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Meaning and Implications of Strong-Arm Robbery Charges

Bank robbery and street robbery are familiar terms to most in New Jersey. You may envision a group of individuals holding up the teller at a bank, or someone pulling a gun or wielding a knife and robbing another on the street of their wallet, watch, or other valuables. However, you may not know about “strong-arm robbery,” a type of crime that is accomplished without a gun or another weapon. Regardless of whether you have been accused of using or wielding a weapon during a robbery offense, stealing or threatening to steal from someone under threat of serious harm is considered a grave crime, accompanied by equally grave penalties for those convicted. Learning about the unique offense of strong-arm robbery, including its meaning, how it is categorized among the different types of robbery offenses under NJ law, and what you could be facing if you are ultimately found guilty, is an important first step in the process of defending your case.

Understanding What Constitutes Strong-Arm Robbery

Strong-arm robbery occurs when an individual commits robbery through sheer physical strength, violence, or threat of force. Using physical force, terrorizing, or threatening someone with physical force, rather than a weapon, in order to steal from them is considered strong-arm robbery.

By law, New Jersey defines robbery (N.J.S.A. 2C:15-1) as committing theft by causing bodily injury to someone or otherwise using force upon them, threatening or placing another in fear of bodily harm, or committing or threatening to commit a first or second degree crime. Strong-arm robbery can be all three forms of robbery in the statute.

For example, an individual commits this crime when they push someone to the ground and steal their purse, strangleholds their neck from behind, and threatens to kill them if they do not hand over their valuables, or threatens to assault them if they do not hand over their jewelry.

Distinguishing Strong Arm Robbery from Other Forms of Robbery

Essentially, an armed robbery commands the obedience of the victim for fear of being injured or killed by a potentially lethal weapon. A victim is unlikely to defy someone with a gun, knife, or other weapon, as the odds are higher for severe injury or death. For that reason, the criminal penalties for armed robbery are higher.

Strong-arm robbery can also result in harm or death, but the possibility of warding off another’s physical strength or intimidating words is higher. Without a weapon, a strong-arm robber depends on physical confrontation and dominance. As such, injuries are more often less severe than those resulting from an armed robbery.

Keep in mind that while armed robbery may seem more life-threatening to a victim, a strong-arm victim may feel emboldened to fight back when approached by another’s physical confrontation. Standing up to the perpetrator or fending them off may escalate into a brawl that severely injures, maims, or kills one or both participants. The victim may even retaliate with a weapon. Each case and situation is unique, necessitating a thorough review by a criminal defense attorney who can examine all of the facts and circumstances.

What Happens if You are Convicted of Strong-Arm Robbery?

When you are accused of strong-arm robbery in New Jersey, you can expect to face a second degree criminal charge, punishable by 5 to 10 years in prison. Those convicted may be forced to pay upwards of $150,000.00 in fines. Additionally, you must beware of New Jersey’s No Early Release Act, which affects those with violent second degree criminal convictions such as those for strong-arm robbery. This means that you will be required to serve 85% of your sentence before a parole board will consider you for release. Also, understand that a judge could order you a stiffer sentence when you have a criminal past and aggravating factors that worsen the crime.

Factors that Could Affect Your Strong-Arm Robbery Sentence

A judge may give the maximum sentence when aggravating factors that characterize the crime as especially vicious. The degree of physical violence, the extent of the victim’s injuries, and the vulnerability of the victim may all be aggravating factors. On the other hand, the defendant’s youth, clean record, and minor role in the robbery may be mitigating factors. The victim’s minor injuries may also give a judge a reason to lighten the sentence.

Long-Term Impacts of a Strong-Arm Robbery Conviction

Being found guilty also means a criminal record reflecting New Jersey’s equivalent of a felony conviction. These are known as indictable crimes under New Jersey criminal law. Evidence of your conviction will follow you as you apply for jobs, housing, loans, colleges, and other opportunities that may enhance your life and impact your livelihood. Beyond that, you will lose your ability to own or possess a weapon and may face additional criminal charges if you are subsequently found with one.

Ways to Successfully Defeat a Strong-Arm Robbery Case

The state’s burden of proof to convince a jury beyond a reasonable doubt of the defendant’s guilt is complex in a strong arm robbery case, and rightly so. A criminal defense lawyer’s role is to find the holes in the state’s case and bolster the strengths of your defense, which can be accomplished in multiple ways.

Contesting Key Elements of the Crime

A criminal defense attorney who knows the prosecution’s case is weak may fight for an acquittal at a trial, especially when the state cannot prove intent to steal or use physical force to commit the crime. Typical areas for strong-arm robberies include streets, parking lots, convenience stores, and apartment complexes. Urban areas with denser populations have more robbery opportunities than suburban areas. Regardless of location, an accused must have intended to use force in an effort to steal from the alleged victim. Without essential elements to the crime, such as physical force or threat, and an intent to steal, the state cannot prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant committed a strong-arm robbery. As such, highlighting the defendant’s lack of intent or challenging the key component of threatening violence or using physical force can all be used as viable defenses to the crime of strong arm robbery.

Additionally, robbery is not the appropriate criminal charge if a defendant did not steal or attempt to steal anything, even if they physically attacked another. For example, a jury may not believe that an accused was robbing someone when they acted in self-defense. The physical force may have been to ward off an attack, not to steal. The evidence to prove an intent to steal must be compelling. When the circumstances do not clearly show that theft was the aim of an attack or violent act, the prosecution will have difficulty meeting its burden of proof. This level of doubt in a jury’s mind can often lead to an acquittal.

Highlighting Issues with the Evidence

Furthermore, when the state relies on eyewitnesses or surveillance footage from a store, apartment complex, or another site with cameras, the defense may be able to impeach the credibility of the witness testimony or footage. Inconsistencies in a witness’s testimony or the quality of the footage may be avenues of casting doubt on the validity or credibility of the evidence. The state’s witnesses may be untrustworthy, which is an opportunity to exploit in front of a jury.

Negotiating with the Prosecutor

Though the charges are severe, your lawyer may also be able to secure a better result through a plea bargain with the prosecution. The state may agree to lesser charges or a lighter sentence if they can be persuaded to do so during plea negotiations. Your lawyer may negotiate a reduced prison sentence and lower fine when they present the prosecutor with mitigating factors to your case. A skilled attorney may also be able to show the prosecutor that they are unlikely to win at trial, convincing them that a better option would be to secure a plea than to go to court and lose because they cannot meet their burden of proof.

Talk to an Attorney about Your Strong Arm Robbery Defense in Burlington County NJ

Someone charged with a crime like strong arm robbery in New Jersey stands to spend years in prison and face severe limitations in life’s essential advantages, including employment and shelter, with a strong arm robbery conviction and a criminal record. The potential loss of liberty and life-long implications can devastate those found guilty of committing strong arm robbery. An experienced criminal defense attorney’s help is what you need to protect your freedom and preserve your future. Our team at Proetta, Oliver, & Fay is prepared to defend you against these serious accusations, using all of our experience in criminal law to put the state to the test when trying to convict you.

With local offices in Evesham, New Jersey, we regularly appear in courts in Burlington County, Camden County, and surrounding areas in South Jersey on behalf of our clients, who trust us during the most difficult times of their lives. We encourage you to contact us anytime for a free consultation and to learn more about how our criminal defense attorneys can assist you.