Get Justice: Criminal Appeals Lawyer in Harrisburg, PA
Any criminal conviction has the potential to obstruct life’s most important moments and can even ruin your life. From buying a house or car to landing the job of your dreams, a criminal conviction stains every transaction and harms your social and professional reputation as well as your employment potential.
Don’t sit back and let a criminal conviction make your life unnecessarily difficult.
Contact Mosser Legal today to speak with an experienced criminal appeals lawyer in Harrisburg, PA.
Why Should I Retain Mosser Legal for My Criminal Appeal in Harrisburg?
Todd Mosser and his team of experienced criminal appeals attorneys have appealed hundreds of criminal convictions throughout the Harrisburg area. You need that level of legal representation experience by your side to succeed.
With over two decades of experience handling criminal appeals, Todd Mosser has earned many awards and recognitions, including being named as one of Pennsylvania’s Super Lawyers. He is also privileged to be a member of the National Association of Distinguished Counsel’s “Nation’s Top One Percent.”
If you have been convicted of a crime in Harrisburg, PA, the Mosser Legal law office may be able to help you. Contact your trusted Harrisburg, PA criminal appeals attorney today at 267-207-2805 to discuss your case.
What is the Harrisburg Criminal Appeal Process?
If you are convicted of a crime in Harrisburg, you can appeal. “Appealing” means approaching a higher court for a review of the process, the law, and the evidence in the record, as well as the appropriateness of the sentence imposed.
To appeal a criminal conviction in Harrisburg, we file a Notice of Appeal with the Pennsylvania Superior Court within 30 days of sentencing. In some cases, a post-sentencing motion filed with the trial courts is required and must be done within 10 days of sentencing. If the trial court denies that motion, there are 30 days to file your Notice of Appeal.
How Long Does a Criminal Appeal Take in Harrisburg?
There are strict deadlines imposed by court administration to keep criminal appeals in Harrisburg moving. However, the court’s caseload and any granted extensions to deadlines can delay an appeal, so the time it takes to receive a decision on your criminal appeal varies.
Once we file your notice of appeal, the trial courts will likely order us to file a document called the Statement of Errors Complained of on Appeal, as required by the Pennsylvania Rule of Appellate Procedure 1925. The trial judge will then issue a Rule 1925 Opinion.
The Superior Court will then order us to file a brief explaining the legal reasons why we think the conviction or the sentence imposed was in error, usually within 40 days. We must also include a reproduced record of the trial.
After we file our brief and reproduced record, the prosecution has 30 days to file its brief, arguing that the lower court was correct. We will then have the right to file a reply brief to the prosecution’s brief if necessary.
Your case will then be submitted to a three-judge panel of the Superior Court, and at this point, a decision can be a few days or many months away. An oral argument may be scheduled.
Thereafter, the judges vote on a decision, and it need not be unanimous. If two judges agree, one will write an “Opinion of the Court.” The other judge in the majority may write a concurring opinion. The dissenting judge may write a dissenting opinion.
How Many Criminal Appeals Can a Case Have in Harrisburg?
A panel of three judges determines the outcome of your initial appeal. If you lose that initial appeal, you can file a motion to have your case reviewed en banc, which means the full bench of judges. If your motion is granted, we will start the appeals process over again, including drafting and filing briefs and perhaps oral arguments.
If your en banc appeal fails, you can petition the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania to hear your case. If the Court accepts your case for review, a similar briefing schedule is ordered, and an oral argument will be scheduled. Thereafter, the Court will issue a majority opinion and perhaps a concurring opinion, and if the decision was not unanimous, a dissenting opinion.
If you’ve exhausted all of your opportunities to appeal, you can petition for Post Conviction Relief (PCRA) within one year after your last appeal concluded.
Other Types Of Appeals We Handle
Areas We Serve
Contact Todd Mosser, a Seasoned Harrisburg Criminal Appeals Lawyer
Get relief from a criminal conviction with the attorneys at Mosser Legal by your side.
You need an experienced criminal appeals attorney with experience in the appeals process in Pennsylvania. This entails knowledge of all of the legal reasons your conviction should be reversed, why you should get a new trial, or why your sentence should be reduced. Our law office has helped many defendants in Harrisburg with their appeals and PCRA petitions.
Call Mosser Legal to get the justice you deserve and the criminal appeals lawyer you need.
