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A United States citizen or a lawful permanent resident (green card holder) who is in a same sex marriage to a foreigner can petition their spouse in the same manner that was once reserved only for heterosexual couples.  Your eligibility to petition your spouse, and your spouse’s admissibility as an immigrant or for adjustment of status, will be applied by the same immigration laws that now apply to everyone.  This is also true for fiance petitions.  Gay marriage, lesbian marriage, bisexual marriage, transgender marriage – all  marriages are entitled to the respect, benefits, and stability associated with legal marriage.

If you were previously denied due to the prior discrimination that prevented the recognition of same sex marriages in individual States to the United States, that can now be reconsidered.  It is possible to right a wrong that previously occurred, depending upon the facts of your case.

Same sex marriage can also confer immigration benefits to aliens seeking to accompany or follow their spouse as a family sponsored immigrant, an employment based immigrant, for aliens granted refugee or asylum, and for other immigration related circumstances.  Again, the law that once applied only to heterosexual couples now applies equally to all.

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Thousands of Chinese nationals come to Michigan every year under visas that allow for foreign students to reside and study in the United States.  Most Chinese students spend their time at the University of Michigan, Michigan State University, University of Detroit Mercy and other higher learning institutions without incident and with little problems adjusting to life in the United States.

Chinese Criminal Lawyer

There are an unfortunate number of Chinese students who come into contact with the criminal justice system for offenses such as drunk driving, shoplifting, traffic offenses, domestic assault, and others.  Often the reason is cultural; the way the infraction is treated in China is different than in Michigan and there is an assumption the issue will be handled similarly here.  Sometimes the reasons are due to depression or other psychological issue.  Often, it is simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

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In Michigan, dog bite cases are sometimes addressed through civil law proceedings, criminal prosecutions, or both.

Civil Dog Bite Cases

In order for the Plaintiff (injured party) to prevail on a civil lawsuit, generally 4 things need to be proven in order to collect a judgment:

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Parole Violation Attorney
After getting being released on parole, many former offenders will start to think that maybe their long nightmare of incarceration is over, and that they can finally begin to put their lives together. Unfortunately, for many parole is actually the beginning of a whole new kind of insanity. The sheer strictness of the rules that you have to follow and the strong penalty for failing to comply can be difficult to handle, especially when the rules interfere with your ability to get your life back on track after an incarceration.

Some of the most common things that can get you in trouble for violating probation are:

  • Using drugs or alcohol, or failing to submit to a drug test
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If you’ve been convicted of a crime, it’s natural to hope for a sentence of probation rather than jail time. After all, probation allows you to stay out of the harsh environment of a jail or prison, and you’ll still be able to live your live relatively normally as long as you stay within the guidelines of your probation. However, if you’ve been accused of violating your probation, you could be in for harsh consequences, including hefty fines, added conditions to probation, the loss of a status to keep the incarceration from a public record (if applicable), or even incarceration. It’s a serious situation, and you should know how to deal with it in a way that will protect your rights.

Contact Your Probation Officer

Your probation officer will have a tremendous amount of leeway when deciding how to respond to a potential probation violation. Make sure to contact them early, and have a detailed explanation for what happened. Don’t give excuses, but explain the events in a respectful, apologetic tone. Make sure to have supplemental material and proof to back up your account. If your officer is inclined to be a little bit lenient, you might get off with a warning. If the officer is intent on setting a court date, however, your options start to narrow down quite a bit.

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Finding a Defense Attorney
If you’ve been charged with a crime, the absolute first thing you need to do is to secure a good attorney. You don’t want to have to rely on the overworked public defender to help your case, and you absolutely don’t want to let the police and the prosecutor have their way with you without proper representation. However, with all the lawyers listed in any given area, it can be tough to decide which one to go with. Luckily, there are a few tips you can follow to make sure that you’re picking the right attorney for your case.

Specialty in Criminal Defense

For every aspect of law, there’s a lawyer who’s specifically trained in that one area. You need to make sure that you’re matching the right attorney with your specific situation. A patent law specialist isn’t going to do you much good in your situation; you need an expert with experience in criminal defense.  The problem is there are some attorneys that claim to specialize in criminal defense that are not being truthful.  Handling a criminal case from time to time is much different than being a full time practitioner.  A so called criminal defense lawyer that has no trial experience may only seek to run you through the system.

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Police Searching Your Car
In most cases, police officers are required to have a search warrant in order to search your vehicle; however, during a traffic stop, an officer is only required to possess probable cause to legally search your car. An experienced criminal defense attorney can tell you that probable cause simply means the officer must have sufficient evidence to believe that you are involved in criminal activity. An officer cannot search your car simply because they have a hunch you are up to something.

There are some exceptions to the search warrant requirement that enable police officers to search your vehicle.  If you are arrested for a criminal offense while driving, the car can be searched incident to arrest.  If the vehicle is impounded, it can be searched so there is an inventory of the vehicle.  If an item of contraband is in plain view, the officer is allowed to go into your vehicle and seize it.  At the border, if you are coming into the United States by driving a vehicle, that car is always subject to search.

First and foremost, it is imperative to remember that, if you are stopped by a police officer, remain cool and calm. If the officer chooses to detain you and requests to search your vehicle, you have the legal right to refuse consent to the search. You should clearly and verbally refuse; however, you should never, never physically resist an officer. Even a simple touch on the officer’s shoulder or arm provides them with enough justification to Taser you, beat you, and arrest you. You could be charged with a felony for assaulting a police officer.  Many of my clients keep my business card or telephone number in their wallet or smartphone just in case they need it.

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Defense Attorney Consultation
Preparing for your first meeting with your criminal defense lawyer is important. Regardless of how good your attorney might be, he or she must rely on the information you provide. If this information is inaccurate or incomplete, it can be harmful to your case.

Prepare an Accurate Account of What Happened

Interacting with law enforcement can be stressful, but it is imperative to remember the details of your encounters. Small details about what was said or where you were can be critical to your defense. If you happened to incriminate yourself during questioning, details regarding the circumstances under which you were questioned can assist your defense attorney in preventing those statements from being admitted into court. Even if your lawyer cannot prevent the statements from being admitted, it is still important to know the exact details because they will more than likely come up during your trial.  In terms of what happened, you should be cautious that any statements you make (written, electronic, verbal) can be used against you.  Any accounts that you have about your case should be shared only with your lawyer, and only when you are in a private, confidential location.

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The Somerset Collection (which is also often referred to as Somerset Mall) in Troy, Michigan is known for its assortment of high end stores and is a popular destination for many shoppers.  One of the issues that the mall and its individual stores face everyday is retail fraud (also known as shoplifting).  The Somerset Collection and its individual retailers combat this issue by employing trained security/loss prevention workers, closed circuit television (CCTV), and theft detection devices to identify, and aid in the apprehension and prosecution of suspected shoplifters.  One of the strategies to address the retail theft issue is aggressive prosecution by the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office and the Troy City Attorney to act as a deterrence to others and to try and prevent repeat offenders.

A conviction for Retail Fraud (also known as shoplifting) can have serious implications on an individual’s reputation, employment or career, ability to get school loans or attend school, and immigration status (for persons that are not citizens).  There is the potential for incarceration, probation with conditions, community service, drug testing, economic crimes classes, counseling, fines, cost, and restitution for an individual who is convicted of retail fraud.

Retail Fraud always involves an allegation of a theft from a store which is open to the public for business at the time of the offense.  It can occur by either physically moving or concealing merchandise with the intent to steal, or altering or removing a price tag with the intent to defraud.

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State and Federal Prosecution Defense
Depending on the nature of a crime, an individual can either be prosecuted at the state or federal level. In either case, the prosecutor formally charges a person based on evidence. In most cases in Federal Court, cases proceed on the basis of an indictment, rather than an information.  In Michigan State Court prosecutions usually an information is filed, rather than an indictment.

If there is not enough evidence, sometimes the State or Federal government will not officially charge someone with a crime if they do not think they can prove to a jury, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the person in question committed the crime. At Hilf & Hilf PLC, we try to educate our prospective clients on the prosecution process so they better understand why a State or Federal prosecutor has filed charges and why it’s so important to secure the help of the right criminal defense attorney.

It’s somewhat difficult to provide a list of crimes that automatically fall under state or federal jurisdictions because many felonies are subject to a state prosecution such as car theft, murder, criminal sexual conduct and more. However, if a person crossed state lines or used inter-state commerce while committing one of these crimes, federal prosecution is possible. In general, Federal prosecutors will file charges against someone for offenses such as interstate drug or gun trafficking, robbery of federally insured banks, federal tax crimes, and other offenses that have the possibility of causing serious harm or damage.  With some offenses, such as child pornography, decisions as to prosecutions are made by Federal prosecutors and State task forces.  Considerations as to child pornography prosecutions are made based upon: the number of images allegedly possessed; whether or not the individual allegedly possessed, distributed, or produced the images in question; the alleged nature of the acts contained in the images; whether or not inter-State sales or distribution of the images occurred; whether or not human trafficking occurred, etc.

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Contact Information
3155 W
Big Beaver Rd #123
Troy, MI 48084
Phone: (248) 792-2590 Fax: (248) 885-8996

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