Criminal Law

Cops, Prosecutors Fight The Enemy: Innocence

Posted on March 30, 2011
"The proposal is designed to help prevent wrongful convictions, but is opposed by the law enforcement lobby.?That's a real quote. It's about yesterday's passage of a bill creating a "blind" administrator when showing photo line-ups to witnesses and victims...

Florida's War On The Judiciary

Posted on March 27, 2011
There's a proposal in the Florida Legislature to lower judicial pay by 8%. Combined with pension reductions, judges are looking at about a 20% reduction in compensation.The logic behind the 8%?State Representative Richard Glorioso offered no justification for the salary cut proposal other than a general comment that they had to cut somewhereCuts to other elected officials? None...

The 1,214 Email Vacation, Taming The Listserv Beast

Posted on March 23, 2011
I did it. Turned off the blackberry for a week - 7 days.The goal - to see how many emails I receive in a week, and to see whether I would return to "is this thing on" from anyone.So here's the breakdown:1,214 - average of 173.8 a day, an average of 7...

In Florida, It's Now "Let's (Some Of Us) Get To Work"

Posted on March 09, 2011
To no one's surprise, Florida's Cabinet voted 4-0 to (go back to the stone age) reverse the advances made in restoration of civil rights for convicted felons.The policy allows non-violent offenders to regain their rights without a hearing after being crime-free for five years after being released from prison...

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Today, Florida Takes A Huge Step Backward

Posted on March 08, 2011
Today Florida's Executive Clemency Board will vote to repeal former Governor Crist's granting of automatic restoration of civil rights to convicted felons. Only Kentucky and Virginia require applications for restoration of civil rights.It's a done deal, although the general public doesn't realize it yet...

I Got To Meet Melvyn Richardson

Posted on March 04, 2011
You don't know Melvyn Richardson. Google will tell you nothing about him, he's not on twitter, and he wouldn't draw a crowd at any event.But I got to meet him last night.Melvyn is a pretty hefty African-American guy with the demeanor of teddy bear. Seems a few months ago he was in traffic court in Pensacola and something important happened...

Hey Charlie...

Posted on February 25, 2011
Can't remember the magazine, Men's Health maybe? GQ? I saw the editor recently wrote his column about Charlie Sheen and called it "Dear Charlie."So I'll say "Hey, Charlie" instead.What's up with you? You're not doing too well. Screwing porn stars, being publicly nasty to your wife, claiming you're cured of your problems with alcohol...

A Message To Prosecutors & Public Defenders: Quit

Posted on February 21, 2011
As state legislatures prepare to begin their 2011 sessions, one thing is clear - state employees are going to get screwed. Actually, anyone who relies on government, i.e., everyone, is going to get screwed. It appears the screwdriver is currently being borrowed by Wisconsin...

Melendez-Diaz, Not Just A Case Name, An Acquitted Defendant

Posted on February 11, 2011
Although I now can't remember the name, when I was a young lawyer I remember seeing a crowd outside a misdemeanor courtroom. I walked up and asked someone what was going on. I was told that a defendant, who I only knew through the name of the famous case, was in the courtroom...

Forgive Me iPad, For I Have Sinned

Posted on February 10, 2011
Anyone following the advances in technology today cannot avoid the notion that the iPad is the future. Yes, the iPad is the future much like the rotary phone. Come upon a Starbucks dwelling lawyer, and in the time it takes to drink a tall coffee of the day, with room for cream, you'll be convinced that yes, this, the iPad is the future, of everything...

The Cheapening Of Our Profession: Who's To Blame?

Posted on February 03, 2011
When I first got a Blackberry, my father asked why I would want to "be in touch" all the time, why I would want people to be able to get a hold of me all day and night?I explained that it wasn't that I wanted to be accessible to everyone all the time, but that if one other criminal lawyer was, and the client was not going to make that second call, I was out of a possible case...

Of Porn And Charity

Posted on January 31, 2011
A South Florida businessman has racked up some impressive donations to the community. According to the Miami Herald, he's donated tens of thousands of dollars to charities for at-risk and underprivileged children. He has helped keep parks open, bought uniforms for a high school football team and supported bands across South Florida...

We, Not They, Lost Two Great Cops

Posted on January 21, 2011
I hesitated to write about this, not wanting to engage the "yeah, shut up, you hate cops," ignorant crowd, but here goes.Yesterday two Miami-Dade Police Officers were murdered in broad daylight. They went to arrest Johnny Simms on a homicide warrant. To the relief of every defense lawyer in Miami, he's now dead too...

Shame On The Texas Bar, And Us

Posted on January 16, 2011
A 47 year old Texas man, husband and father of two young children, steps on an airplane and goes from 37,000 feet to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. Recently promoted to CFO of his multi-national corporation, he leaves us at the height of his career, with his current salary of $1,500...

A Weekend Of The First (Not Second) Amendment

Posted on January 09, 2011
I don't remember what we were discussing before Saturday. Health Care? Unemployment? North Korea?We've now spent the last two days watching the aftermath of the attempted assassination of a member of congress. We've learned in the path of this attempt, died 6 people including a respected federal Judge, a staff member of Congresswomen Giffords, and a 9 year old girl recently elected to student council, a girl who went to the Safeway grocery store for the sole purpose of meeting a government official she could imagine becoming, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords...

Ha Ha Ha, A Prosecutor Got Arrested

Posted on January 04, 2011
That's not the reaction of every defense lawyer.But recently, a Texas prosecutor, tough on DUI cases, was arrested for DUI. Former Houston prosecutor Murray Newman got upset at the reaction, calling it a "double standard."The entire situation sent the criminal defense blogosphere in to a frenzy, as noted by Scott Greenfield:Taken from a particularized instance to a generic battle, this blew up into a seething animosity lurking just below the surface between prosecutors and defense lawyers...

Embracing Michael Vick

Posted on January 02, 2011
The other day I saw a criminal defense lawyer promoting a petition against President Obama's words of thanks to Philadelphia Eagles' owner Jeffrey Lurie for giving Michael Vick a second chance. This criminal defense lawyer spends a great deal of time advocating against animal abuse...

Anyone Available To Cover?

Posted on December 12, 2010
Matt Brown over at Chandler Criminal Defense laments the crappy, lazy, too busy to represent their clients, lawyers who have their own definition of "coverage."He recalls his early days of practice:When I first started out, other attorneys would regularly take advantage of my willingness to help out...

Judge Roberto Pineiro

Posted on December 10, 2010
Judge Roberto Pineiro died today. He was 56. He had a stroke.The death of a judge is a unique experience for a courtroom lawyer. Courthouses are like small cities, full of different types of people with different reputations among the various practitioners...

Our Addiction To The Flexible (Non) Payment Plan

Posted on December 06, 2010
"Get it up front." That's the advice from any experienced criminal defense lawyer.But cash flow is slow, you need the case, and you're OK getting $1,500 down on a $5,000 fee, because you really need that $1,500 right now.A month later that first of seven $500 payments doesn't come...

A Criminal Defense Lawyer's Thanksgiving - Tyler Weinman Edition

Posted on November 25, 2010
Unless you live in my neighborhood, you probably don't know the name Tyler Weinman. Yesterday the Miami-Dade State Attorney dropped all 19 charges against him. This happens - prosecutors dropping charges, dismissing cases, setting formerly accused defendants free...

This Isn't Burger King

Posted on November 24, 2010
Two recent calls to my office contained the same type of client - "this is how we're going to do things.The first had an employee call and advise that the boss currently had a lawyer but was looking for someone else. The employee refused to disclose the bosses' name because the last (read: one of 12) lawyer contacted his current lawyer and now he thinks his lawyer is upset with him...

Now You Want Some Civil Liberties? Now? Too Late.

Posted on November 22, 2010
It's funny watching my fellow Americans bellyache, whine, and express shock over the TSA's new policy of "doing whatever the hell we want to anyone and there's nothing you can do about it."For a criminal defense lawyer, this is nothing new. Anyone here ever try to tell a judge about something going on in the jail? First reaction: "I have no jurisdiction over (corrections) (Bureau of Prisons)...

Screw The Public Defenders

Posted on October 29, 2010
There's just no such thing about a stupid comment among friends. When it happens, blogging about it the next day is as timely as eating 4 week old bread.My friends David Markus, Jeff Gamso, and Scott Greenfield reported the news yesterday that Aspen District Attorney Martin Beeson (great website by the way) said:Public defenders are not defenders of the public...

What I'll Say To The Civil Lawyers

Posted on October 29, 2010
I'm watching the sunrise outside my hotel room window here in Jackson, Mississippi as I prepare to speak at a CLE conference sponsored by Ole Miss. They asked me to speak on the topic of civil lawyers practicing criminal law. Why not? I've never been to Mississippi, they were willing to pay the freight, and it's always good to meet other lawyers...

An Investigation Of Prosecutors

Posted on October 19, 2010
There is a notion deep within the criminal justice system that prosecutors, and those that assist them (police, investigators, witnesses) commit violations of ethical rules, and those violations are protected by judges, and the Bar.We all saw the video of the Arizona cop who took a document out of a defense lawyer's file while a full courtroom looked on...

Simple Blogging, 25,000 Comments Later

Posted on October 12, 2010
Last night, Simple Justice author "Surviving" Scott Greenfield announced the 25,000th comment had been posted on his blog.Odd announcement from someone who feigns the hype of numbers in the social media world.But the number, itself, is significant. Not that it's 25,000, but that it's 25,000 comments, written by humans (yes, some spammers) who have touched a keyboard for the purpose of responding to something written about a real issue by a real (lawyer) person...

Gloria Allred, Famous Criminal Defense Lawyer

Posted on October 06, 2010
So here I am, taking a few weeks (blasphemy!) off from blogging, and the race to the bottom of the internet just gets more and more ridiculous.Anyone who hosts a blog gets these occasional annoying (solicitations) emails:Hi Brian,I recently discovered your blog, and I have become a frequent reader...

We Stand Witness To A Monstrous Wrong

Posted on September 22, 2010
Leonard Pitts compares the Anthony Graves case to a a TV western:There's been a vicious killing. Everybody knows who did it -- or thinks they know -- and the posse wants to string the varmint up. No need for the bother of a trial. The crime was outrageous, people are furious...

A Survey On Indigent Defense Training

Posted on September 17, 2010
No, this isn't a post about the results - I want you to take this survey if you provide indigent defense services as a PD or private lawyer.A curriculum is being developed by the ABA, NACDL and the Spangenberg Project at George Mason University for an upcoming indigent defense training and technical assistance project funded by the Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Assistance...

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