A separate practice
Criminal defence is not estate work. It has its own deadlines, its own court, and its own consequences — and it is listed separately here for that reason.
Criminal defence
Criminal Defence Lawyer in Queens, NY
Having prosecuted cases in Queens County from 1978 to 1981, Richard Cary Spivack knows how a case is built from the other side — and where it is vulnerable.
- Prior experience
- 1978–1981, Queens County DA’s Office
- Courts
- Queens County criminal court, Kew Gardens
- Areas
- Queens and Nassau County
Being charged with a crime, or watching a family member be arrested, is one of the most disruptive things that can happen. It moves fast, it is confusing, and the decisions made in the first few hours tend to be the ones that matter most.
If you have just been arrested, or someone has, the practical answer is in the sidebar. If you are earlier than that and trying to understand the position, the sections below explain what actually happens and why.
Experience
What four years as a prosecutor taught
I prosecuted cases in Queens County from 1978 to 1981. That is a long time ago, and prosecution has not changed in the way that matters: cases are still built the same way, from the same kinds of evidence, and the decisions about whether to charge, what to offer and when have not fundamentally changed.
It is not a guarantee of anything and it is not a strategy for winning. It is a working understanding of the machinery — which makes advice faster, more realistic, and better targeted. When a plea offer arrives, it is useful to know roughly what a prosecutor is weighing.
What that means in practice
- Identifying which evidence the case actually depends on, and which is padding
- Knowing what a prosecutor will want, and what they can be persuaded to move on
- Recognising an issue with the arrest, the search or the statement early
- Judging whether a case is genuinely serious or more contained than the arrest suggested
- Noticing when a case should be fought rather than resolved, and when it should not
None of that is a promise. No lawyer can responsibly promise an outcome before seeing the file, and anyone who does is reassuring you rather than advising you.
Matters
Charges handled
Misdemeanors
- Petty theft and larceny
- Trespassing
- Harassment and disorderly conduct
- Property damage
Felonies
- Assault
- Weapons charges
- Drug offences
- Burglary
- Domestic violence
White collar
- Fraud
- Forgery
- Embezzlement
- Identity theft
Driving and property
- DWI and selected DUI matters
- Reckless driving
- Licence-related violations
Every case turns on its own facts. If your charge is not listed, it does not mean it cannot be handled — call and ask.
Process
How a defence actually runs
Early on
Learning the charge, the alleged facts and what evidence exists. Advising on what to say and to whom. Checking whether the arrest, the search or the statement was proper. Addressing bail rather than waiting for it to be set.
The first weeks are where options exist that do not exist later. Exculpatory information is easier to preserve while memories are fresh. A charge is easier to resolve before a position has hardened. And the first person to explain the case to a prosecutor is usually the defence.
Then what happens
Pretrial motions, discovery, and negotiations. Some cases resolve at a plea — which is not a failure, and is frequently the correct outcome once the evidence is understood. Others go to a hearing or a trial, where the work is challenging the evidence and testing the witnesses.
A charge is not a conviction, and a great many cases are resolved without one. But that is not something anyone can promise before seeing the evidence. The law is also not the same as what is fair: a case can be entirely sympathetic and still be properly prosecuted.
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Questions
After an arrest in New York
What should I do if I am arrested?
Four things matter, in this order. Stay calm. Do not answer questions about the incident — you are not obliged to explain yourself, and in New York a statement made after arrest can be used against you. Do not consent to a search; consent must be voluntary, and refusing does not create a problem you would not otherwise have. And contact a lawyer as soon as you can. Family can call on your behalf, and the sooner someone is involved the more options remain. If you are currently detained, say so when you call and I will come to you.
What does being a former prosecutor actually help with?
Having worked as an Assistant District Attorney in Queens County from 1978 to 1981 means I have sat on the other side of these cases. I know how the evidence gets assembled, which mistakes tend to recur, what a prosecutor is weighing when deciding whether to offer a plea, and which cases tend to hold up at trial and which do not. That is not a guarantee of any result, and I would never represent it as one. It is a working understanding of the machinery, which tends to make advice faster, more realistic, and better targeted.
Can charges be reduced or dismissed?
It depends on the charge and the evidence, and I am not going to answer this in a way that sounds better than it is. Charges are sometimes reduced, sometimes dismissed, and sometimes resolved without a conviction — and sometimes the evidence is strong and the outcome is simply not in your control. What is true is that early advocacy sometimes changes the picture substantially: exculpatory information, a resolution that has not yet hardened, or an issue with how the case was built. Whether any of that is available here depends on facts I would need to see. If you are facing a specific charge, call and tell me what it is.
Which courts handle these matters?
Generally the court follows the place where the alleged conduct happened. Most Queens County matters come before the criminal court in Kew Gardens. Nassau County matters are handled in Nassau. There are exceptions — federal court, City Court, family court and others handle different categories — so the specific court depends on the charge. My office is in Forest Hills, a short distance from the Queens criminal courthouse, which matters for the number of times you have to travel there.
Last reviewed
General information, not advice about your case. Every matter depends on its facts and evidence, and no outcome can be promised. If you are currently detained or have a court date, call rather than relying on anything published online.
More questions across all practice areasNext step
If there is a court date, that is the only thing that matters today.
Call with the name, the date of the arrest, and where the person is. If you do not have that, call anyway — it can be worked out.
Nothing said on this website is advice about your case, and contacting the office does not create an attorney–client relationship.