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PROFESSIONALS:

William T. Burke

Mr. Burke is a 1976 graduate of Springfield College, Massachusetts and a 1981 graduate of New York Law School. He has been licensed to practice law for nearly 20 years. In 1983 Mr. Burke was appointed as an Assistant District Attorney in Dutchess County. In 1986 he left the District Attorney’s Office as a Senior Assistant District Attorney. At the time of leaving the District Attorney’s Office, Mr. Burke was the head of the then newly formed Child Sex Crimes Unit of the Dutchess County District Attorney’s Office.

While in the District Attorney’s Office, Mr. Burke prosecuted both misdemeanor and felony cases. Upon leaving the office, Mr. Burke had been appointed as a special prosecutor to prosecute cases where conflicts had presented themselves resulting in the disqualification of the Dutchess County District Attorney’s Office.

In 1986 Mr. Burke began his private practice and has been engaged in the practice of law since that time. Mr. Burke has continued to practice law as a criminal defense attorney and serves as Regional Attorney to The Civil Service Employees Association, Local 1000, AFSCME/AFL-CIO, in Dutchess, Putnam, Orange, Ulster and Sullivan counties. Mr. Burke’s employment related practice has resulted in his being involved in a multitude of employment related matters on behalf of employees. Those matters have included the handling of contract negotiations, employment disciplinary matters, discrimination claims, as well as other employment related matters. Mr. Burke’s practice also involves a substantial amount of matrimonial and family law work. He has, over his career, been engaged in a variety of cases, including divorce, custody, support matters, and other matters involving domestic disputes.

In January of 2002, Mr. Burke formed a partnership with D. James O’Neil, whom he formerly practiced with in the Dutchess County District Attorney’s Office. The partnership had an emphasis upon criminal law, as well as matrimonial and family law. This partnership continued until Mr. O’Neil’s death in 2012. O’Neil & Burke continues to provide quality legal services to its clients in a variety of legal areas.

Mr. Burke is admitted to practice law in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Federal Courts of the Southern District of New York, Northern District of New York and Eastern District of New York. He is a member of the New York State Bar Association, the Dutchess County Bar Association, and the New York State Defender’s Association.

Mr. Burke appears regularly in the Supreme Court, County Court, Family Court, and local courts of Dutchess County, Orange County, Ulster County, Westchester County and Putnam County, as well as the Federal District Courts of New York.

 



D. James O'Neil

D. James O’Neil passed away on February 28, 2012.

Mr. O'Neil was a 1974 graduate of Marist College and a 1977 graduate of Vermont Law School where he obtained his Juris Doctorate degree. He had been licensed to practice law for 35 years. Mr. O'Neil was employed by the Dutchess County District Attorney's Office from 1977 until 1989. He was primarily responsible for the prosecution of violent felony offenders from 1983 to 1989. While in the District Attorney's Office he handled thousands of misdemeanor and felony cases. He prosecuted more than 60 felony trials to jury verdict including 15 murder trials.

In 1989 Mr. O'Neil left the District Attorney's Office. He had been involved in the private practice of law since that time. He defended thousands of criminal cases involving a variety of criminal offenses, including murder, white collar crimes, D.W.I., fraud, R.I.C.O., drug offenses and vehicle and traffic matters.

In 2002 Mr. O’Neil formed a partnership with William T. Burke. He continued to handle a variety of cases, including criminal law, family law and real estate. His practice was concentrated on criminal defense where he had extensive experience in all areas of the criminal law.

In 1997 Mr. O'Neil was qualified to act as lead counsel in the defense of death penalty cases in New York. He was involved in the defense of four defendants accused of capital offenses at the trial level.

Mr. O'Neil was admitted to practice law in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Federal Courts of the Southern District of New York, Northern District of New York and Eastern District of New York. He was a member of the New York State Bar Association and the Dutchess County Bar Association. He had lectured at New York State Office of Court Administration seminars for town and village justices, as well as training seminars for municipal police departments. He had been a member of the Criminal Justice Panel for the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Mr. O'Neil appeared regularly in the Supreme Court, County Court, Family Court and local courts of Dutchess County, Orange County, Ulster County and Putnam County as well as the Federal District Court of the Southern District of New York.




Connor J. Burke