As opposed to the aggravating factors that weigh in favor of a longer and/or more severe sentence, the mitigating factors weigh in favor of a shorter and/or less severe sentence. Aside from arguing the applicability of mitigating factors, the defense should...
Jail Time and Probation
Criminal Law – The Sentencing Process (Part 2)
Returning to the required balancing of the aggravating and mitigating factors in formulating a sentence, the State has the burden to prove the existence of any aggravating factors. State v . Merlino, 208 N.J . Super. 24, 261-62 (Law Div. 1984). The burden of proof is...
Criminal Law – The Sentencing Process (Part 1)
With regard to the sentencing of defendants who have been convicted of a criminal offense, the sentence is supposed to result from the balancing of aggravating and mitigating factors which are then applied to the sentencing range for the particular offense. The...
Evidence and Conviction Thrown Out as a Result of Fred Sisto’s Trial Work
I contested a motion to suppress physical evidence in the case of State v. Xiomara Gonzales from January through May of 2011. After the trial court denied my motion, an appeal was taken. On April 6, 2015, the appellate division reversed the trial court's decision. ...
Aggravated Sexual Assault Reversed Conviction
In State v. Luis Santiago, decided on January 28, 2015, the Appellate Division reversed an aggravated sexual assault conviction based on subsection N.J.S.A. 2C:14-2(a)(3), because there was no evidence presented that the assault occurred during an assault "on...