If you discover that the team prosecuting you for a criminal offense has an eyewitness willing to testify against you, then you’d be right to worry. Many judges and juries find eyewitness testimony compelling. However, many people have been wrongly convicted due to...
Grand Rapids Criminal Defense Law Blog
Can text messages be used as evidence in drug cases?
Digital evidence is becoming more common than ever in criminal cases. Law enforcement agencies routinely look at cellphones during investigations, searching for anything that may connect a person to alleged criminal activity. If you are facing charges, understanding...
Beware of scams that threaten the elderly
With the technology boom surrounding AI chatbots, fraudsters frequently target the elderly population with financial scams and schemes designed to separate senior citizens from their money and resources. These scams proliferate online, where senior citizens often try...
Tax mistakes are not the same as tax fraud
Tax fraud is generally defined as an intentional action to defraud the government of tax money that would otherwise be due. It is a willful step that someone takes to pay less on their taxes. When filing taxes, individuals and business owners are often worried that...
Federal charges can apply when crossing state lines
In some cases, the difference between facing state-level charges or federal charges is simply where a crime occurred. This is very important when looking at certain crimes that may cross state lines. This can trigger federal charges because the federal government has...
Embezzlement often involves misappropriation
Many types of theft involve someone illegally obtaining something that they were never supposed to have possession of to begin with. This could include a home robbery, for example, or shoplifting from the local mall. It could also include high-tech computer crimes,...
Sharing medication with others could lead to a felony charge
Leftover prescription medication is a common issue for patients. Individuals who respond well to treatment or who have negative reactions to certain drugs may end their treatment with many pills or patches left. Some people know that friends, neighbors or coworkers...
Upcoding, unbundling and other common billing allegations
Medical billing is complicated. It operates at the intersection of medicine, federal regulation and payer-specific policies. And few words can cause more anxiety for healthcare providers than “billing fraud.” Many Medicare fraud investigations begin with allegations...
What happens if you refuse a plea deal?
A plea deal is an agreement between the prosecution and defense in which you plead guilty to a charge in exchange for a reduced or more predictable sentence. Accepting a plea deal is entirely voluntary, so you can choose to refuse. If you don’t accept a plea deal, the...
Internet activity is still tracked, even in private browsers
During some criminal investigations, police may want to review data from an internet browser on one of your devices, such as a cellphone, tablet, laptop or desktop computer. For example, if you have been accused of a white collar crime, investigators may believe you...

