Perhaps one of the scariest things that can happen to you is being issued a "desk appearance ticket" or an "appearance ticket," and most commonly refrred to as a "D.A.T." It is so scary because it almost always happens to a person who has never before come into contact with the criminal justice system.
A D.A.T. is most commonly issued to a person who is charged with a misdemeanor, which is the least serious type of criminal offenses or a violation, which is a non-criminal offense such as speeding, disorderly conduct, simple harassment or driving while impaired by the use of alcohol.
However, you need not worry about receiving a D.A.T. for driving while impaired, even though it is a violation with the same theoretical seriousness as disorderly conduct, going through a red light or speeding. The internal administrative rules of the N.Y.P.D. as well as every other jurisdiction I have dealt with in the New York metroplitan area, including New Jersey all require that any person charged with any traffic offense involving the use of alcohol or any other controlled substance must be formally arrested and put through the arrest process.
Similarly, while according to the New York State Penal Law, any person charged with a misdemeanor is eleigible to receive a desk appearance ticket, in fact if the allegations involve an alleged incident involving child abuse, domestic violence (including even domestic disputes) or any sexual improprieties, invariably the accused will be formally arrested and incarcerated until he or she is formally aprised of the charges by a judge at his arraignment. While a felony arrest can theoretically result in the issuance of a D.A.T., I have heard of this happeneing only a few times in the more than thrity five years that I have been practicing law and where I have witnessed well in excess of one hundred thousand cases being handled at one stage or another. It need not be stated that all of these rules can be waived by the commanding officer of the precinct who will do so under appropriate circumstances, generally with the approval of a deputy commissioner or higher officer.
At this point, the question you want answered is what should be done when you either just received a phone call that a family member was arrested or that the family member (or you) just received a D.A.T. We will deal with these two problems separately.
Any time that a family member has been arrested for any charge, the firtst thing to do is to immediately contact an experienced criminal lawyer. He will advise you what to do and as soon as he is formally retained, he will call the precinct and see if it is appropriate to visit the precinct to speak with the arresting officer and his supervisor in an effort to try and obtain a D.A.T. You need to hire a lawyer who is competent, experienced and dedicated to providing first rate professional services. That lawyer must know when to try and get the D.A.T. and when not to do so. In any event, he will instruct the arresting officer to not question the person who was arrested. When it comes to enforcing the law, the police are not your friends and they will spare no efforts to get the accused to mak statements that can be used against him later. The best way to find a fine lawyer is to rely on a reccomendation from a friend or family member. Even with a reccomendtion, if you do not feel that you will be able to work with the lawye, you should go with your gut and go somewhere else to find a lawyer that you will feel dcomfortable with. Once you have contacted a good criminal lawyer, he will guide you through the process. You may want to read the atricle in my wesite entitled
Your Criminal Case.
If your loved one has already received a D.A.T., then you should endeavour to find a lawyer who is honest and experienced and who has a reputation of competence, dedication to his craft and excellent trial skills. IN this case, you have the luxuryf speaking with as many lawyers as you need to in order to find a lawyer who you are comfortable with and who you feel will provide your loved one with the best defense possible.
Good luck!