Brooklyn Jury Acquits Defendant of Gun Possession Charges

On January 11, 2011, a Brooklyn Jury acquitted the Defendant, a thirty- seven year old man, of the Class C Felony of Criminal Possession of a Gun that was in a car in which he was sitting. The offer prior to trial was seven years incarceration for having a loaded weapon in the car. Without calling any witnesses on his own behalf, and through extensive cross-examination of the police witnesses by Defense Attorney Todd D. Greenberg, it was established that the defendant had a dispute with his girlfriend on the street, which the police saw, and observed the defendant get into the car wherein the police approached the car, asked him to exit and arrested him for Disorderly Conduct. Upon the arrest, the arresting officer stated that he observed the “butt of the gun” sticking out from under the seat and arrested the defendant for the weapons charge. Even though there is a presumption of possession of a gun when in a vehicle under New York Law, Attorney Greenberg successfully argued to the Jury that the Defendant’s presence in the car was only for a “fleeting moment” and there was no evidence that the defendant brought the car to the location or otherwise exercised dominion and control over the car. Instead of taking the offered plea, Mr. Greenberg advised the client to take the case to trial wherein the Jury found, based on Mr. Greenberg’s arguments, that the presumption of possession should not apply in this case and found defendant “not guilty”. Once again, knowledge of the Law and knowledge of the facts has helped a client of Addabbo and Greenberg avoid a serious criminal conviction and jail time.