Western Pennsylvania & Federal Criminal Defense
The defensestands with you.
When you hire this firm, you hire the attorney whose name is on the door. Every hearing. Every motion. Every time.
Free consultation · First 30 minutes at no charge
Western Pennsylvania & Federal Criminal Defense
When you hire this firm, you hire the attorney whose name is on the door. Every hearing. Every motion. Every time.
Free consultation · First 30 minutes at no charge
The Three Guarantees
Not my partner. Not my associate. Not my referral.
I will never send another attorney to your court hearing unless you fully consent. When you hire my firm, you get me, standing beside you.
At a preliminary hearing, I personally record the proceeding and provide you a digital copy, or have the court reporter transcribe it.
I research and write your motions, petitions, and briefs myself. No intern, law student, or paralegal will ever ghost-write a document I file for you.
I pride myself on my legal skill, my attention to detail, and my zealous advocacy. And you know what you’re getting— every time.
Aaron Sontz, Esq.Aaron Sontz Legal Services, P.C.
Meet Attorney Sontz
Attorney Sontz founded and directed the Major Felony Unit at the Allegheny County Office of the Public Defender— a vertical, holistic representation model built for the most serious and complex cases, staffed by teams of attorneys, social workers, and investigators.
He served as First Assistant at the Lancaster County Office of the Public Defender and as acting director of the Allegheny County Trial Unit, and practiced federal law in Erie. From 2015 through 2020, his practice focused exclusively on homicide and other major felonies.
“Many attorneys claim decades of experience. The question is how much of it was actually spent in court.”
Attorney Sontz has tried roughly 80 jury trials and conducted well over a hundred jury and non-jury trials. He is Rule 801 capital certified to defend citizens against whom the Commonwealth seeks the death penalty.
Owner & Managing Partner, Aaron Sontz Legal Services, P.C. · J.D., University of Pittsburgh School of Law · Phi Beta Kappa, Washington & Jefferson College.
Areas of Practice
Pennsylvania and federal pretrial, trial, appellate, and post-conviction representation— from the first interview to the final appeal.
All degrees of homicide, from first-degree murder to vehicular and DUI homicide, and the most serious felony charges.
Rape, sexual assault, and federal Mann Act offenses— cases governed by unique Rape Shield statutes and rules of evidence.
Preliminary hearings, suppression hearings, and trials across the full range of state charges.
Summary citations through serious traffic and DUI matters, with attention to license and collateral consequences.
Federal law and procedure differ sharply from state court. Attorney Sontz brings extensive experience in both systems.
Direct appeals to the Superior and Supreme Courts of Pennsylvania, and Post Conviction Collateral Relief petitions.
Representation in juvenile matters and in proceedings to certify or decertify cases between the juvenile and adult divisions.
Negotiating acceptance into ARD, probation without verdict, and other pretrial diversionary and alternative disposition programs.
Pretrial detention puts the accused at a profound disadvantage. Securing your release is often the first order of business.
Case Results
National Registry of Exonerations
One of Attorney Sontz’s proudest moments as a public defender came when he earned an acquittal at jury trial for a client who had served 23 years for a wrongful conviction of first-degree murder. The case is memorialized in the National Registry of Exonerations.
Every case is unique and must be evaluated on an individual, personalized basis. These results do not guarantee any particular outcome in any future case.
Free Consultation
If you are charged with a crime— or suspect you may be— consult an experienced criminal defense attorney as soon as possible. The first thirty minutes are on the house.