Criminal Defense

The first step in appealing your criminal conviction is preparing a notice of appeal. See how our team can help you take your first step to a positive ruling.

With over 70 years of experience, the law firm of Garland, Samuel & Loeb has advised and represented many clients in some of the state’s most difficult cases.

Garland, Samuel & Loeb handle high-profile federal criminal defense cases with the skill and determination you need, contact us today.

Federal criminal laws include major drug offenses, mail and wire fraud, health care fraud, bank fraud, identity theft, and public corruption offenses such as bribery. Many federal criminal prosecutions involve complex white-collar crime cases, though the federal prosecutors also focus on hate crimes, terrorism cases, and gang prosecutions. 

Generally, an appeal is a vehicle for challenging a conviction at trial. In the Georgia Court of Appeals, the appeal is heard by three entirely new judges.

In the Georgia Supreme Court, nine Justices hear the appeal. In federal cases tried in Georgia, Florida, and Alabama, three judges in the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals will hear the appeal. The defendant, having been found guilty, will assert in the appeal that the trial was unfair for a variety of reasons: The prosecutor was permitted to introduce evidence that was inadmissible (such as hearsay); the defense was prohibited from introducing evidence that should have been admitted; the defendant’s Fourth Amendment rights to be free from an illegal search or seizure were violated and the trial judge did not correctly decide this issue in the trial court; the evidence at trial was not sufficient to support the conviction, notwithstanding the decision of the jury; the defendant’s trial counsel was either incompetent, or made a significant mistake at trial, or in preparing for trial and locating favorable witnesses. These are just a sample of the types of errors that can support a successful appeal.

There are numerous drug offenses that are included in the Georgia Code, including charges related to simple possession, possession with intent to distribute, actual distribution, and trafficking. 

These offenses apply to numerous drugs, including marijuana, cocaine, heroin, fentanyl, and scores of other controlled substances including pharmaceutical drugs. There are cases involving street-level distributors and other cases involving corrupt doctors who sell opioids for no legitimate medical purpose. The sentences range from probation to life in prison, depending on the drug involved, the quantity of the drug involved, and the defendant’s prior record. 

Georgia has some of the most severe penalties in the U.S. for sex crimes. 

Beyond decades of potential prison, a conviction means you will also be required to register as a sex offender, which prevents you from living or working within 1,000 feet of schools, parks, and other places where children congregate.

Serious felony cases are tried in both federal court and in the state Superior Courts. Serious felonies often result in mandatory minimum sentences that cannot be paroled, suspended or probated, such as rape, armed robbery, and aggravated child molestation.

The defense of these cases involves a thorough understanding of the law – available defenses and challenges to the evidence; and a command of the facts which is accomplished by reviewing the prosecution’s “discovery” and conducting additional independent investigation.

White Collar Crimes are usually prosecuted in federal court, though occasionally state prosecutors will bring charges involving a white-collar crime.

The lawyers at Garland, Samuel & Loeb are experienced in handling the defense of a white-collar prosecution. There is no “legal” definition of a white-collar crime. Generally, white collar crimes are characterized by a crime that alleges theft or fraud – in other words, rather than a violent crime, or a drug or a sex offense. Typical of white-collar crimes are significant fraud offenses involving large financial frauds. Often, the defendant is a professional (banker, public official, doctor, lawyer, business professional).