In a criminal case, the state, through a prosecutor, initiates the suit, while in a civil case the victim brings the suit. Persons convicted of a crime may be incarcerated, fined, or both. Criminal defense attorneys represent clients who have been accused of committing a crime, and defend their rights at each stage of a misdemeanor or felony case -- from an arrest to an appeal after conviction. Criminal defense attorneys may be hired privately or provided by the government (called "public defenders").
Paramus is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 25,737. As of the Census Bureau's 2007 estimate, the population was 26,278. A suburb of New York City, Paramus is located between 15–20 miles (24–32 km) northwest of Midtown Manhattan and approximately 8 miles west of Upper Manhattan. Paramus is one of the largest shopping meccas in the country, with over $5 billion in annual retail sales, more than any other ZIP Code in the United States. This is despite the fact that Paramus is noted for having some of the most restrictive blue laws in the nation (even stricter than those prevailing in the rest of Bergen County), banning nearly all retail and white-collar businesses from opening on Sundays. Paramus was incorporated as a borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 2, 1922, based on the results of a referendum held on April 4, 1922 that passed by a vote of 238 for and 10 against. Paramus was created from portions of Midland Township, which now exists as Rochelle Park.