Federal Crimes

A “federal crime” is any offense that violates the laws contained in the United States Criminal Code.  The offenses are primarily white collar crimes dealing with various frauds.  These are often accompanied by charges of money laundering and tax evasion.  All federal laws passed by the United States Congress come under the jurisdiction of the judicial branch of the federal government. 

Federal lawyers defend individuals charged with federal crimes. Federal crimes are very serious in nature and can have catastrophic consequences for those charged with them. Federal lawyers represent individuals in federal court at the arraignment, hearing, plea bargain, or trial before a judge or jury. Charges are brought by the U.S. government against those accused of federal crimes.

Some examples of federal crimes are:

• Accounting Fraud
• Antitrust
• Bank Fraud
• Bankruptcy Fraud
• Child Crimes
• Computer Crimes
• Computer Hacking
• Controlled Substance Violations
• Conspiracy
• Corporate Crimes
• Counterfeiting
• Customs Violations
• Drug Manufacturing
• Drug Possession/Sales
• Drug Trafficking
• Espionage Export/Import Crimes
• Environmental Crimes
• Gun Law Violations
• Health Care Fraud
• Immigration Law Violations
• Internet Fraud
• Kidnapping
• Mail Fraud
• Money Laundering
• Multi-Level Marketing
• Public Corruption
• RICO Crimes
• Securities Fraud
• Social Security Fraud
• Tax Crimes
• Terrorism
• Weapons Charges
• Wire fraud

Defendants in federal court have certain rights. These include the right to an attorney, the right to a jury trial, the right to confront witnesses, the right against self-incrimination and the right to produce evidence. We can assist you in protecting these rights from being violated.

What many people fail to appreciate is that federal criminal practice is not the same as state criminal practice in Texas. An experienced state court criminal lawyer with no knowledge or understanding of the complexities of federal criminal law can do as much harm as good in many instances.

Everything in federal court is different including:

• Bond is different and sometimes unavailable.
• Case law and statutes are different.
• Discovery and the rules of evidence are different.
• Jury selection is different.
• Penalties are governed by the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

Perhaps the most important things to know are how exactly federal trials and sentences are carried out.

You may be surprised to learn that, for federal crimes:

• Bond is different and sometimes unavailable.
• Case law is different.
• Discovery is different.
• Jury selection is different.
• Punishments are different, following federal sentencing guidelines.
• Rules of evidence are different.
• Statutes are different.
• There is no federal parole.
• Trials occur either very quickly or very slowly.

If you or someone you know has been charged with a federal crime, call The Sheena Law Firm to discuss your case.