Underdog Blog – Fairfax Criminal Defense Lawyer | Virginia DUI Attorney
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Alleged gang activity: What’s good for the prosecution goose is good for the defense gander
Kudos to Virginia’s intermediate appellate court for reversing a second degree murder conviction, due to the trial court’s refusal to allow the defendant to present a self defense theory surrounding the alleged gang membership of the decedent and one of his star witnesses, to try to...
Trials are war, and require reducing fear and stagefright
Photo from website of U.S. District Court (W.D. Mi.). Even though my own stage fright level by now is at a deep minimum, I still need to understand stage fright and ways to minimize it for my own ongoing journey, and for the sake of...
Why did Reginald Lett’s lawyer not object to the judge’s mistrial declaration?
Bill of Rights (From public domain.) Early on, trial lawyers are taught to “know your judge” and your jury. As a consequence, decisions whether to proceed to trial or settle a criminal or civil case require considering the potential judges and jurors who will sit at...
When is offsite criminal activity sufficient to permit a warrant to search one’s home?
Bill of Rights. (From the public domain.) Search warrants of people’s homes often are issued as a result of alleged criminal activity that takes place far from the suspect’s home. When is alleged offsite criminal activity sufficient to permit a warrant to search one’s home? In such...
More on Padilla
Following up on my earlier post today on Padilla, I sent the following to a few local criminal defense listservs: Yesterday’s Padilla decision is destined to change the landscape for the better of how criminal defense lawyers and judges address immigration issues. Here are a...
Interviewed on Voice of America’s Chinese edition
Last week the Voice of America’s Chinese edition interviewed me for its story on the Westboro Baptist Church case that has been granted certiorari review in the Supreme Court. I defended WBC at trial, and am not currently involved with the appeal. Nevertheless, I took...
Urging Hearsay Limits on Speed Calculations
Particularly now that Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts, 129 S.Ct. 2527 (2009), has become firmly entrenched in the Constitutional landscape, Sixth Amendment challenges to machine-based speed calculations should be more persuasive than ever when the people who calibrated the machine do not testify live at trial. Virginia, for instance, has...
When judges rule 6-5 on a defendant’s offer to take a breathalyzer test
An officer arrested a man for DWI on private property, and was not sure whether he would mention the possibility of taking a breathalyzer test, not knowing whether Virginia’s implied consent law for taking a breathalyzer test applied. After the defendant’s arrest but before the...
Challenging NCIC Information can be a Matter of Life or Death
Prosecutors commonly obtain National Crime Information Center (“NCIC”) reports of defendants’ criminal records. A colleague recently pointed out the unfairness of judges rejecting attacks on NCIC reports, because he asserts that the FBI, which runs the NCIC, disclaims responsibility for accuracy in NCIC reports. Certainly,...
In Virginia, no stems, no seeds that you don’t need?
Image from public domain. In Virginia, so long as one-half ounce or less is involved, distribution and possession with intent to distribute marijuana is only punishable as a misdemeanor rather than as a felony. Va. Code § 18.2-248.1. What happens, then, if the police catch...