Facing legal action can be a stressful experience. Depending on the situation, the stakes can be quite high, from losing a lot of money to losing your freedom.
And you’d be surprised at just how easy it is to find yourself in such a situation. Take, for example, Enrico Vaccaro, an East Haven man who was arrested in 2022 for the heinous crime of storing his grill near the deck of his condominium.
The State alleged that Vaccaro violated fire codes by storing the grill too close to the building and charged him with a Class B misdemeanor, meaning that he faced the possibility of up to six months in prison and a fine of up to $1,000.
The case, due to its absurdity, made headlines across local media outlets. However, while the charges were farcical, the potential consequences Vaccaro faced were very serious. When risking jail time, it’s best to have an experienced, aggressive attorney on your side. In Vaccaro’s case, Attorney Taubes was able to get the charges dropped without ever having to step foot in a courtroom.
Such an outcome shows that the state should have never brought charges against Vaccaro in the first place. Indeed, when Senior Assistant State’s Attorney Donna Parker informed Attorney Taubes that the State was dropping the case, she admitted that the State could not prove Vaccaro committed any crime.
“Upon performing the state’s due diligence in preparing this case for trial, I determined that the state could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the grill (was) “used” within 10′ of the structure, as required under the NFPA,” Parker wrote. This can be read about in the NFPA codes here, https://www.nfpa.org/codes-and-standards/nfpa-1-standard-development/1.
In the criminal justice system, the State wields immense power but has discretion on whether to use it. Unfortunately, that power isn’t always used as responsibly as it should be and innocent people get caught in the meat grinder that is the carceral state. Attorney Taubes works to keep the administrators of State power honest and ensure your rights are vindicated.
