Joseph Amsel – New York City Criminal Lawyer

Mr. Amsel began his career as an Assistant District Attorney with the Queens County District Attorney’s Office, where he dedicated his time and skill to fighting to obtain justice for crime victims. As an Assistant District Attorney, Mr. Amsel handled thousands of felony and misdemeanor cases, conducted countless grand jury investigations and pre-trial hearings, and tried close to a dozen cases to verdict involving felony assault, burglary, robbery, larceny, complex fraud, sex abuse, and drunk driving. Mr. Amsel also briefed and argued numerous appeals before the Appellate Division, Second Department and the highest court in New York, the New York State Court of Appeals.
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Since entering private practice, Mr. Amsel has successfully tried a wide range of criminal cases. Mr. Amsel is widely regarded by his peers and members of the judiciary as a dedicated and brilliant trial lawyer who has won cases at the pre-trial and trial stages that seemed, at the outset, unwinnable. Mr. Amsel’s attention to detail, meticulous preparation and whit have made him a renown cross-examiner. Mr. Amsel has successfully dismantled a wide range of prosecution witnesses and experts on cross-examination including ballistic experts, microscopy experts, DNA experts, sex abuse experts, strangulation experts and various medical experts. Mr. Amsel ability to simplify complex legal and factual issues has allowed him to connect with jurors and obtain outstanding results for his clients at trial.

Mr. Amsel’s Criminal Defense practice is dedicated to representing clients in direct Criminal Appeals, Application for Leave to the New York State Court of Appeals and Petitions for a Writ of Certiorari to the United States Supreme Court. Mr. Amsel also represents clients in Post-Conviction Motions, such as CPL § 440.10 and 440.20 motions, Coram Nobis petitions and motions in Federal Court pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 2254, 2255, 2241 and Habeas Corpus relief.

Mr. Amsel serves on the Felony and Homicide Panels of the Assigned Counsel Plan in Queens County and on the Criminal Justice Act (CJA) Panel for the District of New Jersey and United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.

Mr. Amsel also has significant experience representing client in civil matters, including Civil Rights cases and Personal Injury cases. Mr. Amsel has successfully tried numerous personal injury cases including wrongful death, car accidents, motorcycle accidents, trip/slip and fall, defective sidewalks, premises liability and negligent security, often obtaining after trial more than ten times the recovery than what the insurance companies offered to settle the case before trial. Mr. Amsel has also obtained significant recoveries in Civil Rights cases for individuals in cases involving claims of False Arrest, Malicious Prosecution, Unlawful Imprisonment and Constitutional Rights violations including violations of the First, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments. Many of these individuals are clients for whom Mr. Amsel obtained either a dismissal of their criminal case or an acquittal after trial.
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Mr. Amsel has also applied his knowledge and experience of constitutional law to the classroom. For nearly ten years, Mr. Amsel served on the faculty of Touro College lecturing on topics such as Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, Constitutional Law and Legal Principles.

In 2024, Mr. Amsel was named by Super Lawyers as a New York Metro Rising Star, an honor he received after being nominated by his peers.