Underdog Blog – Fairfax Criminal Defense Lawyer | Virginia DUI Attorney

Tooth and nail fighting is needed in your Virginia defense. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I reognize, highly respect and fully honor such fighting as we have recently seen in the no holds barred battle by an autistic Texas death row inmate's criminal defense team,...

Live witnesses against the accused sometimes can be bad enough at trial. Admitting hearsay evidence at trial can be even more damning, for the deprivation of the opportunity under the Constitution's Sixth Amendment to confront and cross examine the witnesses against the defendant. This truism...

Prosecution witness (PW) absence will happen from time to time in Virginia court. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know that this does not automatically translate into a permanent dismissal, denial of a prosecution continuance, nor absence of a prosecutor recharge if the case gets...

Jury panel member equivocation can be common during the voir dire process of selecting and deselecting potential jurors / venire panel members. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know that the voir dire process is so critical that some litigants spend hefty sums to hire consultants...

Unlawful weapon possession will often be charged against everyone near the weapon. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I warn you to beware who you associate with, due to the penchant that many police / law enforcement officers have to arrest everyone near contraband, and to...

Suppression appeals by Virginia assistant commonwealth's attorneys / prosecutors are not automatically precluded by res judicata / estoppel grounds. Perez Flores v. Commonwealth of Virginia, ___ Va. App. ___ (Oct. 1, 2024). As a Fairfax lawyer, moving to integrate my suppression motion into the trial is...

Difficult factfinder and other challenging litigation situations abound with criminal defense, whether from harsh laws, prosecution-friendly procedures and evidentiary rules, biased jurors, judges who do not give the defense enough time to prepare and present their case, deaf-acting prosecutors, or police acting irritated when Virginia...

Fairfax plea negotiating -- as in the rest of commonwealth -- is an art that involves not only the Virginia criminal defendant, but also the criminal defense lawyer, the prosecutor / assistant commonwealth's attorney, the purported victim(s) and the judge. On top of that are...

Assault dismissal -- or else acquittal -- is the ultimate goal when charged with this alleged Virginia crime. I have gotten Fairfax assault cases and such cases in other jurisdictions acquitted, dismissed on the trial date (whether by agreement with the prosecutor or under the...

Texting stings are rampant. They constitute easy police work that can be done by law enforcement officers (LEO) with much of the work from the comfort of a desk or armchair while having a snack. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I watch with sadness and...