robbery

PROTECTING THE RIGHTS OF CLIENTS ACCUSED OF ROBBERY

For years, Hollywood has glamourized bank robbers by portraying them as at least semi heroes on the big screen. Think Heat and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. However, in real life, robbery is a serious felony charge that can result in decades behind bars. If you face a robbery charge, you must act quickly to obtain the quality of legal counsel needed to combat the expertise of the prosecution.

Make no mistake: the prosecution will include several legal professionals that have complied years of experience successfully litigating robbery cases. Considered one of the most serious crimes, robbery is not a charge to ignore. With the criminal defense team of Garland Law Group robbery lawyers, you will level the legal playing field with the prosecution team.

How Georgia Defines Robbery

Georgia defines robbery under statute O.C.G.A § 16-8-40, which state robbery is an act that happens when a “person takes property from another person or the immediate presence of another person with the intent to commit theft.” Statute O.C.G.A § 16-8-40 lists three ways a robbery can unfold.

“Use of force”
“Intimidation, threat, or placing the other person in fear of immediate serious bodily injury to himself or another”
“By sudden snatching”

Many of our clients are confused when it comes to differentiating between robbery and burglary. Burglary is considered a crime committed against a residence, such as a home or an apartment. Robbery represents a felony crime committed against a person. The act of robbery means the perpetrator threatened the safety and security of another person, as well as threatened to compromise that person’s private property rights.

Possible Penalties for a Robbery Conviction in Georgia

Georgia robbery law contains a provision that outlines the penalties for committing felony robbery. According to O.C.G.A. 16-8-40, a robbery conviction can result in a minimum jail sentence of one year, with 20 years in prison the maximum punitive sentence. If a robbery is committed against the protected class of victims that are at least 65 years of age, the minimum prison sentence for the felony crime is five years. The minimum jail sentence increases to 10 years for robberies committed at pharmacies, with any injuries suffered during a pharmacy robbery increasing the maximum sentence to 15 years. Jail time for an armed robbery spans between five and 20 years. Some robbery sentences can go over the maximum amount of time mandated by Georgia criminal law because of special circumstances.

Robbery without a Weapon

Georgia robbery law places more of an emphasis on the use of force to commit the felony crime than it places on the use of a weapon. For example, a perpetrator that punches a bank teller to convince him to hand over the money does not need to have a weapon on him to be charged with a robbery. The key is threatening the safety and security of another person, no matter how the safety and security of another person is threatened. Moreover, Georgia law encourages prosecutors to go after robbery defendants that use toy guns or toy knives to commit the act of robbery.

Defenses for a Robbery Charge

Georgia law requires prosecutors to prove the use of force compromised the safety and security of at least one other person. Proof in criminal cases always involves the term “Beyond a reasonable doubt.” The legal term for proving crimes is the strictest interpretation of proof found in the United States legal system. Our team of robbery attorneys poke holes in the testimonies of eyewitnesses, as well as question the credibility of the evidence submitted by the prosecution team. All it takes is one juror to find reasonable doubt in the prosecution’s case to render a decision of not guilty.

Another strategy for defending a robbery case is to invoke the “probable cause” section of the Bill of Rights. During the investigation of a robbery, law enforcement officials will try to gather as much evidence as possible. Most of the evidence will involve the collection of fingerprints and other unique identifiers that will lead law enforcement officials to the guilty party. However, law enforcement agencies must have “probable cause” to search a residence in an attempt to collect evidence that will lead to a conviction. We make sure law enforcement follows every legal protocol written into the 4th Amendment of the United States Constitution, including having probable cause to search your residence for evidence.

Contact Garland Law Group to Fight for Your Rights

A felony robbery conviction can remain on your criminal record for the rest of your life. The presence of the conviction on background check will make it virtually impossible for you to secure gainful employment, as well as enjoy the right to vote in many states. If you face a robbery charge, you should act with a sense of urgency by contacting one of the criminal defense attorneys at Garland Law Group who specializes in defending clients against robbery charges.