstanding that the notice is referred to as a summons or other name or title. [CPL 150.10(1)]. A traffic ticket, simplified traffic information or similar notices are therefore also “appearance tickets.”

If you’ve been issued an appearance ticket in connection with any offense (criminal or non-criminal), feel free to contact us toll free at 1-877-377-8666 or visit us on the web at www.888AnyCrime.com. Also you may purchase our book entitled Appearance Tickets in New York at Amazon.com