A criminal charge arrives on someone else's schedule. Founded in 1997, Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C. represents people accused of crimes in Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, New Jersey, and New York. Matters are assigned to counsel admitted in the court where the case is pending.
Intake line staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Attorney consultations are scheduled by appointment.
People arrive at a first meeting focused on jail. That is the right worry, and it is rarely the only one. A conviction records itself on a background check that a landlord, a licensing board, a school, and an employer can all read.
Depending on the offense and the jurisdiction, it can reach a professional license, a security clearance, a commercial driver's license, firearm eligibility, and — for a person who is not a United States citizen — immigration status. A misdemeanor plea entered to end a case quickly can carry consequences that outlast the sentence by decades.
That is the reason the first conversation is about the whole file, not only the charge on the summons. What the record will say afterward is part of the defense, not an afterthought.
Statutory references are to the charging statute in the jurisdiction named; charges vary by state and by the facts alleged.
Petit larceny and grand larceny, shoplifting, burglary, robbery, embezzlement, receipt of stolen goods, and property destruction. In Virginia, simple larceny of goods valued at less than $1,000 is petit larceny, a Class 1 misdemeanor under Va. Code § 18.2-96. Grand larceny under Va. Code § 18.2-95 reaches simple larceny of $1,000 or more, larceny from the person of $5 or more, and larceny of a firearm regardless of its value.
Simple assault and battery under Va. Code § 18.2-57, assault against a family or household member under Va. Code § 18.2-57.2, malicious wounding, robbery under Va. Code § 18.2-58, and homicide charges. New Jersey prosecutes assault offenses under its Code of Criminal Justice, N.J.S.A. Title 2C.
Simple possession, possession with intent to distribute, and distribution. Virginia charges manufacture, sale, and distribution of a controlled substance under Va. Code § 18.2-248. Federal charges arise under 21 U.S.C. § 841. Virginia's Cannabis Control Act, Va. Code § 4.1-1100, legalized simple possession by adults 21 and over — which changes what the Commonwealth can charge, and what an officer can rely on.
Carrying a concealed weapon under Va. Code § 18.2-308, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon under Va. Code § 18.2-308.2, and discharging a firearm at an occupied dwelling or vehicle under Va. Code § 18.2-279. A conviction for a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence carries a separate federal firearms disability under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9).
Driving while intoxicated under Va. Code § 18.2-266, New York DWI and DWAI under N.Y. VTL § 1192, and New Jersey driving while intoxicated under N.J.S.A. 39:4-50 — which New Jersey does not classify as a crime. Refusal of a breath or blood test in Virginia is addressed separately under Va. Code § 18.2-268.3.
Family or household member assault and battery under Va. Code § 18.2-57.2, alleged violations of a preliminary protective order entered under Va. Code § 16.1-253.1, and the collateral firearm and immigration exposure that attaches to a domestic-violence disposition.
Rape under Va. Code § 18.2-61, forcible sodomy under Va. Code § 18.2-67.1, sexual battery under Va. Code § 18.2-67.4, indecent liberties with a child under Va. Code § 18.2-370, and aggravated sexual assault in New Jersey under N.J.S.A. 2C:14-2. Registration obligations under Va. Code § 9.1-901 are part of the analysis from the first day.
Obtaining money or a signature by false pretenses under Va. Code § 18.2-178, embezzlement under Va. Code § 18.2-111, forgery, identity theft, and check and card offenses. New Jersey provides civil and criminal remedies for identity theft under the New Jersey Identity Theft Prevention Act, N.J.S.A. 56:15-1.
Disorderly conduct under Va. Code § 18.2-415, trespass, obstruction of a law enforcement officer under Va. Code § 18.2-460, contempt of court under Va. Code § 18.2-456, and underage possession of alcohol under Va. Code § 4.1-305. Charges that look minor on paper still produce a record.
Reckless driving by speed under Va. Code § 46.2-862 — 20 miles per hour over the limit, or over 85 regardless of the posted limit — driving on a suspended or revoked license under Va. Code § 46.2-301, hit and run involving injury or death under Va. Code § 46.2-894, and involuntary manslaughter resulting from driving under the influence under Va. Code § 18.2-36.1. In Virginia these are criminal charges, not tickets.
Charges do not always stay inside one state's borders. A person arrested in one jurisdiction may live, work, or hold a license in another, and a disposition in one court can be used against them in the next. In each state, counsel appears in the courts where that counsel is admitted.
General District Courts, Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Courts, and Circuit Courts across the Commonwealth.
District Court and Circuit Court criminal dockets statewide.
The Criminal Division of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia and the D.C. Court of Appeals.
Superior Court Law Division Criminal Part, municipal courts, and the Appellate Division.
Criminal, Supreme, and City Courts across the state.
Individual attorneys are admitted in specific jurisdictions; not all attorneys are licensed in all states.
Mr. Sris is a former prosecutor. He founded Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C. in 1997 and has practiced continuously since. He is admitted in five United States jurisdictions — Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, New Jersey, and New York.
In 2019, Mr. Sris testified before the Virginia House Courts of Justice Committee in support of HB 635 (chief patron Del. David Bulova). Bill history is searchable on the Virginia Legislative Information System at lis.virginia.gov.
Years spent charging cases teach what a file looks like before it reaches defense counsel: how a charging decision is made, what a prosecutor treats as a strong count and what is filler, and where the paperwork tends to be thin. That prior service informs how the defense is built.
Every non-Sris attorney at Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C. serves as Of Counsel and contracts directly with the firm.
Former Maryland Assistant State's Attorney. Admitted in Maryland and Virginia. JD Rutgers School of Law (2004). With the firm since 2010.
Served fifteen years as a Virginia State Trooper before becoming an attorney. Admitted in Virginia. JD University of Richmond (2003). He reads a traffic or impaired-driving file the way the officer who wrote it did.
Admitted in Virginia and the District of Columbia. Practicing since 1994. JD The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law.
The intake line at (888) 437-7747 is staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Arrests do not wait for business hours. Intake records the charge, the court, and the next date, runs the conflicts check, and routes the file. Intake staff do not give legal advice.
Attorney consultations are scheduled by appointment with counsel admitted in the court where the case is pending. Bring the summons, the release paperwork, and any bond conditions. Consultations are available in English, Spanish, Tamil, French, and Portuguese.
Assignment is made on the charge, the court, and the bar admission the matter requires — not on a rotation. Where a case touches more than one state, counsel admitted in each state coordinates on the file.
The intake line, (888) 437-7747, is staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Every location is by appointment only. The Pereira location houses the firm's Colombia practice. Attorneys there are licensed and regulated in the Republic of Colombia, advise on Colombian law only, and are not admitted to practice law in any United States jurisdiction. For a United States criminal matter, contact the US practice at (888) 437-7747.
The firm handles felony and misdemeanor charges including theft and larceny, assault, drug offenses, weapons offenses, impaired driving, domestic violence, sex offenses, fraud and financial offenses, public order offenses, and serious traffic charges that are prosecuted as crimes.
Individual attorneys are admitted in specific jurisdictions; not all attorneys are licensed in all states. Through its individually admitted attorneys, the firm handles matters in Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, New Jersey, and New York.
Yes. The intake line at (888) 437-7747 is staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Intake records your matter and routes the file. Attorney consultations are then scheduled by appointment with counsel whose bar admission and case experience fit the matter.
Consultations are scheduled by appointment rather than as walk-ins, at any of the firm's nine locations. Call (888) 437-7747 to request a consultation.
Va. Code § 19.2-303.2 allows a court, with the accused's consent, to defer proceedings without entering a judgment of guilt and place a person on probation. It applies to certain misdemeanor crimes against property and requires that the person has no prior felony conviction and no prior dismissal under that section. It does not reach every misdemeanor charge. Eligibility is limited, and the decision rests with the court on the facts of the individual case.
New Jersey prosecutes driving while intoxicated under N.J.S.A. 39:4-50, and New Jersey does not classify that offense as a crime. It nonetheless carries penalties, and a disposition can affect how another state treats a later charge.
You may state that you wish to speak with a lawyer. Ask for counsel and then stop talking about the facts. Statements made during questioning are frequently the strongest evidence in the file by the time it reaches a courtroom.
Consultations are available in English, Spanish, Tamil, French, and Portuguese.
The intake line is staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Attorney consultations are scheduled by appointment.
Consultations in English, Spanish, Tamil, French, and Portuguese. Nine locations, by appointment only.
Criminal defense counsel admitted in Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, New Jersey, and New York. Practicing since 1997.
Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Case results depend on a variety of factors unique to each case. Results may vary. Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances.
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Content reviewed by Mr. Sris, Owner and Founder (admitted in Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, New Jersey, and New York). Individual attorneys are admitted in specific jurisdictions; not all attorneys are licensed in all states.
The information and materials on this website are for informational purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. Transmission of information does not create, and receipt does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. An attorney-client relationship may only be established through a written engagement letter signed by an authorized representative of the firm. Attorneys at the firm are licensed to practice law only in the jurisdictions listed in their individual biographies.
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