The Criminal Defense team at Kenny, Burns & McGill is happy to share that through diligent investigation and argument, a client’s firearm charge was successfully quashed.
To “quash” something in the legal world means that a court has decided that the decision of a lower legal body is invalid. In this case, the client was charged with illegal possession of a firearm, but thanks to convincing arguments given by Gun Crime Attorney Thomas D. Kenny, the Court of Common Pleas decided to nullify this charge. This client was arrested under circumstances that led police to conduct a search of the property and surrounding area in addition to taking the client into custody. Due to a previous conviction, this client was legally barred from owning a firearm, so when the police found a gun stashed nearby, a charge for illegal possession of a firearm was tacked onto everything else.
Given the charges, this individual was looking at the possibility of a prison sentence and steep fines, so he made the best choice he could in this situation; he contacted and hired the highly experienced Criminal Defense lawyers at Kenny, Burns & McGill. As soon as he was hired, Firearm Charge Lawyer Tom Kenny began to pore over the facts of this case. Attorney Kenny quickly noticed that the firearm — the one that his client had been charged with illegally possessing — had been recovered from a hiding spot in a fire pit that was outside of the client’s fenced-in yard.
Given the location the firearm was discovered in, it would have been difficult or impossible for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and/or the police to definitively prove that the weapon belonged to this client. Equipped with knowledge that was found through careful investigation of the case, Criminal Defense Lawyer Kenny went before the Court of Common Pleas at a contested hearing and powerfully argued that it was wrong for his client to have been charged with illegal possession of a firearm. The Court agreed with Attorney Kenny, and the charge was quashed! This successful Motion to Quash is a great outcome. If the state does not have enough evidence to decisively prove a charge, then that charge should never have been brought against the defendant in the first place.
The United States’ legal system is tricky and complex. If you or a loved one have had a brush with the law, make sure you work with people who are highly skilled and know what they’re doing; call the talented lawyers at Kenny, Burns & McGill today! (215) 423-5500
By
Kenny, Burns & McGill
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Published
May 4, 2023
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Posted in
Criminal Defense
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Tagged Charges Dismissed, gun charges, illegal gun possession, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
