Child Custody In Rhode Island

 Going through a divorce is stressful enough, but add children to the situation and things can become very messy. If two parents can not reach an agreement about child custody, it is typical practice to determine the best situation for the child. When an agreement is reached and not complied with, the noncustodial parent may file a motion of contempt.
  Rhode Island determines the amount of child support based on an Income Shares Model, which takes into consideration the quality of life the child would have had had the marriage not dissolved. If this requires both parents to pay a certain amount, then that is what the court orders. The court takes into account the health of the child and educational needs when determining the amount of financial support.
 Here are the different types of custody:

1. Legal custody: When one parent or guardian has control over any decision regarding the child. Most states will grant joint legal custody so that both parents can reach major decisions together.
2. Sole custody: This is when one parent is found unfit, which is pretty rare in custody cases. This can also occur when one parent is deceased.
3. Joint custody: When both parents share custody and share equal decision making involving the child's life. This is the most ideal scenario for most cases.
4. Physical custody: When one parent has the child living with them, and the other parent only gets visitation. 

Custody is never an easy battle; and it is important that the child's best interests are taken into consideration when working out a plan. Hiring an experienced family law lawyer makes all the difference, so do your research before starting the process.  

What Is A Deferred Sentence?

 Have you ever heard of someone getting a deferred sentence? Often times a guilty plea will be entered as a plea bargain, with the outcome of a deferred sentence being the goal. Usually what this means is that a person will have a probation period, and during this probation period they have the sentence hanging over their head. If they break the probation, they automatically are made to serve the deferred sentence.
  Deferred sentences are often given to first time offenders, or people who have cooperated with an investigation. Usually if someone has stayed out of trouble during the probationary period they will have the charge dropped from their record. In Rhode Island, anyone that received a deferred sentence prior to July 1, 2010 may no longer be entitled to the immediate sealing of their criminal history. This is the result of some recent Supreme and Superior Court decisions. Defendants who have successfully completed their deferred sentences must still wait another 10 years to clear their criminal history, depending on the case.
  Several conditions can impact the outcome of your deferred sentence. The court may require you to complete a certain amount of therapy or community service, depending on your particular case. Hiring an experienced defense lawyer can also make a big difference in the conditions set for your deferred sentence, because they will have your best interest at heart when arguing the terms of probation. If you do not follow the conditions of your deferred sentence you will most likely have a violation hearing and will be held to the maximum statutory sentence.
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If you have questions about this post or are interested in Criminal Defense, Divorce or Immigration Law in RI contact Rhode Island Criminal Defense Attorney John E. MacDonald at 401.421.1440.

To learn more about John MacDonald, please visit his website at AggressiveLegalServices.com.

Marijuana Laws In Rhode Island

 With the media being over-saturated with news about marijuana, it may be becoming old news when discussing a topic that previously had been taboo. It is important to note however, that even if they allow it for medical use, possession of marijuana is still a felony. Rhode Island has specific rules about drug possession and distribution, so if you live in this state this may be informative.
 - Distributing to a minor 3 years younger than the dealer will land you 2-5 additional years in prison
- Distributing or possessing drugs within 300 yards of a park or school will double your punishment and fines - Manufacturing or selling paraphernalia can land you in jail for 2 years and make you responsible for hefty fines
- If you have a qualifying condition for medical use you must have written permission from doctor
- Possession of less than one kilogram of marijuana could possibly mean one year in hail and a $200-$500 fine If you are fortunate enough to avoid jail time, you will most likely be responsible for participating in a drug abuse program and community service.
 Being caught with even smallest amount without a medical note is serious, and should be handled by an experienced criminal defense attorney. Call our office today if you have found yourself in any of the above-mentioned situations.
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If you have questions about this post or are interested in Criminal Defense, Divorce or Immigration Law in RI contact Rhode Island Criminal Defense Attorney John E. MacDonald at 401.421.1440.

To learn more about John MacDonald, please visit his website at AggressiveLegalServices.com.

Different Types Of Fraud

 There are many different types of fraud, and it can confusing to decipher until it is actually happening to you. You may have been a victim of some type of fraud in your life, and you may have had very little recourse after it actually happened. Most everyone has received the e-mail claiming that there is money waiting for you, that it is stuck overseas and all you need to do is provide your bank information in order to receive it. This type of scenario actually falls under wire fraud if prosecuted to the fullest extent. Bank fraud is the most common criminal offense managed by white collar criminal defense lawyers. This type of fraud can occur by way of a fake investment or "ponzi" scheme, pyramid scheme, market manipulation or advanced fee schemes.
 An advanced fee scheme is when a "creditor" offers a line of credit, gift, or investment after providing a starter amount of money. As with most things that seem too good to be true, that is often the case and the victim receives nothing. Another very common fraud is work-at-home schemes, where an ad is placed offering a tempting amount of money for a very small amount of work.
  The most common work-at-home schemes are:
  - Counterfeit check sponsored Mystery Shopper- A large check comes to you with the instructions to deposit it into your account,then to withdraw money so that you can "mystery shop" at local businesses, only to find that the check is counterfeit and you are now responsible.
  - Pyramid schemes- A company lures you into purchasing a "start-up kit" filled with promotional materials in order to entice others to join the "team". The initial draw is that the more people you recruit, the more money you will earn, so the cycle continues only to realize that there is no real pay-off.
 - Advance Fee Start Your Own Business- You can start your own business, it's so easy! All that you have to do is "invest" several hundred dollars to get started - we will provide everything! Have you heard this pitch before? Don't fall for it! Some of these fraud schemes are initiated by criminals, in an attempt to launder or steal money.
 If you are unsure of the legitimacy of these companies, check with the Better Business Bureau, they can provide everything that you need. If you have inadvertently become involved with a scheme and are being charged with fraud, contact your local Criminal Defense lawyer immediately.
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If you have questions about this post or are interested in Criminal Defense, Divorce or Immigration Law in RI contact Rhode Island Criminal Defense Attorney John E. MacDonald at 401.421.1440.

To learn more about John MacDonald, please visit his website at AggressiveLegalServices.com.

How Would George Zimmerman Case Play Out in Rhode Island?

In the wake of the George Zimmerman verdict, questions have been raised as to how this case would have played out in Rhode Island. Unlike Florida, Rhode Island is not a Stand Your Ground state. In Rhode Island, the doctrine of self defense permits the use of necessary force in order to repel an unlawful attack or threatened attack that presents an imminent risk of injury.

The critical components are:

(a) the unlawfulness of the attack or threatened attack, i.e. self defense is not available to a person who is the aggressor;
(b) that the defendant was actually in fear of injury (subjectively) and that the fear was reasonable (objectively);
(c) the degree of force reasonably required to repel the attack, i.e. excessive force is not excused by the self defense doctrine; and
(d) whether the defendant is entitled to repel the threat of force against him, i.e., whether the defendant had an obligation to try to avoid using force by retreating.

In Rhode Island, Zimmerman had an obligation to attempt to retreat before utilizing deadly force against Trayvon Martin. While retreat is not required when less then deadly force is used, it is required whenever a person uses a weapon capable of inflicting death or serious bodily injury. State v. Guillemet, 430 A.2d 1066 (R.I. 1981). There is no obligation to retreat from an attack in one’s home, regardless of whether the retreat is available but not if the victim also resides in the home. State v. Quarles, 504 A.2d 473 (R.I. 1986). If there is an obligation to retreat, it arises only if the defendant is consciously aware of an open, safe and available avenue of escape. State v. Rieger, 763 A.2d 997 (R.I. 2001).

So if George Zimmerman had been tried in a Rhode Island courtroom, doctrine of self defense would not have been available to him unless and until the jury considered his duty and obligation to retreat prior to the use of deadly force. If the jury believed that Zimmerman had the ability to retreat but did not do so prior to using deadly force, they may have reached a very different verdict in Rhode Island.
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If you have questions about this post or are interested in Criminal Defense, Divorce or Immigration Law in RI contact Rhode Island Criminal Defense Attorney John E. MacDonald at 401.421.1440.

To learn more about John MacDonald, please visit his website at AggressiveLegalServices.com.

Missing Boston Teen Victim of Sex Trafficking

A missing Boston teenage girl was recently found employed as a dancer at a Providence, Rhode Island strip club. A second missing teen was also found when police discovered her at a man’s residence. The man was later arrested and charged with crimes related to the trafficking of both teenage girls.

An undercover operation led Providence police to arrest 51-year-old Troy Footman of Dorchester, RI and charge him with sex trafficking of a minor. Footman has been convicted of a long list of sex crimes including rape and running a prostitution ring.

To read more about this disturbing case of sex trafficking in Rhode Island, click on the following link:

http://www.turnto10.com/story/23040905/missing-teen-found-dancing-at-providence-strip-club----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you have questions about this post or are interested in Criminal Defense, Divorce or Immigration Law in RI contact Rhode Island Criminal Defense Attorney John E. MacDonald at 401.421.1440.

To learn more about John MacDonald, please visit his website at AggressiveLegalServices.com.

Rhode Island White Collar Crime's Defense Attorney John E. MacDonald named Local Counsel in $10 Million bribery case

Rhode Island White Collar Defense Attorney John E. MacDonald named as the Local Counsel representing Rhode Island Defense Contractor and U.S. Navy personnel in a $10 Million bribery case. Details found below were reported in last weeks Providence Journal. 

R.I. Defense Firm Owner Out On Bond After Court Appearance

10:18 AM EST on Wednesday, February 16, 2011
By Katie Mulvaney, John E. Mulligan, and Tom Mooney


PROVIDENCE — Anjan Dutta-Gupta drove with his family by van from Georgia to face federal charges in Rhode Island that he doled out $10 million in bribes to secure Navy contracts for his Middletown company.

In his first appearance in U.S. District Court, in Rhode Island, Dutta-Gupta bowed his head slightly as he told U.S. Magistrate Judge Lincoln D. Almond Tuesday he understood the charge against him.

“I do, sir,” said Dutta-Gupta as his wife, two children and other family members looked on. The 58-year-old founder of Georgia-based Advanced Solutions for Tomorrow Inc. used headphones to assist his hearing. Heavyset with salt-and-pepper hair and a pronounced accent, Dutta-Gupta leaned in to speak with his lawyers John E. MacDonald and David M. Fragale, a Washington, D.C., attorney specializing in white-collar criminal defense.
Extra

Authorities arrested Dutta-Gupta on Feb. 6 in Atlanta as he returned from Chile. He is charged with bribing Ralph M. Mariano, a civilian program manager with the Naval Sea Systems Command, in a $10-million kickback scheme that authorities allege siphoned thousands of federal dollars to Dutta-Gupta, Mariano and Mariano’s family through a series of shell companies. Mariano, of Arlington, Va., who managed Advanced Solutions’ contracts with the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, in Newport, was also charged with bribery.

A federal magistrate in Georgia released Dutta-Gupta last week on a $25,000 unsecured bond. But Almond upped that sum Tuesday to a $50,000 unsecured bond, plus he must post $10,000 within a week.

Almond imposed the $10,000 bond, he said, in lieu of requiring Dutta-Gupta, of Roswell, Ga., to be monitored electronically and abide by a curfew, as Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Reich had asked. Almond restricted Dutta-Gupta’s travel to northern Georgia; Washington, D.C.; and Rhode Island. A native of Calcutta who is a naturalized U.S. citizen, Dutta-Gupta surrendered his passport.

Dutta-Gupta asked Almond if he would be violating the terms of his release by driving from Georgia to his Rhode Island court dates. Almond said he could stop briefly for food and gas but should not make long-term stops on his journeys without consulting court officials.

Dutta-Gupta founded Advanced Solutions in 1992, overseeing its growth as its Navy business increased. The firm worked on Navy research programs in Newport that included unmanned underwater vehicles and submarine command and control systems. The company is headquartered in Roswell, Ga., with offices in Middletown and Fairfax, Va.

Authorities say Dutta-Gupta and Mariano engineered a system of regular payments, largely for work never performed, to shell companies in a scheme dating to the late 1990s. A criminal complaint describes Mariano using his power as a senior Navy program official to steer contracts to Advanced Solutions.

Dutta-Gupta is accused of then channeling about $10 million, through companies he and associates controlled, to Mariano, his relatives and friends in return for his role in securing millions of dollars in Navy contracts for Dutta-Gupta’s firm.

Advanced Solutions was something of a family affair, according to the complaint, statements on the company’s website and other sources; Anjan’s wife, Indrani, was a company vice president.

The Dutta-Guptas and their children have been financial supporters of political campaigns. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, a Washington-based campaign finance monitor, the four family members have given an aggregate total of $48,512 to political campaigns over the years. But Anjan and Indrani Dutta-Gupta concentrated their political giving on members of the Rhode Island congressional delegation.

The younger Dutta-Guptas grew up in Georgia, where they ranked as award-winning scholars. Daughter Amrita Dutta-Gupta graduated from Vanderbilt University in 2003 and is listed as a fellow at the university’s management school.

A 2005 graduate of the University of Chicago, son Indivar Dutta-Gupta served as an $89,000-a-year staffer on the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee until last year. He joined the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a Washington think tank, this year. He is an expert on poverty issues.

Amrita, too, was president of Paramount Solutions, another defense contractor with offices in Middletown that did business with the Navy and Advanced Solutions. Like her father’s company, Paramount Solutions secured Navy work “earmarked” into a federal spending bill by Sen. Jack Reed, Democrat of Rhode Island.

Reed’s office said Tuesday that the senator secured a $1.6-million project that Paramount Solutions undertook jointly with the Naval Undersea Systems Command in Newport. That earmark, for work on submarine command-and-control systems, was in the 2008 appropriations bill. Amrita Dutta-Gupta was chief financial officer of the firm at the time, according to a company statement in which she thanked the senator for his assistance.

Reed spokesman Chip Unruh said the senator does not recall having met Amrita Dutta-Gupta.

Paramount Solutions was registered in Rhode Island in 2005 as a Georgia-based company “pursuing professional development services opportunities” with the state and the Navy. Amrita Dutta-Gupta was listed as president and vice president at the time. The directors include Wayne King of Bristol, who was in the news Monday as the acting chief of Advanced Solutions who informed its nearly 100 employees in Middletown that the company was closing its doors.

Paramount is tucked into a corner of a small, one-story office plaza along Aquidneck Avenue, less than two miles from Advanced Solutions for Tomorrow.

In total, Reed and former Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy secured more than $13 million in federal earmark money for Advanced Solutions projects. But Reed’s spokesman and a former top aide to Kennedy have said emphatically there appear to be no links between the money the lawmakers earmarked for the firm and the contracts detailed in the criminal papers as corrupted by Mariano and Dutta-Gupta.

There has been no suggestion of impropriety by Amrita Dutta-Gupta’s company or by the members of the state’s political delegation. It is not clear whether Amrita Dutta-Gupta is still associated with the firm.

A few former Advanced Solutions employees turned up Tuesday to witness Dutta-Gupta’s court appearance.

One, Richard Kulesh, stood in the cold outside the federal building waiting to face his old boss and watch him walk in.

“I want to see him go in … and I want the truth to come out,” said Kulesh, 37, of North Kingstown. “And if he’s done wrong, I want to see him to get his due.”

Kulesh described Dutta-Gupta as the kind of boss who made an effort to know the names of all, but “I had a lot of anger,” he said. His feelings moved to skepticism when he heard one of Dutta-Gupta’s lawyers say that the defendant, alleged to have skimmed more than $10 million from federal government contracts, had only $20,000 in cash.

“That’s really hard to believe,” he said. “I’m genuinely shocked by that. You could speculate all day about why.”

Dutta-Gupta “was a great guy if you can overlook this.”

Kulesh scoffed at his own suggestion.

He couldn’t.

KEY POINTS: Advanced Solutions for Tomorrow

STATUS: The company closed Monday; CEO Wayne M. King told employees in an e-mail that its assets had been frozen and efforts to find a buyer had failed. The closing followed the Feb. 6 arrest of company founder and owner Anjan Dutta-Gupta.

LOCATION: Had headquarters in Roswell, Ga., with offices in Washington and in Middletown, at the Aquidneck Corporate Park.

EMPLOYEES: Work force, about 160, has been laid off.

REVENUES: $30 million

BUSINESS: Provided information and technology services to government and private industry, including the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, in Newport. It had won contracts to develop submarine technology and underwater, unmanned vehicles for reconnaissance and combat missions. ASFT had 10 open contracts with the Navy, including the 3 largest, which total $128 million.

HISTORY: Founded by Anjan Dutta-Gupta in 1992 through a Department of Defense mentor program. The company expanded into Rhode Island in 1996 when it acquired Amtech, of Newport.

Sources: Affidavit of Patrick J. Hegart, special agent of U.S. Department of Defense, Criminal Investigative Service; ASFT Web pages, Zoominfo.com.

KEY PLAYER: Anjan Dutta-Gupta

AGE: 58

HOME: Roswell, Ga.

GROWING UP: Raised in Calcutta, India, son of a prominent banker from a large family.

EDUCATION: Undergraduate degree, University of Calcutta; master’s degree in business management from the Institute of Business Management, in Pakistan.

FAMILY: Married to Indrani Dutta-Gupta, former executive vice president of Advanced Solutions for Tomorrow; two children.

Sources: Affidavit of Patrick J. Hegart, special agent of U.S. Department of Defense, Criminal Investigative Service; article published by Indian-American author Kavitta Chibber

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If you have questions about this posting or are interested in Criminal Defense, Divorce, or Immigration Law in RI contact Rhode Island Criminal Defense Lawyer John E. MacDonald at 401-421-1440.

To learn more about The Law Office of John MacDonald, please visit his website at AggressiveLegalServices.com.