Plea Deal for Meredith Graves

The Manhattan District Attorney is apparently working on a plea arrangement for Meredith Graves. If I were in the Manhattan DA’s shoes, offer her a plea to disorderly conduct, and she forfeits the gun. After a few years, she can probably get an expungement for the disorderly conviction, so it won’t show up when employers do background checks. Given the amount of publicity this is getting, the only thing throwing the book at these folks is going to accomplish is to outrage Congress enough to pass HR822 even sooner. If I was the Manhattan DA, I wouldn’t want to poke that bee’s nest.

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14 thoughts on “Plea Deal for Meredith Graves”

  1. Has Ms. Graves shown any interest in taking one for the team and letting this go to trial as preface for a challenge to NYC gun laws?

    1. Are you aware that a felony conviction means you can’t work in health care at all? IIRC, the young lady is a nurse who is in med school.

      You can’t even be an EMT or home aid with a felony conviction.

      1. I am, I work in the IT side of healthcare. I fully admit that my question was daft, but I think it was valid. McDonald and Heller had to stand up, maybe we’d have Graves vs. NYC next.

        1. Neither McDonald nor Heller were facing the prospect of a felony conviction if their case lost. No lawyer in their right mind would tell a client not to take a plea deal on a felony charge, especially if the plea is disorderly conduct, as it appears at least one of these victims has been offered already.

  2. If I was the Manhattan DA, I’d keep the gun and tell her to go home to TN, filing no charges at all.

    1. Well, I’d send her gun back to her and tell her to go home, but the Manhattan DA is under different political pressures than I am.

  3. In what jurisdictions is disorderly conduct a felony?

    Still, the more press this gets and the more people that get caught up in NYC’s ridiculous snare, the more likely and quicker a bill like HR822 will get passed.

    If the House increases their the current majority and the Senate flips by even a couple of seats (at 80, it would be nice to see Richard Lugar unseated), I would expect a national reciprocity bill to pass in 2013.

    1. None that I an aware of. But Freiheit said “…taking one for the team and letting this go to trial as preface for a challenge to NYC gun laws?”

      And going to court to fight could have resulted in a conviction with a mandatory felony sentencing of 3.5 to 5 years.

  4. Pingback: SayUncle » In NYC

  6. After a few years, she can probably get an expungement for the disorderly conviction, so it won’t show up when employers do background checks.

    Does NY allow expungements of convictions? I know that Virginia only allows it if there is an acquittal or if the charge is nolle pross’d or dismissed (Va. Code §19.2-392.2). If you accept a plea, it counts as a conviction and can not be expunged.

  8. Its even less than that.

    Here is the NY State Code

    Section 240.20 Disorderly conduct

    A person is guilty of disorderly conduct when, with intent to cause public inconvenience, annoyance or alarm, or recklessly creating a risk thereof:

    1. He engages in fighting or in violent, tumultuous or threatening behavior; or

    2. He makes unreasonable noise; or

    3. In a public place, he uses abusive or obscene language, or makes an obscene gesture; or

    4. Without lawful authority, he disturbs any lawful assembly or meeting of persons; or

    5. He obstructs vehicular or pedestrian traffic; or

    6. He congregates with other persons in a public place and refuses to comply with a lawful order of the police to disperse; or

    7. He creates a hazardous or physically offensive condition by any act which serves no legitimate purpose.

    Disorderly conduct is a violation.

    And what is a “violation?”

    3. “Violation” means an offense, other than a “traffic infraction,” for which a sentence to a term of imprisonment in excess of fifteen days cannot be imposed.

    Furthermore, as you can see here, its less than even a misdemeanor (which is technically a criminal offense). A traffic offense could be a misdemeanor or a felony. A violation can’t. This is, less than a speeding ticket. Its the same violation you get for spitting on the sidewalk. Or talking too loudly in the library. Pay your $15 fine (or whatever it is) and go home.

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