Baltimore Embezzlement Attorneys

Were You Accused of Embezzling or Misusing Funds?

If you have been entrusted with the management of someone else’s funds through a fiduciary duty, you could be accused of embezzlement if someone thinks you intentionally misappropriated those funds for your gain. Embezzlement is a serious theft crime that can result in misdemeanor, felony, or federal charges, so a conviction could impact your life significantly for years and years. Don’t let the prosecution walk over your case and secure a conviction without a fight. Stand up for yourself with the help of the Baltimore embezzlement lawyers of Portner & Shure.

Why should you choose Portner & Shure to defend you against embezzlement charges in Baltimore?

• We have 30+ years of experience as a criminal defense law firm.
• We are proud to boast countless 5-star client reviews on Facebook and Google.
• We have team members who are fluent in English, Spanish, Hindi, Korean, Vietnamese, and Chinese languages.
• We are a litigation firm, which means we can take your case to trial if necessary.

Learn how to fight an embezzlement charge. Call us at (410) 995-1515 or fill out an online contact form now.

Understanding Fiduciary Duties

When someone has a legal obligation to act in the best interests of another, a fiduciary duty has been established. For the most part, fiduciary duties are created with the management of finances and assets in mind. If the party who has been entrusted with those finances or assets misappropriates or misuses them for their own gain or some criminal purpose, it might constitute the crime of embezzlement.

Fiduciary duties can vary, such as:

• An estate executor owes a fiduciary duty when they are tasked with managing and distributing the assets of a decedent’s estate according to a will.
• Investment bankers owe a fiduciary duty to their clients, which can be individuals or corporations, to make sound decisions with their investments, stocks, etc.
• People who are granted power of attorney owe a fiduciary duty to the person who granted them that power.
• Trustees have a fiduciary duty when they are entrusted to manage a company’s assets.

On a lower scale, employees have a fiduciary duty to handle cash transactions on behalf of their employer. For example, a cashier who takes money from the cash register or who never places a customer’s cash into it can be accused of embezzlement. This type of embezzlement crime might be charged as a misdemeanor, which is still serious enough to warrant the guidance of a criminal defense attorney.

Maryland Embezzlement Conviction Penalties

When you are facing accusations of embezzlement, you have to keep in mind the penalties that could be behind those accusations if you don’t defend yourself. Even for a misdemeanor case of embezzlement, the consequences of being convicted and sentenced can be severe and far-reaching.

Typically, a conviction of embezzlement in Maryland can include these criminal penalties:

• Between 1 year and 5 years of imprisonment
• Thousands of dollars in fines
• Repayment of embezzled funds

Your private and personal life could also be impacted by an embezzlement conviction in ways you might not have expected at first. If you want a career that involves money management in any way, an employer might not hire you if you have an embezzlement conviction on your record. Employers are usually instructed to not consider criminal records when choosing a new employee, but many do anyway. Also, if you are convicted of embezzlement funds, the amount of money that the court said you embezzlement might need to be reported on your next tax filing, which will create more complications that involve the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

How to Defend Yourself Against Embezzlement Charges

No matter how much pressure the prosecution puts on you to admit guilt or how much it says your case is unwinnable, don’t listen. You always have the option to fight for your rights, including the right to the presumption of innocence. Before you agree to the prosecution’s demands, talk to our Baltimore embezzlement attorneys to learn about defenses that might work in your case.

Defenses that might work in your case include:

• Not enough evidence: Without enough evidence to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, there should be no embezzlement conviction. We can work to chip away at the evidence the prosecution intends to use against you in trial by tapping into our many years of criminal defense experience.
• No criminal intent: Embezzlement charges depend on proving that you meant to misappropriate funds or assets that you had a fiduciary duty to responsibly manage. There is a difference between embezzling funds and making mistakes that lessened the value of or misplaced those funds, which is not a crime.

Have you been accused of embezzlement but not arrested or charged yet? You can still use the legal services of Portner & Shure. Our attorneys can provide pre-charge counsel that helps you understand your rights and navigate the situation with confidence. It might even be possible to convince the criminal investigators to drop the case against you before charges are ever filed, which will keep your criminal record completely clean.

Learn How to Defend Yourself from Embezzlement Charges

An embezzlement conviction in Maryland can bring significant impacts on your future and freedoms. Start protecting yourself from the harsh weight of the law by relying on the Baltimore embezzlement lawyers of Portner & Shure today. We can bring decades of legal experience to your case, giving you the strength and knowledge needed to fight even the toughest charges.

Contact us onlineor dial (410) 995-1515 to arrange a consultation.