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Criminal Law

Law Of Criminal Defense

News, information, ethics opinions and analysis relating to criminal defense, legal ethics and professional responsibility.
By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

Post Frequency: 11.2/day

Last Entry: March 25, 2011 at 18:32:28

D.Kan.: Defense counsel's agreement not to show discovery to defendant did not create an actual conflict of interest

Posted on October 17, 2010
Defense counsel's agreement not to show discovery to defendant in a federal case did not create an actual conflict of interest. United States v. Guzman, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 109544 (D. Kan. October 13, 2010): There is no showing of any actual conflicts of interest here...

Lawyer jailed for contempt for refusing to stand for courtroom Pledge of Allegiance

Posted on October 07, 2010
A Mississippi lawyer arrested for contempt for refusing to recite Pledge of Allegiance at direction of judge in court. See this Mississippi lawyer's blog. Or, consider this take from The Agitator: Give Thanks for Your Freedom, Son, Or I’m Sending You to Jail.

MD: Right to counsel at a bail hearing

Posted on October 06, 2010
In the Blog of the Legal Times, a Maryland judge held that all defendants have a right to counsel at a bail hearing.

Texas can't figure out whether to ban sex with clients

Posted on October 05, 2010
Texas still can't figure out how to ban sex with clients: Proposed Texas Ban on Sex with Clients Is Subject of Hot Debate, on ABAJ.com, linking to the Dallas Morning News.

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PD cited for contempt for not being in two counties at same time

Posted on October 02, 2010
PD and supervisor issued show cause order for contempt because the PD couldn't be in two counties at the same time. See Public defender cited for contempt from Rochester MN: The incident highlights the 3rd Judicial District public defender office's claim that case loads have become excessive...

The BP criminal case starts, on NOLA.com

Posted on September 26, 2010
Feds establish downtown bunker to build criminal, civil cases against BP in Gulf oil spill by David Hammer in the NOLA.com Times Picayune.

MN lawyer convicted of possession for snorting coke in bathroom during clients trial

Posted on September 24, 2010
A Minnesota criminal defense Lawyer Gets 2 Days in Jail for Snorting Coke at Courthouse During Client’s Trial, plus "fined $2,500, ordered to perform 240 hours of community service and sentenced to 10 years of probation in the third-degree felony drug possession case, reports the Minneapolis Star Tribune...

IL: ASA's lying to blogger during judicial race and sarcastic closing arguments lead to disciplinary complaint

Posted on September 23, 2010
A Chicago prosecutor's lying to a blogger about a prior disciplinary when running for a judgeship and her sarcastic closing arguments led to a disciplinary beef: Cook County prosecutor accused of misconduct; Disciplinary panel says she lied about previous run-in, used inflammatory and sarcastic language during closing arguments via ABAJ.

NJ criminal defense lawyer indicted for allegedly bribing a witness

Posted on September 23, 2010
A criminal defense lawyer was indicted in federal court in New Jersey for allegedly paying a witness to lie about a client's possession of a firearm. He was a former cop and prosecutor before becoming a criminal defense lawyer. See Indicted ex-Essex County official showed 'disturbing disregard for the law,' authorities say...

Lawyer disbarred for asking client to score him coke

Posted on September 22, 2010
From Law.com: Lawyer Disbarred After Asking Client to Make Cocaine Buy.

MI: Sex with client's wife in divorce case, the opposing party, gets 3 yr suspension

Posted on September 17, 2010
The Michigan Attorney Discipline Board has suspended a matrimonial lawyer for three years for having sex with the client's wife, the opposing party. Grievance Administrator v. Mikat, Case No. 09-56-GA (September 10, 2010).

N.D.Miss.: False testimony by state in penalty phase vitiates DP

Posted on September 17, 2010
The state's knowing presentation of false testimony at trial vitiates death sentence. The testimony was from an ADA who was, by the time of the habeas hearing, a state Circuit Judge. Hodges v. Epps, 1:07CV66-MPM (N.D. Miss. September 13, 2010. Via Legal Ethics Forum

ABA Formal Op. 10-456, IAC lawyer's duties on disclosing confidences

Posted on September 17, 2010
Formal Opinion 10-456, Disclosure of Information to Prosecutor When Lawyer's Former Client Brings Ineffective Assistance of Counsel Claim (July 14, 2010): Although an ineffective assistance of counsel claim ordinarily waives the attorney-client privilege with regard to some otherwise privileged information, that information still is protected by Model Rule 1...

SC: Sex with client's spouse during the representation is a per se conflict of interest under 1.7

Posted on September 15, 2010
Sex with client's spouse during the representation is a per se conflict of interest. In the Matter of Anonymous, No. 26879 (S.C. September 13, 2010): The Panel specifically stated it did not condone Respondent's conduct in this case, noting: "we find it morally inappropriate and ill-advised at best...

CA7: Judge's foot in mouth at sentencing gets resentencing; judge gone off deep end?

Posted on September 15, 2010
Not really relevant to this website, but too strange to not include: A District Judge wanders off the reservation during a sentencing and belittles an Hispanic drug defendant referring to him and his family as "you people" and sounding like he was cracking up...

NY: Judge's snide comments about defense counsel gets new trial

Posted on September 15, 2010
On Law.com, from the NYLJ: Judge's Ridicule of Attorney Prompts Panel to Order New Trial by Daniel Wise: A Bronx, N.Y., judge ridiculed a defense attorney and criticized his arguments in front of a jury by using loaded words such as "clown," "silly," "outrageous" and "comedy," prompting a unanimous appeals panel Tuesday to overturn a robbery conviction and to direct that on remand the case be tried before a different judge...

Kieffer affirmed in 8th Cir.

Posted on September 13, 2010
"Attorney-impersonator" Howard Kieffer's fraud conviction in North Dakota is affirmed today by the Eighth Circuit. He also gets affirmed his two level enhancement for use of a "special skill," even though he is not an attorney. Part of the fraud enhancement came from his implying he was affiliated with NACDL (see note 8, page 15) and his claimed 85% success rate in 2255's...

Kilpatrick lawyer suspended for not correcting false testimony in a civil case

Posted on September 11, 2010
In the ongoing former Detroit Mayor Kilpatrick saga, one of his lawyers had his license suspended for 179 days in not correcting false testimony of the client in the civil part of the case where the text messages were hidden from the public. Source: Detroit Free Press, linking to the brief opinion and disciplinary report.

WI: Heroin conviction gets 2 year suspensioin

Posted on September 11, 2010
A Wisconsin lawyer was suspended for two years after his conviction for possession of heroin. In the Matter of Compton, 2010AP1118-D (Wis. September 8, 2010. In my state, a drug conviction used to be a death penalty offense, but they recently relented and gave only a caution where a lawyer was convicted of possession of a small quantity of meth, went into the lawyer's assistance program, and received a deferred sentence...

Fed $ used to train only judges and prosecutors

Posted on September 10, 2010
A criminal defense lawyer complains about lawyer training. Seminars directed to only judges, prosecutors are troubling by Robert Calesaric in the Newark Advocate.com: Recently, I became aware of a situation that, as a criminal defense lawyer, I find troubling...

High profile Boston criminal defense lawyer suspended for aiding unauthorized practice

Posted on September 10, 2010
High profile defense lawyer suspended, by Eric Convey in Boston Business Journal, stating that the criminal defense lawyer abetted the unauthorized practice of law by a law grad who hadn't passed the bar who was running an employment discrimination practice out of his office...

OH on public defender conflicts; no conflict imputed to appellate defenders not directly associated with trial defenders for IAC claims

Posted on August 30, 2010
The Ohio Supreme Court's Board of Commissioners on Grievances and Discipline issued Opinion 2010-5 on August 13, 2010, posted on the Court's website August 24th: SYLLABUS: The assistant state public defenders in the state public defender’s central appellate office located in the state’s capital city and the assistant state public defenders in the state public defender’s trial branch offices located in four different counties are not automatically considered lawyers associated in a firm for purposes of imputing conflicts of interest under Prof...

If you're going to have sex with a client, at least make sure she's not crazier than you are

Posted on August 27, 2010
"Yes, I had sex with a criminal client, but not in the Courthouse law library" on ABAJ.com (paraphrasing). "He represented the woman in a criminal matter and allegedly was aware of her troubled emotional history." Iowa disciplinary authorities are seeking a three year suspension, according to the Des Moines Register...

Study says that "Public Defenders Often are Just as Effective as Private Counsel"

Posted on August 26, 2010
On ABAJ.com: Public Defenders Often are Just as Effective as Private Counsel, Study Says, by Martha Neil: A study of Chicago-area courts found that public defenders often are just as effective as private lawyers in persuading judges to grant bail, accept plea bargains and sentence defendants appropriately...

OH: Lawyer suspended for padding bills in appointed cases

Posted on August 25, 2010
An Ohio appointed criminal lawyer was suspended for overbilling and double billing. Toledo Bar Assn. v. Stahlbush, 2010-Ohio-3823 (No. 2010-0032, August 24, 2010): {¶ 3} On the third day of the hearing before a panel of the Board of Commissioners on Grievances and Discipline, the parties submitted stipulations that the respondent had billed the county for 3451...

On ABAJ.com, linking to an AJC

Posted on August 21, 2010
On ABAJ.com, linking to an AJC article: Ex-Bar Prez to Probe for Case Problems from Chief Judge’s Affair with Asst. Public Defender and whether any cases were compromised: The chief judge in Fayette County, Ga., abruptly resigned earlier this year when it came out that he was having an affair with an assistant public defender working in his courtroom...

ABAJ: "Lawyer Who Wore Wire to Build Case Against Claimed Client: ?I Had to Do It?"

Posted on August 21, 2010
On ABAJ.com: Lawyer Who Wore Wire to Build Case Against Claimed Client: ‘I Had to Do It’, about the suppression hearing: Criticized by some for his unusual participation in helping the feds establish a case against a drug suspect, “I had a personal struggle with myself whether to get involved in that,” the 52-year-old Haddock told U...

MN criminal defense lawyer pleads to using cocaine in courthouse bathroom

Posted on August 19, 2010
A Minnesota criminal defense lawyer who was apparently sniffing cocaine in the courthouse bathroom was arrested and now plead guilty. See Criminal defense lawyer pleads guilty to drug charge on MinnLawyer Blog.

Kieffer's Denver sentence now nine years

Posted on August 17, 2010
Howard Kieffer was sentenced to a total of nine years in Denver for posing as a criminal defense lawyer. See DenverPost.com. U.S. District Judge Christine Arguello sentenced Kieffer to 57 months in prison for a count of wire fraud and a count of making false statements and 37 months on a third count of contempt of court...

"Why Lawyers Should Work No More than 40 Hours a Week"

Posted on August 15, 2010
ABAJ.com: Why Lawyers Should Work No More than 40 Hours a Week cross referencing to: How to Be Productive: Stop Working on BNet.com. Writes Heffernan, “Leaders need to take seriously a century’s evidence that 1) overwork doesn’t make us productive, it makes us stupid, 2) looking away from a problem is often the best way to solve it, and 3) burnout is what happens when people are asked to work in ways that obliterate all other parts of their lives...

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