Robbery is one of the most serious property offenses in New York City. The severity of the offense and potential sentence, if convicted, are tied to robbery’s inherent requirement that physical harm or the threat of physical harm is used to commit the crime. This feature of robbery is addressed more harshly than DWI, drug charges, tax crimes, phishing scams, and other white-collar offenses that don’t involve this intentionally violent element.

At Koch Law, we handle defense to robbery charges in New York City with the toughness and dedication required to beat such charges. The New York City lawyers in our office provide a results-based defense that is focused on a speedy and effective dismissal of all charges for robbery.

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Understanding Robbery in New York City

Robbery in New York City is slightly different from other theft offenses. It isn’t merely larceny and can’t be committed through fraud, extortion, or embezzlement. Rather, robbery in New York is forcibly taking any property, regardless of the total value, from the person of a victim. This means the property must be on the victim’s body, such as an article of clothing or purse, or within close proximity to the victim, such as a television or laptop computer.

However, robbery doesn’t have to involve the use of a gun or other weapon. In New York City, an individual can commit robbery by merely threatening the use of force, harm, or existence of a weapon. The harm threatened must be immediately possible. These small nuances of robbery in New York make it essential that anyone accused of the crime seek criminal law advice from a New York robbery lawyer. Look no further for the New York lawyer you need than at Koch Law.

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New York City’s Law on Robbery

Robbery is among the theft and property crimes in the State of New York. While the charges for embezzlement, fraud, and other types of grand and petit larceny are contained a single, consolidated statute in New York, charges for robbery are under a separate statute. In fact, robbery is a very different crime than other larceny offenses. In New York City, robbery is the same as forcible stealing.

The definition of robbery is found in Section 160.05 of the New York Penal Law. This section of the state’s criminal code provides that the following elements are all necessary for a robbery conviction:

  1. When committing a larceny;
  1. The defendant uses or threatens the immediate use of physical force in order to;
  1. Prevent or overcome resistance to the theft or compel the owner to relinquish the property.

There are three degrees of robbery charges that fall under this general definition. The degrees of robbery charges differ in the severity of harm to the victim and method for carrying out the robbery. The other differentiation is the potential punishment for each degree of robbery. As robbery charges become more substantial in nature, so do the corresponding punishments.

  • Robbery in the third degree is the default charge for robbery in New York City and is applicable whenever the unlawful actions don’t rise to the definition of the heightened robbery charge.
  • Robbery in the second degree is any robbery that involves two or more people working together to commit the robbery, someone other than the defendant is injured during the commission or flight from the robbery, or a gun, rifle, other deadly weapons, or appearance of these weapons is used to commit the robbery.
  • Robbery in the first degree is any robbery that causes serious physical injury to an individual not involved in committing the crime, is carried out while armed with a deadly weapon, or the defendant displays or creates the appearance of having a gun, rifle, or other firearms.

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Defense to Robbery Charges in New York City

If you are investigated or accused of robbery in, the time to call a robbery lawyer in New York City is now. The sooner you start to fight the charges, or investigation into robbery charges, the better, both for the strategy of your defense and potential outcome of your case. Learn more about building the defense you deserve when you contact our NYC office at Koch Law.

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