Best Baltimore MD Criminal Defense Lawyers

Why These Baltimore Criminal Lawyers?

We help connect consumers with top-rated criminal defense attorneys in Baltimore. To determine which are the best of the best, we scored each criminal defense attorney or law firm across a half-dozen metrics covering three categories. Each firm or attorney’s results were analyzed to bring you a handpicked list of the very best criminal defense lawyers in Baltimore.

• Attorneys reviewed: 24
• Top picks: 5

If you or a loved one have been arrested, do not delay seeking the assistance of an attorney. The sooner an attorney can get involved in your case, the better your chances of having a strong defense.

The attorney you hire may start right away, studying the authorities’ against you, doing legal research, and preparing legal motions. That’s why the sooner they begin, the better, as they work to chip away at the prosecution’s case against you.

Skilled criminal defense attorneys in Baltimore handle everything from DUIs to simple misdemeanors to white-collar crimes to violent felonies. Get the best legal defense in Baltimore by choosing from this list of best criminal defense attorneys.

Read the profiles below and choose the attorney or law firm that best aligns with your needs.

Best Baltimore Criminal Defense Lawyers

Here are the best criminal defense law firms and attorneys in Baltimore:

1. Oleg Fastovsky
2. Allan H. Rombro
3. Steve Shepard
4. Greenberg Law Offices
5. Silverman Thompson

Best Baltimore Criminal Defense Lawyers for 2021

If you or a loved one are looking for an outstanding criminal defense attorney in Baltimore, these lawyers are the best of the best.

Oleg Fastovsky

5052 Dorsey Hall Drive, Suite 202

Ellicott City, MD 21042

Phone: (410) 650-4358

Attorney Oleg Fastovsky serves clients throughout the greater Baltimore region, including Baltimore, Howard, and Anne Arundel counties, as well as many others throughout the state of Maryland. He is a member of the National College for DUI Defense, which illustrates his expertise in defending those accused of driving under the influence.

In addition to handling DUI cases, Fastovsky’s primary criminal defense practice areas include assault, sex crimes, drug crimes, domestic violence, reckless driving, gun charges, and serious traffic offenses. Fastovsky’s main office is in Ellicott City, and he has a second location in Annapolis.

Visit law firm website: https://mdcriminalattorney.net/

Visit law firm Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/MarylandDUILawyer/

Allan H. Rombro

5550 Newbury Street, Suite A

Baltimore, Maryland 21209

Phone: (410) 580-9500

Attorney Allan H. Rombro has more than three decades of experience defending those accused of DUI and other criminal offenses. Rombro’s past successes include some of the most famous cases in Baltimore history, including multiple defendants in the infamous Baltimore Block raid of strip clubs and area businesses. Despite wiretaps and state police testimony, all of Rombro’s defendants were acquitted in that high-profile case.

Rombro’s practice areas are diverse, including DUIs and drug cases, as well as federal crimes, traffic violations, prescription fraud, juvenile crimes, warrant defense, and more. Rombro has been honored by SuperLawyers, the National Trial Lawyers, and Martindale-Hubbell, and he maintains a 10.0 rating on Avvo.

Visit law firm website: https://www.rombrolegal.com/

Visit law firm Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/RombroLegal

Steve Shepard

402 W. Pennsylvania Avenue

Towson, MD 21204

Phone: (410) 648-4008

Attorney Steve Shepard has spent his entire legal career in criminal defense, beginning in public defenders’ offices. There he gained extensive experience in criminal defense but also saw the many ways in which overworked and underfunded public defenders struggle to serve those accused of crimes.

One of Shepard’s primary practice areas is in defending those accused of driving under the influence, and he has earned a 10.0 rating on Avvo for his success in this area. Other criminal defense practice areas for Shepard include assault, drug crimes, sex crimes, probation, theft, property crime, and serious traffic violations. Most recently, Shepard was honored by SuperLawyers as a rising star for 2021.

Visit law firm website: https://spslawoffice.com/

Visit law firm Facebook page: https://facebook.com/spslawoffice

Greenberg Law Offices

6 E. Biddle Street

Baltimore, MD 21202-2702

Phone: (410) 539-5250

The three attorneys at Greenberg Law Offices boast a combined 100-plus years of legal experience. Today, their practice is split between personal injury and criminal defense, but they maintain a strong specialty in DUI/DWI law. Partner Larry Greenberg has been certified by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in administering field sobriety tests, which gives him unique insight into how to successfully attack a drunken-driving case.

In addition to DUI defense, their other criminal defense practice areas include violent crimes, domestic violence, drug crimes, and appeals and records expungements. The firm’s attorneys are highly rated on Avvo and Martindale-Hubbell, and they’ve been honored by SuperLawyers and the National Trial Lawyers.

Visit law firm website: https://greenberglawyers.com/

Visit law firm Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/GreenbergLaw/

Silverman Thompson

201 N Charles St 26th Floor

Baltimore, MD 21201

Phone: (410) 385-2225

Boasting more than three dozen attorneys, Silverman Thompson is one of the biggest law firms in Baltimore and the entire U.S. Their primary practice areas include criminal defense and civil litigation, though many of the firm’s attorneys are devoted to business law. Silverman Thompson’s lineup of legal professionals includes former state and federal prosecutors, a retired state supreme court justice, and former federal judge, which means they bring some serious firepower to the cases they take on.

Silverman Thompson’s criminal defense team includes multiple associates and partners who have earned 10.0 ratings on Avvo, as well as honors from SuperLawyers, the National Trial Lawyers, and more legal organizations.

Visit law firm website: https://ricelawmd.com/attorneys/

Visit law firm Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Maryland.Lawyers

What Types of Crimes Are Most Common in Baltimore?

About 37,000 crimes were reported in the city of Baltimore in 2019, the most recent year for federal data on crime across the country. As is the case across the state and nation, property-related incidents like theft and burglary are much more common than violent crimes like rape and murder. In fact, about 70 percent of crimes in Baltimore in 2019 were property crimes, with larceny-theft accounting for 44 percent of the total in the city.

Baltimore’s population-adjusted crime rates, like in most cities, are higher than the corresponding rates for the nation. In 2019, violent crime in Baltimore occurred at a rate of nearly 1,900 per 100,000 people, while the property crime rate was about 4,300 per 100,000. Nationally, the violent crime rate is 367 per 100,000 people and the property crime rate is about 2,100 per 100,000.

Crimes in Baltimore, by number and per 100,000 people

Compared to other major cities in Maryland, Baltimore’s crime rates tend to be near the top. In fact, among the 10 biggest Maryland cities, Baltimore is in the top five for every crime category, ranking first for overall violent crime, murder, robbery, aggravated assault, and motor vehicle theft. The broader metro area, which includes Columbia and Towson, also tends to have higher crime rates than many other major American cities and metro areas. The Baltimore metro area ranks in the top 15 among the 60 largest cities in four crime categories. Its highest is fourth for robbery, while it’s in fifth place for murder, eightht for violent crime overall, and 11th for aggravated assault.

Bucking national trends, homicide in Baltimore declined in 2020, though the drop was slight. Still, with homicides rising 25 percent nationally and many cities seeing even bigger increases, it’s notable that Baltimore is trending in a positive direction. However, the city is still on pace to see at least 300 homicides in 2021, which would mark the seventh straight year.

It’s important to note that police- and FBI-reported data does not cover closed cases or incidents for which a person was convicted.